All posts by Alfredo Hernandez

Halloween

The Best Halloween Story in Homeland Language Services

Especially for Halloween celebration we made an internal story contest in Homeland Language Services. The story of our winner is so cute, so we decided to share it here, in our blog.

 Martina Belén Viegas, English-Spanish translator, our congratulations!

Here is her story about the ‘superb’ Halloween party from the childhood.

Halloween Story

“My mother always wanted me to study, to practice sports, to do activities and all that. So, among other things, she sent me, when I was very very little, to an English institute. The institute used to organize parties every year for Halloween, so we could exchange candies, wear costumes, accessories, etc. If, for example, October 31 was a day of the weekend or a day I didn’t have classes, they threw the party the next day we had classes.

One year, I was particularly excited about the party because I really liked a classmate (I was only 8). So I wanted to impress him. My mom bought me everything I wanted to wear and bring to share, and I got ready. She took me to the institute and when I arrived, I saw everyone was dressed in normal clothes. I was shocked, I thought they didn’t prepare anything for that day. But the teacher came to me and told me ‘it’s not today, it’s tomorrow’.  It was extremely embarrassing… even more in front of the boy I liked!

So I left home and changed my clothes. I didn’t want to come back because everyone saw me like that! But my mom made me go anyway so I had to go and take the class normally. Of course, I didn’t come back the next day, the day of the actual party.

The picture I send here was taken when I came back from the institute, I couldn’t stop laughing.”

We hope, that such cute story will make you smile and remember your childhood.

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video remote interpreting services,

Should You Utilize Phone, On-Site, or Video Remote Interpreting Services?

Technological innovation along with rapid industry growth means that organizations now have several options for accessing language services. Firms can use over-the-phone interpreting, video remote interpreting, on-site interpreting, translation, or even a combination of these services. Knowing the right option for your organization can be cumbersome. Here are some essential factors to consider:

The Community You Serve and their Interpreting Demands

Over decades, professional on-demand over-the-phone interpreting has been the preferred option because it allows customers to connect with interpreters in a couple of seconds. Phone interpreters can make an outbound call to the client or directly connect with him through a devoted toll-free number. Over-the-phone interpreting helps minimize costs while guaranteeing regulatory compliance. Also, it increases productivity and reduces staff frustration. It is ideal for emergency calls, community outreach functions, and customer care hotlines. On the other side, over-the-phone interpretation requires hearing. Consequently, if a larger population of your clients are deaf or hard of hearing people, video remote interpreting services or on-site interpreting services would be a great fit for your organization.

Your Personnel’s Extent of Interaction with Clients

Some situations are exceptionally confidential or sensitive. So they need more hands-on communication. For instance, a social organization explaining insurance benefits to a customer or helping him find affordable housing, so it would be more practical to let an interpreter meet with the client by appointment. Besides, working with children who are still developing their language skills or persons with disabilities would necessitate in-person meeting scenarios, visual cues are vital for effective communication. As such, on-site interpreting or video remote interpreting would be ideal.

Your Company’s Bandwidth and Financial Blueprint

While on-site interpreting is the ultimate option in some settings, it is impractical or cost-ineffective to provide an on-site interpreter 24 hours a day. Luckily, video remote interpreting services offer the same quality at a lower cost. With Homeland Language Services’ video remote interpreting services, patients and clients can connect with a professional interpreter in more than 100 languages, including American Sign Language. Despite the physical distance, video remote interpreting allows all parties to read visual cues and facial expressions.

In sum, choosing the right language interpreting solution may be cumbersome, but these factors can help you make an informed decision. Evidently, the language interpretation option you select ultimately impacts the risk of potential complaints, revenue, efficiency, and the quality of the interactions you have with the communities you serve.

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Sign Language Services

American Sign Language Interpretation Services

Currently, American Sign Language (ASL) is one of the fastest-growing languages requested in the United States. ASL is a visual-spatial language used by the Deaf community. It is a native language for Deaf men and women and hard of hearing children born. ASL should not be considered a gestural form of English since it shares no grammatical similarities to English. Besides, hand gestures are not the only component of American Sign Language. Facial expressions, including lip-mouth, eyebrow, and body orientation are also significant in ASL and form a vital component of its grammatical system. Moreover, ASL utilizes the space surrounding the signer to express persons and places that are absent. More importantly, sign languages, such as American Sign Language are not universal. For instance, British Sign Language significantly differs from American Sign Language even though both countries speak English. Since sign language develops unconventionally, various countries’ signers cannot communicate easily with each other. 

