This paper is an attempt at defining more clearly the various roles of community interpreters and the processes implicitly connected with each of them. While the role of the interpreter is a subject that has been widely discussed in the social science literature, it is less present in the biomedical one, which tends to emphasize the importance of interpreting in overcoming language barriers, rather than as a means of building bridges between patients and physicians. Hence, studies looking at interpreted medical interactions suggest that the presence of an interpreter is more beneficial to the healthcare providers than to the patient. This statement is illustrated by the results of a recent study in a pediatric outpatient clinic in Switzerland. It is suggested that, in the consultations, interpreters act mainly as linguistic agents and health system agents and rarely as community agents. This is consistent with the pediatricians’ view of the interpreter as mainly a translating machine. A new typology of the varying roles of the interpreter is proposed, outlining the relation to cultural differences maintained therein. Some recommendations for the training of interpreters and healthcare providers are suggested.
2026. Anatomy of a conversation: Voices of dual-role medical interpreters. Communication & Medicine
Babraj, Maria
2025. The English Translation of Polish Cultural References in the Video Game The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. Studies in Polish Linguistics 20:1 ► pp. 1 ff.
Cox, Antoon, Marianne Couillard Larocque, Nicolas Dauby & Yvan Leanza
2025. On equal footing? The impact of patient companions on Lifeworld integration and patient-centeredness in linguistically diverse emergency consultations. International Journal for Equity in Health 24:1
Ginsberg-Jaeckle, Matt, Edna M. Babbitt, Yina M. Quique, Elissa Larkin, Sylvia Escárcega & Leora R. Cherney
2025. Postures de l’interprète face aux mineurs non accompagnés. L'autre Volume 26:1 ► pp. 50 ff.
Leanza, Yvan, Sophie Pointurier & Laurie Duchesne
2025. Interpreting is an emotional effort: Public service interpreters’ coping strategies in emotionally charged situations. Interpreting and Society
Luetke Lanfer, Hanna, Victoria Touzel & Doreen Reifegerste
2025. Semi-professional language mediators in patient-provider interactions in Germany: an interview study. BMC Health Services Research 25:1
Løkken, Marita
2025. Gaze Direction as Framing for Interaction in Sign Language–Interpreted Routine Postnatal Visits. Communication & Medicine
Løkken, Marita
2026. Gaze direction as framing for interaction in sign language–interpreted routine postnatal visits. Communication & Medicine 20:2 ► pp. 127 ff.
Valdez, Susana, Floor Van Heeswijk & Noa Warren
2025. Machine Translation at the Hospital: Healthcare Professionals’ Perspectives on Use, Appropriateness, and Policy. Tradumàtica tecnologies de la traducció :23 ► pp. 244 ff.
Wishlade, Tabitha, Ginny Mounce & Helen Allan
2025. Invisible labour: A qualitative exploration of the professional identity of interpreters working in UK maternity care settings. Health: An Interdisciplinary Journal for the Social Study of Health, Illness and Medicine
Gong, He, Xiyuan Liu, Hui Xiong & Yiting Yang
2024. Non-professional Medical Interpreting as a Contextualized Practice: Chinese Volunteer Interpreters’ Role-Spaces in Mediating Provider-Patient Conflicts Amid the Pandemic. Health Communication 39:1 ► pp. 15 ff.
Moreno, Conchita Otero
2024. Community interpreting as a means to overcoming communication barriers for people with German as a second language: Areas of application, requirements, professionalisation. In Handbook of Accessible Communication [Easy – Plain – Accessible, ], ► pp. 385 ff.
Moreno, Conchita Otero
2024. Community interpreting as a means to overcoming communication barriers for people with German as a second language: Areas of application, requirements, professionalisation. In Handbook of Accessible Communication [Easy – Plain – Accessible, 15], ► pp. 385 ff.
Álvaro Aranda, Cristina
2024. Transcending medical consultations. Revista Española de Lingüística Aplicada/Spanish Journal of Applied Linguistics 37:2 ► pp. 682 ff.
Cho, Jinhyun
2023. Interpreters as Translation Machines: Telephone Interpreting Challenges as Awareness Problems. Qualitative Health Research 33:12 ► pp. 1037 ff.
Cho, Jinhyun
2024. To act or not to act: interpreters’ dilemmas and choices in aged care assessments of elderly migrants. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development 45:7 ► pp. 2412 ff.
Cho, Jinhyun
2026. How Do Interpreters Not Know Language? Monolingual Approaches to Multilingual Minorities in Interpreting. International Journal of Applied Linguistics 36:1 ► pp. 212 ff.
