Takayuki Oshimi
Office of Medical Education, School of Medicine, International University of Health and Welfare
Background: The International Society of Clinical Medicine has accredited three examinations for the Healthcare Interpreter certification, although the assessment items still need to be standardized. Methods: This symposium aimed to develop a Healthcare Interpreter Skills Assessment Rubric usable for formative assessments in healthcare interpreter education. A survey was conducted with the accrediting organizations. Results: In the survey, 10 common assessment items across the three examinations were identified. The assessment methods differed among the examinations, and multiple assessment levels were revealed to be in use. Opinions on the assessment rubrics emphasized the need for assessments that prioritize feedback that helps learners understand their levels. Conclusions: The results confirmed that assessment of interpreting skills emphasizes assessing interpreting actions. The assessment of an interpreter’s communicative actions requires various perspectives, and the development of assessment standards reflecting the interpreter’s role in the actual healthcare setting evidently is essential for the future.
Gaku Sato
Japan Medical Education Foundation
Following the Japan Medical Education Foundation’s involvement in the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan’s Medical Interpreter Training Curriculum Standards in 2013, we began offering the Medical Interpreter Skills Certification Test (Basic/Professional) in 2016, and continue to do so. Efforts are being made to evaluate the quality of medical interpreting skills. The abovementioned test operates under the assumption that candidates have comprehensive medical interpreting skills, including interpreting and language, as well as communication, reception, and interpreting ethics.
Yukiko Fujii
Council for Interpreter’s Quality and Competence
The Council for Interpreter's Quality and Competence (CIQC) examinations include both written and practical tests, and the content of the questions is formulated from the perspective of the competencies for healthcare interpreting, with the aim of objectively assessing the necessary knowledge and current interpreting skills. In defining the specific competencies for healthcare interpreters, we were guided not only by the MHLW's Curriculum Standards for Medical Interpreter Training, but also by ISO 21998, the international standard for healthcare interpreting. We attach great importance to defining interpreting skills in recognition of the fact that healthcare interpreting is a profession within the category of interpreting. The CIQC interpreting skills test is unique in that it is a consecutive interpreting test that is not only a pass/fail assessment but also a level assessment. The assessment perspective emphasizes not only accuracy but also the importance of communicative interpreting, and rubrics from overseas interpreting-related examinations were used as a reference in formulating the assessment items. Furthermore, avoiding the influence of the assessor's experience and subjectivity is an important element in continuous and fair assessment of competence, so we have avoided abstract assessment wording and emphasized objective and measurable indicators.
Yumi Takaoka
General Incorporated Medical Interpreting Association of Japan
Rubrics have several advantages in both formative and summative assessment. Creating examinations based on rubrics can improve the validity of what examinations measure because rubrics clearly indicate what is being assessed. Additionally, the analytic, systematic, and coherent description of rubric assessment standards enables objective and fair evaluations. A normative rubric for evaluating healthcare interpreting skills can be developed through the following procedures: (1) Establish the final goals regarding qualities such as skills and conduct that a healthcare interpreter should acquire; (2) Specify assessment items, or criteria, for achieving the goals; and (3) Identify assessment standards with graduated verbal descriptions for each criterion. Creating an examination for healthcare interpreting skills and implementing an assessment based on a developed rubric in this way would improve the examination’s validity and reliability, and make it feasible for the authorized certifying organizations to standardize the assessment items. A rubric, which indicates the goals and aspects to consider in making judgments, gives learners and healthcare interpreting candidates clear targets to aim for. Wide use of rubrics would enhance training and evaluation of healthcare interpreting skills.
Copyright © Japan Society for Healthcare Interpreting Studies