Medical Translation Quality
Serving the medical industry introduces unique considerations to the translation and localization process
. One notable difference is the way the quality assurance process is designed for medical industry clients.
McElroys basic quality standard has always entailed a minimum of two verifications steps post translation. Each project is reviewed by a target-language native in that technical field. We maintain an editing department of subject matter specialists for translations to English and assign technical editing to a qualified second translator for translations from English.
In each case a staff proofreader conducts another project review post formatting to confirm that editorial comments were implemented, that formatting did not introduce irregularities, and that numbers and paragraphs match the source document. Today, this level of quality assurance is a baseline industry standard expected by clients who require custom technical translation and localization.
There is a wide range of documents for which medical clients may require translation, including research protocols, informed consent documents to be signed by patient subjects, advertisements to be used in recruiting subjects, patient questionnaires, reports of adverse events, regulatory submissions, instructions for use or package inserts, and labeling. For many materials, an additional layer of quality assurance is required by medical industry clients.
Whether or not your company agrees that back translation is the best vehicle for quality assurance, the reality is that some clients are required to provide both forward and backward certified translations. Our job is to comply. Our responsibility is also to understand a clients exact needs and to help them determine if and when a back translation is appropriate.
Some clients who are not required to provide back translations have heard enough about the process to inquire about the service. Others assume that bidirectional translation is standard protocol.
One advantage is that back translations can satisfy the quality assurance mandates of many Institutional Review Boards (IRBs). A disadvantage is the higher cost of this method of assuring quality. A basic explanation that instead of one translator and one editor they must pay for a translator and an editor in each direction will often produce what I call an ah-ha moment of revelation.
It is also essential to explain that while back translation adds another layer of quality assurance there is one critical caveat. A back translation will not be the mirror image of the original. Some words or concepts simply do not exist in other languages, or a translator may have rephrased an idea to address a cultural sensibility. The review of a back translation should show that the message is conveyed, if not in the exact same words originally used.
Instead of simply delivering both the target and the back translation, our standard protocol for these projects now also includes an expert comparison of the original source English and the reverse translation, with research of any relevant differences. Seasoned professionals can readily distinguish between naturally occurring differences that are to be expected as a result of process, and deviations that merit attention. In the event that a question does arise our
language team can then determine in which direction the discrepancy occurred and make appropriate document revisions before delivery of both translations to the client.
As stated earlier, excellent quality with documented procedures is no longer a selling point for a company; it is an expectation. Whether for legal, medical, software, or marketing communications the
translation/localization industry must meet the highest quality demands.
Quality assurance using back translations as a validation vehicle is currently used predominately by those segments of the medical industry with distinct responsibilities linked to fair and compliant communication with clinical trial participants.
In medical translation, a single word or term may have critical significance. Industry-specific quality procedures and keen responsiveness is paramount when providing medical translations. The emergence of back to English translations is a prime example of the medical industrys efforts to ensure safety for clinical trial participants and future patients.
Aunes Oversettelser AS has been in the business for 26 years, and we are specialized in technical translations. We are specializing in the Nordic languages, and can offer services into Swedish, Danish, Finnish, Norwegian and Icelandic. The premier translation agency for Norway and the Nordic region! Technical translation services for businesses in the Nordic countries and translation agencies world-wide.
by: carmen
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