The Americans with Disabilities Act forbids prejudice and ensures equal opportunity for people with disabilities in transportation, commercial facilities, public accommodations, state and local government services, and employment. Regarding communication, the community must evaluate the needs of the Deaf or Hard of Hearing person it is working with, and supply appropriate accommodations to guarantee effective communication. Therefore, it is inappropriate to engage companions to translate for Deaf and Hard of Hearing people. Companions may not dispatch the piece of information accurately and should be part of the conversation rather than serve as the medium for communication. 

Homeland Language Services offers the American Sign Language translation services and caption services to ensure successful transmission as stated in the Americans with Disabilities Act. Our translators and interpreters are qualified providers and ensure our services are compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The ADA applies to several aspects of daily life, including interviewing for a job, meeting with teachers at school, and going to doctor’s appointments. Homeland Language Services provide American Sign Language interpretation services across the United States. Our language specialists provide translation and interpretation for different environments, including parent-teacher conferences, workers’ training and employee compensation interviews, medical appointments, client meetings, and court hearings, mediations, arbitration, and depositions. 

Homeland Language Services has a proven track record of providing American Sign Language services to clients nationwide in all industries.

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Sign Language Services

VRI Services for the Deaf in Oxnard in Your Emergency Action Plan

Approximately 35 million Americans are hearing impaired. Often crucial information is delivered infrequently or late, it is often missing critical facts or they are not delivered at all. These dangerous communication gaps leave the Deaf and Hard of Hearing people with an incomplete understanding of what is happening or when it will happen, and what steps they are expected to take.

It is worth noting that some regions of the USA don’t account for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing people and may be unaware of their specific needs. Nonetheless, they should know that communicating with the Deaf and Hard of Hearing people during an emergency is a part of risk-management and common compliance issues for cities, counties, and states. The Americans with Disabilities Act dictates that communities should provide quality interpreters to this population. Communities that violate this requirement put themselves at legal risk. The VRI services for the Deaf in Oxnard can aid in refraining from the legal consequences. 

Prompt Actions

Essentially, all relevant government agencies must arrange in advance qualified interpreters and other emergency services to guarantee constructive communication with the Deaf and Hard of Hearing people. During a disaster, it is vital to have professional American Sign Language interpreters secured and accessible rather than struggling to find one at the last minute.

It is always best for agencies to integrate VRI services for the Deaf in Oxnard to communicate with everybody into their emergency management plans. Here are a few fundamental channels that should be covered in the event of a crisis to avoid being thrown into disorder. 

  • A proficient American Sign Language interpreter should be scheduled beforehand to be present during televised emergency announcements. More importantly, the interpreter should be on-screen during the transmission.
  • A large portion of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing citizens will turn to the internet for information. Remember to caption all videos that contain vital emergency information.
  • Make sure that an ASL interpreter is available at all shelters, either in person or via video.

Homeland Language Services can Lend a Hand

The Deaf and Hard of Hearing people should always be considered during emergency preparations. We help our clients communicate clearly in any moment of need. Homeland Language Services delivers qualified on-site and video interpretation for American Sign Language that ensures effective communication with the Deaf and Hard of Hearing people. In fact, we provide on-demand mobile interpretation via tablet or smartphone in various languages. Please contact us to discuss opportunities to better communicate with the Deaf and Hard of Hearing people all over the world.

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Sign Language Services

Provide the Best Sign Language Services in Florida

Nowadays, American Sign Language or ASL is one of the most studied languages in different colleges and universities in the U.S. This is good news because learning ASL gives benefits in the future life, even if a student does not have plans of working as an interpreter or other related job. Here are other ways that providing Sign Language Services in Florida can help your career:

Improve Workforce Proficiency

If you belong to an industry requiring constant communication with people, then you will have the competitive advantage if you know ASL. You can speak with a deaf patient if you are a nurse, or able to understand what a mute victim says if you are a police officer. This helps you become more proficient in your job. It may not be every day that you come across a person that is unable to speak, but when you do, it must be so tough if you do not know sign language. Literacy of ASL allows you to communicate with no limits, and extend help with the deaf and mute people.