Pérez Estevan, Elena
2023. Interpreter-Mediated End-of-Life Encounters in Spain: Mapping the Spanish Situation Based on Healthcare Providers’ Input. In New Trends in Healthcare Interpreting Studies [New Frontiers in Translation Studies, ], ► pp. 157 ff.
René De Cotret, François & Yvan Leanza
2023. Typology of Healthcare Interpreter Positionings as applied to family medicine. Patient Education and Counseling 113 ► pp. 107773 ff.
2023. Working with interpreters in the family violence sector in Australia: “It's very hard to be in between”. International Journal of Intercultural Relations 96 ► pp. 101871 ff.
TAŞDAN DOĞAN, Tuğçe Elif & Nagihan TEPE
2023. Healthcare Interpreting in Emergency Departments: Importance of Healthcare Interpreters in the Communicational Process of Foreign Patients and Physicians. Mevzu – Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi :10 ► pp. 461 ff.
2022. Forschung im Fernen Osten: Kultursensibles Generieren einer qualitativ hochwertigen Datenvielfalt. In Datenvielfalt in kommunikationswissenschaftlichen Forschungskontexten, ► pp. 273 ff.
Rossi, Elisa
2022. Il dialogo medico nelle interazioni pediatriche. Azioni comunicative per promuovere la partecipazione attiva e l'approccio centrato sul paziente. SALUTE E SOCIETÀ :2 ► pp. 165 ff.
Boivin, Isabelle, Yvan Leanza & Ellen Rosenberg
2021. Représentations et rôles des interprètes professionnels et familiaux dans les entretiens médicaux et implications pour le monde vécu. Alterstice 2:2 ► pp. 35 ff.
René de Cotret, François, Noelia Burdeus-Domingo & Yvan Leanza
2021. Sept stratégies pour collaborer avec l’interprète de service public. Santé mentale au Québec 45:2 ► pp. 39 ff.
Rocholl, Angela
2021. Sprach- und Integrationsmittler*innen in der geburtshilflichen Versorgung. Public Health Forum 29:2 ► pp. 160 ff.
Rocholl, Angela & Ute Lange
2021. Challenges and chances by involving community interpreters in the regular health care of pregnant women and young mothers from third countries with language barriers. A qualitative study within the project RundUm – Transcultural network in the care of pregnancy and birth / Herausforderungen und Chancen bei der Hinzuziehung von Sprach- und Integrationsmittlerinnen in die Regelversorgung von Schwangeren und jungen Müttern aus Drittstaaten. Eine qualitative Erhebung im Rahmen des Projektes RundUm – Transkulturelles Netzwerk zur Begleitung bei Schwangerschaft und Geburt. International Journal of Health Professions 8:1 ► pp. 86 ff.
Tuteja, Amita, Elisha Riggs, Lena Sanci, Lester Mascarenhas, Di VanVliet, Katrina Sangster, Kimberley McGuinness & Meredith Temple-Smith
2021. Interpreting in Sexual and Reproductive Health Consults With Burma Born Refugees Post Settlement: Insights From an Australian Qualitative Study. Frontiers in Communication 6
Vissandjée, Bilkis, Karine Bates, François Vialla & Jonathan Kuntz
2021. Expérience d’immigration et droit à la santé, à des soins et à des services de qualité : une question de justice sociale. Alterstice 3:1 ► pp. 67 ff.
Abdel Latif, Muhammad M. M.
2020. Researching Professional Translator/Interpreter Experiences and Roles. In Translator and Interpreter Education Research [New Frontiers in Translation Studies, ], ► pp. 125 ff.
2020. (Se) Faire confiance : enjeux d’une collaboration et d’une transformation du cadre clinique en pédopsychiatrie. Rhizome N° 75-76:1 ► pp. 90 ff.
Iglesias Fernández, Emilia & Mariachiara Russo
2020. A multidisciplinary theoretical and methodological framework for the study of telephone interpreting. The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 14:3 ► pp. 240 ff.
Leanza, Yvan, Rebecca Angele, François René de Cotret, Serge Bouznah & Stéphanie Larchanché
2020. Former au travail avec interprète de service public et à la médiation interculturelle. L'Autre Volume 21:1 ► pp. 73 ff.
Pines, Rachyl L., Liz Jones & Nicola Sheeran
2020. Using Family Members as Medical Interpreters: An Explanation of Healthcare Practitioners’ Normative Practices in Pediatric and Neonatal Departments in Australia. Health Communication 35:7 ► pp. 902 ff.
POLAT ULAŞ, Aslı
2020. Becoming an interpreter through experience: The perceptions of the non-professional public service interpreters in Turkey. RumeliDE Dil ve Edebiyat Araştırmaları Dergisi :19 ► pp. 661 ff.
