Medical Translation: Zero Margin for Error
Some mistakes have truly dramatic consequences, and bad medical translation is in that group. The odd typo in a marketing document might lose you some respect, maybe even some sales, but no one is going to die from your mistake. However, errors in medical translation can have very serious results. They can jeopardise not only the health and well-being of patients, but also the credibility and continued existence of medical institutions.
In 2007, in Germany, someone made a seemingly minor error when translating the label on a package of knee prostheses. This resulted in 47 failed knee surgeries. The original (source language) label said “non-modular cemented”, however this was translated as “without cement”.
“Two different types of that knee prosthesis are available — for use with or without cement. The source- language label on the package of the prosthesis included the information that the femoral component was “non-modular cemented,” which was incorrectly translated as “non-cemented” or “without cement” (Fakler et al. 2007: 1). For over 12 months, medical professionals who performed or assisted in the operations were unaware of the fact that prosthesis elements had not been implanted in the correct manner.”
The Journal of Specialised Translation
Knee surgery is extremely painful and requires months of recovery. The mistranslation of a single word had a dramatic impact on the lives of 47 people. In addition, as you can imagine, the legal and financial implications of this error were considerable.
Even ambiguity can have consequences: a few years ago, a pharmaceutical leaflet mistranslated “to take as needed” into “tomar como necesitado” in Spanish, which more closely translates to “take when feeling needy.” This left patients confused about when to take their medication. Also of concern are false friends: Some examples of these include drug vs droga — in Spanish, drogas are medicine, rather than illegal drugs as commonly implied in English. Or abortion vs aborto — in Spanish aborto refers to a a miscarriage, not an intentionally aborted foetus.
Note: Texts for healthcare professionals (e.g., surgical guidelines) differ significantly from those for patients (e.g., discharge instructions), requiring different approaches to translation.
Multilingual Documentation and Legal Compliance
That said, multilingual documentation is essential in one of the most tightly-legislated industries in the world. Medical Translation may be required at any level, including clinical research, regulatory submission and review, production and marketing.
In Europe, the expansion of the EU is also driving increased demand for pharmaceutical and medical translation services. In EU member states, in addition to the requirements of the country’s own drug regulatory authority, companies must also meet the requirements of the European Medicines Agency (EMEA). Furthermore, translators must adhere to strict confidentiality standards to protect patient data, in line with laws like HIPAA (USA) or GDPR (EU).
Medical texts are a vital link in the communication chain between healthcare givers and their patients; as well as between regulatory bodies and local health centres. It’s crucial that documents presented by one party can be read and understood by the other when there isn’t a common language. With medical translation, precision is a must, a translator cannot omit, substitute, or add anything that wasn’t in the original source text. Any incorrect word or phrase could cause complications.
For more on regulatory processes and requirements: Translating for the Pharmaceutical Industry
Key Requirements for a Medical Translator
- Qualifications: A specialised medical translator should have medical qualifications — it seems obvious. And many medical translators are specialists or a general practitioners. This ensures your translator has the necessary experience, and is familiar with the subject they are translating.
- Certifications: Medical translators should have (at least) a degree in Translation. Furthermore, an ISO 9001 certification, can be a very good way to evaluate a Translation Agency.
- Experience: Be sure the translator has a solid grasp of ethical issues, is knowledgeable in anatomy and physiology, and has a good understanding of general medical terms, and their implications. Also, the field evolves rapidly, requiring translators to stay updated on new developments, drugs, and treatment protocols.
- Professionalism: All professional translators should be proficient in both languages, and a native speaker of the target language (ie. the language they are translating into). They should exhibit top-notch copywriting skills; this way, the tone and nuances of the source text are not lost in translation. Also, while most translators use computer-assisted translation (CAT tools) in their translation process, there are some that rely solely on manual efforts. Using a CAT tools and a Translation Memory is usually faster, as well as ensuring greater accuracy and fluency.
At QuickSilver Translate, we offer specialised translation services for the medical sector, using qualified, professional translators, with experience and expert knowledge in the topics they translate.