Mastery of ASL is a Profitable Competency

The job market has become highly competitive. Each aspiring worker tries his best to stand out from the others in terms of skills and experience. ASL literacy is more than just a fancy addition to resumes, but a skill that could increase your marketability. A myriad of industries benefits from Sign Language Services in Florida. They include hospitals, medical facilities, doctors and appointments, mental health, counseling, medical insurance, legal firms, courts, business meetings, conferences, social agencies, government, non-profit organizations, education sectors.

Becoming Competent in ASL Enhances Cognition

Learning sign language as any other foreign languages is good for the brain. It enhances cognition, creative and abstract thinking. It even has the added benefit of improving hand and eye coordination. It exercises peripheral vision, training you to be more aware of the environment. Deaf people have sharp vision, so you can have that too if you learn sign language.

These abilities can work to your advantage regardless of the industry you are in. However, you need them even more if you are a pilot, a surgeon, a fabricator, and mechanic, or any other job that requires hand-eye coordination.

Improve Communication Skills

Communication is vital across industries and different fields. Knowledge of ASL does not only extend your communication skills to the hearing impaired but also allows you to be a better listener and speaker. When you learn its structure, you’ll learn how to check your understanding and constantly rethink ideas.

Learning ASL empowers you to be better at work. It can help you with mentally demanding tasks and heighten your ability to oversee your environment. You do not have to learn the entire language. Knowing the basics and other important signs could be a good start. It’s a great way to show care for speech and hearing-impaired people. If you are into sales or marketing, they can flock to you. ASL is a beautiful language that broadens your horizon, allowing you to discover the deaf culture and in the process, make you a better person.

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Certified Translation Professional

Why Law Firms Need Certified Translation Services in Houston

Law firms handle various types of legal matters every day. It can be law enforcement or court proceedings, corporate contracts, real estate settlements and other legal files. With the increasing number of immigrants in the United States, the possibility of getting non-English speaking clients is quite high.

Here are some essential reasons why law firms need certified translation services in Houston:

Precision in transmission

Speed is a very essential factor in legal translation. Business deals can be acquired or lost in a matter of seconds. It is very important for a company to have someone on their side who would be able to quickly translate a document accurately and legally. It is necessary so that cases, deals, and contracts are not delayed.

Business law is dynamic

Among the majority of people who are engaged in business, a legal translator should be able to keep up with the changes in business law that happen all the time. The translator must be able to grasp the changes in the countries concerned. Legal translators must not stop learning and should always be aware of the changes happening in their areas of expertise.

Proficiency of the legal language

Legal terminology is not something that everyone can learn. Words and phrases that do not mean anything for the common citizen carry lots of weight in legal terms. It is important for companies to use certified translation services in Houston in order to have access to a legal translator with a deep understanding of the legal terminology and how they are applied to various legal documents.

Legal and linguistic diversity

The business world may be global but there are huge legal differences among countries. Some things may be acceptable in one country while taboo in others. A certified legal translator has the right knowledge to understand the linguistic and legal differences of at least two countries, has a deeper understanding of the nuances of the language and how the countries’ laws are applied to ensure that the documents they translate remain useful and relevant.

Fidelity in the translation

Accuracy is an obligative characteristic of all types of translations but legal translation demands it even more. In the legal sector, accuracy is vital because even one word can make big difference to the document’s gravity, tone or meaning. An expert legal translator can help secure the legal success of your business. While quick turnaround is often required, accuracy should always be maintained.

The most significant component of legal translation is the ability to understand the nature of what is important to the client. The legal translator must deeply consider the need for quality and speed in the translation to provide the client with the most effective and significant solution.

A deep understanding of sector-defined language and the law is vital for a legal translator. It helps them to tailor their translation work to any client without affecting the quality of the translation.

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over-the-phone interpretation

The Role of Affordable Over-the-phone Interpreting services in Healthcare

A hospital setting has many touchpoints where there is a place for miscommunications, from the reception desk and emergency room to the billing office. Hospital staff needs to be ready for anything and for anyone who may walk through their doors next. Affordable over-the-phone interpreting services may be sufficient for addressing scheduling questions, but other situations demand face-to-face interaction. Having an onsite interpreter available at a moment’s notice isn’t always practical or possible, especially when you see patients who speak less common languages.