Polat Ulaş, Aslı
2025. Çevirmen Ulusal Meslek Standardı Işığında Sağlık Çevirmenliği Mevzuatı ve Uygulamaları. Söylem Filoloji Dergisi 10:2 ► pp. 1152 ff.
Radicioni, Maura
2020. Cultural Differences in Interpreter-Mediated Medical Encounters in Complex Humanitarian Settings. In Handbook of Research on Medical Interpreting [Advances in Medical Diagnosis, Treatment, and Care, ], ► pp. 165 ff.
Radicioni, Maura
2021. Interpreter-Mediated Encounters in Complex Humanitarian Settings: Language and Cultural Mediation at Emergency ONG Onlus. In Interpreting Conflict, ► pp. 229 ff.
Sasso, Angela
2020. In Through the Looking Glass. In Handbook of Research on Medical Interpreting [Advances in Medical Diagnosis, Treatment, and Care, ], ► pp. 397 ff.
Tiselius, Elisabet & Kayle Sneed
2020. Gaze and eye movement in dialogue interpreting: An eye-tracking study. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition 23:4 ► pp. 780 ff.
Van De Walle, Céline, Defrancq Bart, Deveugele Myriam & Van Praet Ellen
2020. Communicative hurdles in multilingual interpreter-mediated consultations: what trainee data teach us. The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 14:3 ► pp. 322 ff.
Schwei, Rebecca J., Natalie Guerrero, Alissa L. Small & Elizabeth A. Jacobs
2019. Physician perceptions of the types of roles interpreters play in limited English proficient pediatric encounters and how they evaluate the quality of interpretation. Primary Health Care Research & Development 20
Shlesinger†, Miriam, Tanya Voinova & Michal Schuster
2019. A Feminine Occupation? The Conflicts Inherent to Community Interpreting as Expressed by Female Student Interpreters. In Understanding Campus-Community Partnerships in Conflict Zones, ► pp. 185 ff.
Dean, Robyn K.
2018. O tipping point: usando o discurso diagnóstico de pacientes simulados para educar intérpretes médicos. Bakhtiniana: Revista de Estudos do Discurso 13:3 ► pp. 165 ff.
DuBord, Elise M.
2018. Bilingual tricksters: Conflicting perceptions of bilingualism in the informal labor economy. Language & Communication 58 ► pp. 107 ff.
Gez, Yonatan N. & Michal Schuster
2018. Borders and Boundaries: Eritrean Graduates Reflect on Their Medical Interpreting Training. The European Legacy 23:7-8 ► pp. 821 ff.
René de Cotret, François, Eva Ošlejšková, Soumya Tamouro & Yvan Leanza
2018. Donner la parole aux interprètes : le mythe de la neutralité et autres facteurs contextuels pouvant nuire à la performance. L'Autre Volume 18:3 ► pp. 282 ff.
Williams, Anna, Kate Oulton, Debbie Sell & Jo Wray
2018. Healthcare professional and interpreter perspectives on working with and caring for non-English speaking families in a tertiary paediatric healthcare setting. Ethnicity & Health 23:7 ► pp. 767 ff.
Zendedel, Rena, Barbara C. Schouten, Julia C. M. van Weert & Bas van den Putte
2018. Informal interpreting in general practice: the migrant patient’s voice. Ethnicity & Health 23:2 ► pp. 158 ff.
Zendedel, Rena, Barbara C. Schouten, Julia C.M. van Weert & Bas van den Putte
2016. Informal interpreting in general practice: Comparing the perspectives of general practitioners, migrant patients and family interpreters. Patient Education and Counseling 99:6 ► pp. 981 ff.
Zendedel, Rena, Barbara C. Schouten, Julia C.M. van Weert & Bas van den Putte
2018. Informal interpreting in general practice: Are interpreters’ roles related to perceived control, trust, and satisfaction?. Patient Education and Counseling 101:6 ► pp. 1058 ff.
Leanza, Yvan, Elias Rizkallah, Thomas Michaud-Labonté & Camille Brisset
2017. Mediating or Exacerbating Cultural Differences: The Role of Interpreters in Official Intercultural Interaction. In Intercultural Communication with China [Encounters between East and West, ], ► pp. 133 ff.
2015. Integration of interpreters in mental health interventions with children and adolescents: The need for a framework. Transcultural Psychiatry 52:3 ► pp. 353 ff.
Resera, Elena, Rachel Tribe & Pauline Lane
2015. Interpreting in mental health, roles and dynamics in practice. International Journal of Culture and Mental Health 8:2 ► pp. 192 ff.
