Insight: I should have the right to state my interpreter preferences for medical appointments (BSL)

I had a hospital appointment at the audiology department today.  When I arrived, I asked at reception for the name of the interpreter who was booked for my appointment.  I was not happy to see that the interpreter booked with me is someone who I have specifically stated I do not wish to have at any of my appointments. 

Further to this I was informed that if I cancelled the appointment, I would have to pay the Audiology department a cancellation fee.  I was made to feel guilty for essentially being unhappy that my right to choose an interpreter wasn’t respected.   

At that point I had no choice but to proceed with the appointment.  I feel extremely upset at having been put in this position and for not having my former requests regarding specfic interpreters respected.

In the appointment the interpreter, the audiologist and the reception member of staff were talking behind my back and I was literally excluded from the conversation. This was not only unprofessional but it really made me feel upset.  I felt overlooked and not important. 

I asked the receptionist for the WiFi access so I could connect with an interpreter on a VRS service and was told no. I then felt doubly discriminated.  

This is not the first time this has happened. I raised a complaint in March this year over this issue.  At the end of the appointment a member from the reception team did come and apologise to me and said it won’t happen again.  I hoped this to be the case.

I have used my local interpreting agency for roughly 35 years.  They know me well and have always provided good Interpreters, who were NRCPD registered and fully qualified. Their admin were fantastic and knew the profession and boundaries.

Unfortunately, a year ago I believe there was a change of contact and now bookings are made through the language line. Since then, my rights are not being adhered to, even after asking multiple times not to have a particular interpreter, they were still booked. 

In terms of the interpreter’s attitude they remarked,  ‘ you don’t like me’ and went on to exclaim ‘I am loved within the Deaf community’. The interpreter also started to tell me about an argument they had with someone who is a colleague of mine and was therefore a totally inappropriate topic to discuss.

Ideally, I would like to see my local Deaf Association return and facilitate interpreter bookings. However, there needs to be a bigger pool of Qualified Interpreters as I do not see as many with Language Line. 

Sadly VRS/VRI (video relay service) has not been an option due to the hospital WIFI, this would need to be set up to allow access through the firewalls etc.

For one appointment they did wheel in a big machine for a remote interpreted appointment but it unfortunately turned out to be an ASL (American Sign Language) interpreter!

My request at the hospital was not met and I feel excluded from the whole process. The hospital admin makes bookings with language line without my input. I therefore do not know who is booked for my medical appointment.

Surely due to a medical appointment being so personal and sensitive it is my right to be included and know who will be interpreting my hospital appointments.

This blog has been written anonymously as part of the Insight series – where readers are invited to share their story or news about their interesting job with The Limping Chicken. If you have a story to share please email rebecca@rawithey.com 

Image courtesy of i-stock photos.