Here are some ways healthcare professionals benefit from affordable over-the-phone interpreting services:

Fewer scheduling errors

Patients with limited English proficiency are more likely to miss appointments or show up at the wrong time because of breakdowns in communication with the office staff. Since physicians’ schedules are set well in advance, these scheduling errors can add up hours of wasted time and lost revenue. Affordable over-the-phone interpreting services help to bridge language gaps, reducing scheduling errors.

Shorter patient wait time

Language barriers can slow down the registration process, increasing patient waiting times and reducing patient satisfaction. Using affordable over-the-phone interpreting services to communicate with patients who don’t speak English can reduce patient waiting time and increase patient flow, contributing to improved patient satisfaction.

Fewer medical errors

When lives are on the line and every second counts, miscommunication can contribute to misdiagnoses or even life-threatening medical errors.

Improved outcomes

Hospital discharge instructions can be confusing enough for a person who speaks the same language as their physician, and language barriers make it even more difficult to follow the directions. When patients understand how to care for themselves properly, they tend to have better health outcomes.

Translating patient education materials, discharge instructions, and other vital documents that are critical to a patient’s care enables patients to take responsibility for their recovery.

Reduced readmission rates

Preventable readmissions have become a huge frustration for hospitals around the country. A number of factors puts patients at a higher risk for readmission, and the language barrier certainly plays a role. When patients can follow physicians’ orders, they are significantly less likely to be readmitted for complications.

Reduced bad debt

Patients who understand their financial obligations and insurance coverage are more likely to pay their bills in a timely manner.

Higher patient satisfaction

According to a report published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, patients with limited English proficiency report lower satisfaction rates compared to English-speaking patients.

Working with Homeland Language Services that offers a full range of solutions, from phone interpreting to video remote interpreting, allows you to keep costs in check while maximizing the benefits to your patients and your bottom line.

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Medical Document Translation Services

The Need for Professional Medical Document Translation Services during a Pandemic

During a pandemic, patients need high-quality healthcare, which involves provision of timely and accurate communication. Caring for Limited English Proficient (LEP) patients can be complex due to language barriers. Therefore, in order to improve patient outcomes especially in the case of LEP patients, it is essential to provide your healthcare content and pertinent medical documents in the languages that your patients speak. As such, making your medical and healthcare documents multilingual is a requirement you must meet nowadays. Here are some essential healthcare content that requires professional medical document translation services:

Critical Medical Documents

Critical medical documents include complaint forms, discharge instructions, intake forms, informed consent documents, notices of eligibility criteria for services, and notices of free language assistance.

Translation of medical documents is complex for healthcare providers due to the extra costs involved. But to be eligible for federal financial assistance, medical institutions need to make critical medical documents available in the most common languages spoken by the patients. Moreover, they need to translate your medical documents for compliance with the federal regulations.

Emergency Notifications

It is especially important during a pandemic to inform all people that visit your healthcare facility about your health-related protocols. Such information include: lifesaving emergency information on a current situation, hand washing and sanitizing diagrams, and rules for visitors. It is vital to post these emergency notifications in all relevant languages in areas where there is high traffic and visibility such as entrance points, waiting areas, digital monitors, and displays throughout your facility. In the case of digital displays, you can make the information available in different languages through the use of subtitles. Having your emergency information available in various languages will ensure that all your patients can access critical information during a pandemic.

Digital Multilingual Emergency Communications

Communicating on social media and website, text messages, and emails are the best methods to quickly dispatch pertinent information for communities and patients you serve. As a healthcare provider, you need to send emergency messages covering various important topics regarding a pandemic in order to mitigate risk. To be effective, you need to make these communications available in multiple languages using professional medical document translation services.

Printed Multilingual Emergency Communications

The patients and the community you serve may not have yet adopted technology such as social media and email. In this light, direct mail in the form of printed cards is a way to inform this segment of the population. After preparing your piece in plain language, it is important to have a professional translation company localize the piece for you. This will ensure that your piece is high-quality, accurate, and culturally appropriate for target language speakers.

Partnering with Homeland Language Services ensures that all of your medical and healthcare content reaches the highest quality of translation. This will ensure that all the time, especially during pandemics, such as COVID-19, you are communicating the right information to the right people at the right time.

