As part of a series of talks on interpreting and the association’s continuing professional development (CPD) programme for 2021, the Panhellenic Association of Translators is organizing an online event on Wednesday, February 17, 2021, on the topic of “Court Interpreting, Community Interpreting and Intercultural Approach to Medical Interpreting”.
The event will be held from 19.00 to 20.00 (local time) and is hosted by the PEM Interpreting Working Group.
Topic
Ιn addition to conference interpreting, court interpreting and community interpreting are key areas of expertise for professional interpreters.
To ensure quality interpreting services are provided throughout the spectrum of human activity, especially in the areas of healthcare, education, and the Greek judicial system, it is vital that professionals cooperate with the academia and specialists from the corresponding fields as well as national, European, and international stakeholders with expertise in the field. It is equally vital that interpreting in the community is performed in accordance with international standards and best practices as well as European Union directives.
Specifically, as far as court interpreting is concerned, the Panhellenic Association of Translators has called upon the Greek Ministry of Justice, as early as September 2016, to take steps to immediately improve the translation and interpreting system currently in place. Unfortunately, in Greece, as in other EU countries, the profession of court and healthcare interpreters is not sufficiently regulated. The Greek government has failed to implement a central strategy to regulate and control the quality of interpreting services in the fields of justice, healthcare, education and the community at large.
During this event, we reflect upon the current state and the future of court interpreting in Greece, the reality of community interpreting in our country and its potential. Most importantly, throughout, we attempt to shade light on the contribution public services interpreters in creating an environment which ensures the rights of “non-native” speakers and equal access to basic services, such as healthcare and justice.
To better serve the purpose of this event, we extended an invitation to academics and specialists with long experience in the subject matter. Professor Stefanos Vlachopoulos, from the Department of Foreign Languages, Translation and Interpretation of the Ionian University, will attempt to describe the future of court interpreting in Greece. Associate Professor Fotini Apostolou, from the Department of English Language and Literature of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, will talk about community interpreting. Finally, Dr. Izabel de Souza, a specialist in interlingual communication, will explore the role of the interpreter as a co-constructor of the therapeutic encounter and the latter’s outcome in relation to the expected results as envisaged from the different viewpoints of the participants in the medical consultation.
The event will be held in English with simultaneous interpretation in Greek and will be chaired by the head of the CPD Department of PEM, Ms. Valentini Kalfadopoulou, and the coordinator of the Interpreting Working Group of PEM, Dr. Effrossyni (Effie) Fragkou.
The speakers
Stefanos Vlachopoulos
Stefanos Vlachopoulos is a professor of Interlingual communication in Multicultural Settings at the Department of Foreign Languages Translation and Interpreting of the Ionian University and the University of Ioannina.
He holds 2 Bachelor Degrees in Translation and interpreting, as well as a Doctorate degree awarded by the Department of Foreign Languages, Translation and Interpreting off the Ionian University.
His research interests include the translation of specialized texts, interpreting, intercultural communication in professional settings and lexicography. He has been head of various research projects and has published several monographs and numerous articles in international scientific journals, book chapters and conference presentations.
Fotini Apostolou
Fotini Apostolou is an Associate Professor in the Department of Translation and Intercultural Studies of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.
She holds a PhD in English Literature from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.
She has worked as a freelance translator and interpreter since 1993. She teaches and researches in the fields of translation practice, community and conference interpreting, cultural studies. Her ebook in Greek on Translation and Interpreting for Public Services in Greece was published in 2015.
Dr. Izabel de Souza
Dr Izabel de Souza has been working professionally in the field of intercultural communication for over thirty-five years.
A former President and altern-Executive Director of the International Medical Interpreters Association, she has also served a three year term as Secretary General for the International Federation of Translators (FIT), and in this role she contributed to the development of the first FIT list serve. She continues to work with FIT as FIT Liaison to ISO, as FIT Head of Delegation to the ISO annual meetings. She has been working with ISO and ASTM since 2009, as a subject matter expert, assisting with the development of international as well as national interpreting and translation standards of practice.
Recently she has been selected to work as project manager of the upcoming ISO Standard on Medical/Healthcare Interpreting. She a member of ATA, ATISA, IAPTI, EST, IMIA, Critical Link, and ATIF, and author of the book entitled Intercultural Mediation in Healthcare.
How to register for this event
Click here to register for this event.
