Attachment 4 - Translator Qualification Requirements.docx

a. Translator Qualifications

VENDOR shall provide qualified, professional, experienced translators who possess a high level of translation skills and proficiency in both the English language and Spanish in order to translate written text completely and accurately. Specifically, translators employed by VENDOR must:

i. Have one (1) year of experience translating health texts or at least four (4) years of experience in general language translation with demonstrated mastery of English grammar and usage in addition to grammar and usage in Spanish; and have experience in English-Spanish social marketing.

ii. Have a minimum score of 3, in Translation Performance according to the Interagency Language Roundtable Scale (see http://www.govtilr.org/Skills/interpretationSLDsapproved.htm) or its equivalent.

iii. Federal, State, or alternative certifications will also be accepted (e.g. the National Board for Certification of Medical Interpreters (NBCMI), the Certification Commission for Healthcare Interpreters (CCHI), the National Association of Judiciary Interpreters and Translators (NAJIT), and/or Judiciary Interpreters and Translators Certification Examination (JITCE)). VENDOR shall present proof of translators’ qualifications upon request. VENDOR may request a waiver of this requirement on an individual translator basis.

iv. Be knowledgeable of both English and Spanish vocabularies typically used in formal, consultative, and casual modes of communication in health system contexts, including colloquial slang, idiosyncratic slang, and regionalism.

v. Be knowledgeable of specialized vocabulary (terminology) in both English and Spanish related to CPSC’s varied roles and missions, particularly for CPSC’s components with greater interaction with limited English proficient populations.

vi. Write in English and Spanish fluently, including regionalisms and colloquial slang without altering meanings;

vii. Translate in a manner that is factually and conceptually accurate without changes, omissions, or additions;

viii. Be able to preserve the tone, sentiment, and emotional register of the original written statement;

ix. Abide by standard translator and interpreter code of ethics for example by the National Association of Judiciary Interpreters & Translators Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibilities, available at https://najit.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/NAJITCodeofEthicsFINAL.pdf.

b. Quality Controls

i. The VENDOR shall perform quality control pursuant that, at a minimum, addresses the following:

1) Detailed description of the quality assurance measures employed to meet all of the requirements of this BPA.

2) Linguist Qualifications Matrix listing all interpreters and translators used by the VENDOR in meeting the requirements of this BPA. The VENDOR shall update the Linguist Qualifications Matrix on a quarterly basis and provide it to the Division in electronic format.

3) Certification documentation should indicate: the certifying or assessment body, any subject areas expertise, proficiency level and the specific language combination assessed by translation testing, and the direction of translation permitted (English to Spanish and/or Spanish to English.)

4) Translator maintains valid certification through continued work training, and/or continuing education credits.

5) Translator passing marks on assessment in reading, writing and/or translation performance in Spanish and English.

6) Translator must abide by CPSC’s English to Spanish glossary.

7) Translator must abide by VENDOR-CPSC established translation process and turn-around times.

ii. For quality control purposes, CPSC may verify the qualifications of any linguist. This may include, but is not limited to, inquiries regarding:

i. Whether the linguist is a certified translator or interpreter or both;

ii. The certifying authority/organization that granted the linguist’s certification;

iii. The process of getting a linguist certified;

iv. Any limitations to the linguist’s certification;

v. The linguist’s experience interpreting or translating;

vi. Any continuing education or ongoing certification needed to maintain the linguist’s certification; and,

vii. Potential conflicts of interest.

c. Linguist Disqualifications

CPSC reserves the right to refuse the use of an individual linguist provided by the VENDOR due to poor performance, inappropriate conduct, or any other reason based on a failure to satisfy the requirements of the BPA. Such a refusal is deemed a disqualification of the linguist. Once the VENDOR is notified that a particular linguist has been disqualified, the VENDOR shall not use such linguist, unless reinstatement is granted by the Division. The VENDOR shall submit written Reinstatement requests and shall include detailed information on the specific actions taken by the VENDOR that justify reinstatement, such as confirmation of training, counseling, additional interpreting skills and language proficiency evaluations, ethics training, etc.

d. Resource Materials

The VENDOR shall ensure all of its linguists have relevant language resource materials available, including English/Spanish language conversion dictionaries, monolingual dictionaries, etc. The VENDOR shall provide the above items to its linguists at its own expense.