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Interpreting Service

The Role of Interpreting and Translating Services in the Beauty Industry

The beauty industry serves an international market consisting of a myriad of different languages and cultures. The beauty industry spans three different categories, comprising nail and nail care, skin and skincare, hair and haircare. Due to globalization and digitization, brands and products have to be scaled to international standards while still being able to reach and local market with a help of interpreting and translating services.

As long as you are part of a global industry, professional language services are a necessity. By considering interpreting and translating services, your beauty business is sure to expand and grow successfully. Besides, using the services of professional interpreters and translators helps build relationships within your desired markets because you are speaking the language of the people and making a connection. More fundamental, as an international company, you will have an abundance of social media campaigns, product packaging, and marketing materials that your customers need to understand, meaning you need to translate them to your audience.

Here are the reasons the beauty industry needs professional interpreting and translating services:

1. More and more companies are going purely digital especially in light of the global pandemic. That said, a digital platform means you automatically can have a global audience which in turn means that people who may not speak your native language may be potential customers so interpretation and translation services will be required.

2. Advertising and marketing your beauty products and services are best done in several languages in order to maximize your brand’s visibility and attract new customers. For sure this will increase sales and the popularity of your brand on the local markets within your international community. In addition to this, professional interpretation and translation services also open your products and services to more languages, which eventually increases your website traffic and conversions. Homeland Language Services is here to help you interpret and translate any content within the beauty industry into any language that is required.

3. The beauty industry can be a complex world especially when a key pillar for growth on the international scene depends on broadening the communication and advertising of your brand. For that various designs may be required. Moreover, the beauty industry is a 100% global sector, where all its products and services are meant to reach every corner of the world. To achieve this, beauty companies are encouraged to invest in advertising campaigns, play integral roles in fashion shows, do beneficial media events and of course, show up and show out on social media.

With the growing demand for products and services in the digital space of e-commerce, there is no doubt that the beauty industry needs interpretation and translation services. Homeland Language Services can help you reach and effectively convert your audience into loyal customers.

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video remote interpreting

Why is there a Need for a Professional Translator in the Health Industry?

The importance of providing translated materials to multicultural patients cannot be overemphasized. Healthcare providers work with diverse patient populations, and effective communication is vital for the quality of care they give. Besides, recent regulations have affected both directly and indirectly the need to provide translated documentation to patients. By utilizing a professional translator for the health industry, healthcare organizations can consistently provide high-quality translations. They will be understood easily by  limited English proficient patients. 

Healthcare providers understand there are many benefits relying on external professional translators. Outsource translators have expertise that is not available to most healthcare organizations. It can be knowledge in specialized subjects such as cardiology or pediatrics. Also, even though third-party agencies only ever use professional translators, the best language service vendors will use multiple linguists on every project to check each other’s work.

In comparison, healthcare providers that rely on internal translators rarely use a second translator or editor to check the work of the first one. External translators perform other quality assurance procedures to check formatting and compliance of translation, and, if there is ever any doubt, they will have a third linguist’s review of the material to ensure a high-quality deliverable.

Lastly, turnaround times are almost always faster and more reliable when the provider uses an external professional translator, particularly for large and complex documents.

Furthermore, to produce the highest-quality translations, it is important to manage the consistency of translated materials. There are several tools that an external translator for the health industry uses to manage consistency. These include:

  • Translation Memory: A software stores translated content, which allows the reuse of frequently repeated content. Over time, Translation Memory can produce significant savings of both time and cost associated with translation.
  • Glossaries: Industry-specific glossaries capture the organization’s terminology preferences so that consistent terminology is used for all translations. Input from the client’s internal staff is very helpful when creating and maintaining glossaries.
  • Style Guides: All non-terminology preferences, including formatting requirements, treatment of acronyms and proper nouns, style, and tone of healthcare translations, are captured in a document or template that the translators use to define the style and layout of the translated materials.

For a decade, Homeland Language Services has faithfully delivered world-class translation to caregivers and patients at their critical moments of life. We are exceedingly proud to be the trusted language-access provider to the United States’ most formidable healthcare organizations. When hospitals, physicians, and clinics partner with Homeland Language Services, they have on-demand access to reliably fast, secure, scalable medical translation services that are available night and day. We guarantee world-class, medically qualified translators 24/7.

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