Publications

The NCIHC Working Papers are designed to provide answers to commonly asked questions regarding health care interpreting, such as: What should the role of an interpreter be? How do you test interpreters when no certification test is available? What models exist for providing language access services?

As a rule, Working Papers are drafted by a committee of experts, or sometimes by a single expert at the request of a committee. The content of the papers often reflects discussions held by the Council as a whole. The draft is then reviewed by the entire board, whose input is integrated into the final product.

These documents are works in progress and represent the current best thinking in the field; they may be adapted in the future, however, as the field grows and thinking matures. 

NCIHC Working Papers

Public Comment on the Critical Importance of Language Access in Healthcare (April 2025)

NCIHC Guidance for Contracting AI-generated Interpreting (July 2024)

NCIHC Partnering with an Interpreter, with graphics (February 2024)

NCIHC Partnering with an Interpreter, no graphics (February 2024)

Remote Interpreting Modalities in Health Care Settings (February 2024)

Interpreting for Deafblind Patients (January 2024)

Remote Interpreting Challenges During COVID (January 2024)

Deafblind Patients During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Insight from Healthcare Interpreters (January 2024)

NCIHC is proud to have been one of the collaborators and endorsers of the T & I Definitions. Many thanks go to the organizations involved and especially to NAJIT for their efforts in leading this forward. Congratulations to those who have worked so hard to advocate for language access and define the professions of translation and interpreting. (2016)

What's in a Word? A Guide to Understanding Interpreting and Translation in Health Care (April 2010)  Published by the National Health Law Program (NHeLP) in collaboration with the American Translators Association and NCIHC

• Full document

• Overview (2 pages)

The Terminology of Health Care Interpreters: A Glossary of Terms (Revised 2008)

The Interpreter's World Tour; The Environmental Scan of Standards of Practice for Interpreters (March 2005)

Guide to Interpreter Positioning in Health Care Settings (November 2003)

Final Report on a Pilot of a Certification Process for Spanish-English Interpreters in Health Care, Conducted in 2003  (November 2003)

Assessing the Non-English Language Proficiency of Health Care Clinicians: an Environmental Scan (October 2003)

Models for the Provision of Health Care Interpreter Training (February 2002)

Models for the Provision of Language Access in Health Care Settings By Bruce Downing, Ph.D., and Cynthia E. Roat, MPH (March 2002)

Linguistically Appropriate Access and Services; An Evaluation and Review for Healthcare Organizations By Charles C. (Mike) Anderson, M.P.A., (June 2002)

The Role of the Health Care Interpreter: An Evolving Dialogue, by Maria-Paz Beltran Avery, Ph.D. (April 2001)

Guide to Initial Assessment of Interpreter Qualifications (April 2001)

Recommendations for the Ethical Involvement of Limited English-Speakers in Research By Elizabeth Jacobs, MD, Wilma Alvarado-Little, and Eric Hardt, MD (October 2001)