Brisset, Camille, Yvan Leanza, Ellen Rosenberg, Bilkis Vissandjée, Laurence J. Kirmayer, Gina Muckle, Spyridoula Xenocostas & Hugues Laforce
2014. Language Barriers in Mental Health Care: A Survey of Primary Care Practitioners. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health 16:6 ► pp. 1238 ff.
Leanza, Yvan, Alessandra Miklavcic, Isabelle Boivin & Ellen Rosenberg
2014. Working with Interpreters. In Cultural Consultation [International and Cultural Psychology, ], ► pp. 89 ff.
Sleptsova, Marina, Gertrud Hofer, Naser Morina & Wolf Langewitz
2014. The Role of the Health Care Interpreter in a Clinical Setting—A Narrative Review. Journal of Community Health Nursing 31:3 ► pp. 167 ff.
Akram Al Ariss & Akan Ellis, Burcu
2013. Freelancing eagles: interpretation as a transient career strategy for skilled migrants. Journal of Management Development 32:2 ► pp. 152 ff.
Brisset, Camille & Yvan Leanza
2013. Language Interpretation. In The Encyclopedia of Cross‐Cultural Psychology, ► pp. 806 ff.
Brisset, Camille & Yvan Leanza
2015. L'interprétariat en santé mentale à Montréal. Rhizome N° 55:1 ► pp. 20 ff.
Brisset, Camille, Yvan Leanza & Karine Laforest
2013. Working with interpreters in health care: A systematic review and meta-ethnography of qualitative studies. Patient Education and Counseling 91:2 ► pp. 131 ff.
2013. Mediating words, mediating worlds: Interpreting as hidden care work in a South African psychiatric institution. Transcultural Psychiatry 50:4 ► pp. 493 ff.
Boivin, Isabelle, Camille Brisset & Yvan Leanza
2012. Interprétation et interprétariat : chassé-croisé en thérapies analytiques plurilingues. Filigrane 20:2 ► pp. 107 ff.
Rousseau, Cécile, Toby Measham & Marie‐Rose Moro
2011. Working with Interpreters in Child Mental Health. Child and Adolescent Mental Health 16:1 ► pp. 55 ff.
Deumert, Ana
2010. ‘It would be nice if they could give us more language’ – Serving South Africa’s multilingual patient base. Social Science & Medicine 71:1 ► pp. 53 ff.
Hsieh, Elaine, Hyejung Ju & Haiying Kong
2010. Dimensions of Trust: The Tensions and Challenges in Provider—Interpreter Trust. Qualitative Health Research 20:2 ► pp. 170 ff.
Leanza, Yvan
2010. Review Essay: Interpreters in Medical Settings. Transcultural Psychiatry 47:2 ► pp. 335 ff.
Leanza, Yvan, Isabelle Boivin & Ellen Rosenberg
2010. Interruptions and resistance: A comparison of medical consultations with family and trained interpreters. Social Science & Medicine 70:12 ► pp. 1888 ff.
White, Kari & M. Barton Laws
2009. Role Exchange in Medical Interpretation. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health 11:6 ► pp. 482 ff.
Rosenberg, Ellen, Robbyn Seller & Yvan Leanza
2008. Through interpreters’ eyes: Comparing roles of professional and family interpreters. Patient Education and Counseling 70:1 ► pp. 87 ff.
Greenhalgh, Trisha, Christopher Voisey & Nadia Robb
2007. Interpreted consultations as ‘business as usual’? An analysis of organisational routines in general practices. Sociology of Health & Illness 29:6 ► pp. 931 ff.
Hsieh, Elaine
2007. Interpreters as co-diagnosticians: Overlapping roles and services between providers and interpreters. Social Science & Medicine 64:4 ► pp. 924 ff.
Hsieh, Elaine
2008. “I am not a robot!” Interpreters' Views of Their Roles in Health Care Settings. Qualitative Health Research 18:10 ► pp. 1367 ff.
Hsieh, Elaine
2010. Provider–interpreter collaboration in bilingual health care: Competitions of control over interpreter-mediated interactions. Patient Education and Counseling 78:2 ► pp. 154 ff.
Hsieh, Elaine
2024. The Role of Healthcare Interpreters. In The Handbook of Language in Public Health and Healthcare, ► pp. 117 ff.
Rosenberg, Ellen, Yvan Leanza & Robbyn Seller
2007. Doctor–patient communication in primary care with an interpreter: Physician perceptions of professional and family interpreters. Patient Education and Counseling 67:3 ► pp. 286 ff.
[no author supplied]
2007. The Clinical Interaction. In Primary Health Care, ► pp. 146 ff.
[no author supplied]
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2020. Bibliographie. Le Journal des psychologues n° 375:3 ► pp. 49 ff.
This list is based on CrossRef data as of 12 march 2026. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers.
Any errors therein should be reported to them.
