Description: 

Interpreter services managers are responsible for ensuring safe and effective provision of language services regardless of the circumstances - from filling the demand for services, to supporting interpreter staff, to working within the available resources, and so much more. The managers’ responsibility has never been an easy charge, and the current COVID-19 pandemic and resulting public health crisis has been no exception. 

In this webinar-based panel discussion, panelist from different regions of the USA will reflect on their experiences of managing interpreter services during the public health crisis – from when it began, to what is happening now, to preparing for the future. Special attention will be given to 1) interpreter safety measures and wellness, 2) guaranteeing interpreter services for providers and patients, 3) collaboration among different stakeholders to achieve the goals, and 4) insights for managers to adapt or adopt in their unique setting. Time will be reserved for a moderated audience Q&A. 

Note: This is the first in a two-part series. It will focus on managers based in large healthcare systems that provide healthcare across the entire continuum of healthcare services and specialties.  The second part (planned for January 2021) will focus on managers of interpreter services based in children’s hospitals and teaching hospitals. 

 About the Panelists:

Mateo Rutherford is the Manager of Systems and Technology for the Interpreting Services Dept., UCSF Health. Mateo holds a Master’s Degree in Biology from UC Berkeley and a Master’s Degree in Spanish Interpretation and Translation from the Monterey Institute of International Studies. He teaches healthcare interpreting at CCSF, is a CCHI Commissioner, Spanish CHI™ and participates on the CHIA Education Committee. He taught Molecular and Cell Biology at UCB several years while a graduate student, was as a bilingual disease prevention trainer at the CDC for over 4 years and has conducted several trainings on interpreting for genetic subspecialties throughout California.

Vonessa Costa is director of Multicultural Affairs and Patient Services at Cambridge Health Alliance, a public safetynet health system serving a diverse patient population that is 43% limited English proficient.  Vonessa is a CoreCHI™ practitioner credentialed by the Certification Commission for Healthcare Interpreters (CCHI), and she currently serves as a CCHI Commissioner. She is secretary of the Forum on the Coordination of Interpreter Services (FOCIS), and a member of the America’s Essential Hospitals Education Committee. Vonessa is a graduate of the America’s Essential Hospitals Fellows Program, and a 2019 MassAHEC Tony Windsor Award recipient for language access advocacy.

Christopher Fan (he/him) currently serves as the Manager for Language Services at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, overseeing an exceptional team that ensures equitable care for limited English speaking and deaf/hard of hearing patients who seek healthcare on the Washington University Academic Medical Campus in St. Louis, which makes up Barnes-Jewish Hospital, St. Louis Children’s Hospital, and Washington University School of Medicine. Christopher also serves as a diversity & inclusion leader for Barnes-Jewish Hospital and also serves as an adjunct faculty member for the Brown School of Social Work at Washington University in St. Louis, teaching social justice & human diversity.