Why is Medical Records Translation to English Important?

Introduction

The dissemination of knowledge and novel medical breakthroughs depends heavily on translation. Moreover, International communication, commerce, and travel are all conducted in English. English is officially spoken in 39 countries and is partly spoken as the mother tongue in 19 other countries. According to Statista 2022, there are around 1.5. Therefore, Medical records translation to English is crucial in communicating between patients and physicians, and may act as an intermediator language between two different languages.

What is Medical record translation?

A medical record translation is a practice of translating medical documents from their original language to the language of the country where you will receive treatment. The main purpose of translation is to bring different cultures together and help them understand each other.
Each medical record must have enough precise information to be able to identify the patient, prove the diagnosis, justify the course of treatment, record the progress and outcomes, and encourage the continuity of care across healthcare professionals.
Medical records include a patient's medical history, clinical findings, diagnostic test results, surgical procedures, pre-operative, and post-operative treatment, patient progress, medication, vaccination Record, allergies, medical conditions, and treatment plans.
If these notes are properly documented, they will assist the doctor's assessment of the efficacy of the course of therapy.
The translation process's five basic steps include examination of the text that has to be translated followed by initial translation, then checking the translation's precision after that, rest a few minutes. Finally, proofread the translation's language.

Why are medical translation services important?

As mentioned before, translating from the original language to another is not available in the country where you are, however, translating any language to English is common.
So, Medical translation services shorten patients’ and healthcare’s time and help healthcare providers in reaching diagnosis properly and immediately. These also save patients money by not spending money on repeated investigations. All these improve patient care and ensure quality.

Why would you need a certified translation of medical records?

A translated document is certified as being accurate and comprehensive. It means that a language service provider like us provides a signed and dated declaration of truth to certify that the completed translation is an accurate and true representation of the original document. This official declaration on company letterhead is attached to the translation
Patients usually need a certified translation of medical records as they may choose to travel abroad to access innovative private treatments that were first diagnosed or treated abroad and now wish to continue treatment in the public health care system of their country of usual residence.
In case of immigration or travelling abroad for work or treatment. The immigration office might require a certified translation of medical records. One of the main justifications for getting your medical records translated is the possibility that the immigration office would need the data in English. Everyone who applies for a visa must undergo a medical exam, but it's also a good idea to get your current records translated. It guarantees that the immigration officer may easily access and study any supplemental material.
For example, when you immigrate to the United States, you’ll need to find a doctor in your new local area who can handle your medical care. While most physicians will have you fill out forms to get the basics of your medical history, that document may only give you enough space for a high-level overview of your health status.
So, medical records translation to English is essential to give the complete file to your new doctor. They will have access to specifics about your medical history, such as previous diagnoses, treatments, surgeries, prescriptions, and more.
In addition to this, high-quality certified translation of medical records is also required in clinical trial studies, in post-marketing pharmacovigilance and drug safety monitoring, such as reporting any side effects following the use of an approved Covid-19 vaccine; in personal injury and clinical malpractice claims; in travel insurance claims; relating to criminal proceedings.

Why are professional translations important?

Medical translation services need technical precision and translation by medical linguists. Professional medical linguists, as opposed to common translation providers, have a scientific background and are able to combine their medical expertise with their linguistic abilities to provide you peace of mind that your medical documents will be translated accurately to the highest standard.
Medical translation poses difficulties and challenges. Difficulties could be categorized into general difficulties and specific difficulties. General difficulties are intrinsic when translating from one language to another including language structure, compound structure, and multiple meanings of the word.
Specific difficulties include medical terms, issues on equality, readability, the equivalence of medical texts, and unique characteristics of the medical language such as Multi-word terms, eponyms, abbreviations, acronyms, country-specific vocabulary, handwritten notes, and complicated layout.
Adding, removing, or replacing information is a common mistake. Misinformation misleads physicians and consumers. Also, omitting information is very dangerous. Patients need important information about their health status. If something is not on the translated record, a person can be completely misdiagnosed. This is especially true for handling patient prescriptions. Make sure all the information the patient needs for the prescription is present. This way, you can completely avoid someone getting a life-threatening drug.

Conclusion
One of our industry's most difficult specialisations is now medical translation. Since the fifth century, words of Greek and Latin roots have been used in medical language. Medical records for patients may include information from a variety of specialties, including genetics and gynaecology. Medical records translation to English may act as intermediate translation between two languages.Therefore, experienced medical linguists provide medical translation services.