Multicultural/Multilingual Medical Interpretation (MMMI)

Do you speak another language? Take advantage of your skills! Use your linguistic ability to provide medical interpretation for others. There is a growing demand for interpreters in our healthcare system today.  Medical Interpreting is developing into a profession and students can now become certified in this new field. Help people receive the healthcare they deserve. This course will give you the tools to become a Certified Medical Interpreter and will open the doors for employment in hospitals, clinics, medical doctors and dental offices, cancer centers, labs, radiology departments, insurance companies and more. Certified medical interpreters are currently in high demand. Secure your future! 

This hybrid course will be taught in English and will instruct students on interpreter standards by the main certifying national agencies, as well as the techniques, ethics, and cross-cultural issues related to medical interpreting. Students will be able to exercise their critical thinking ability through case studies, role-plays and practicum assessments. They will be evaluated through written and in classroom oral exams and/or clinic testing. Some other components to be taught in this course are medical terminology, body system anatomy and physiology, common illnesses and procedures, cultural competency, healthcare regulations and their standards and much more from a Medical Interpreter perspective. At the end of this course, students will obtain a 48 hours course completion certificate and be prepared to take the national certification exam for Medical Interpreters at any of the two authorized entities.

Hybrid Course Schedule:

28 hours online instruction is required and 20 hours instruction meetings including in classroom practicum are mandatory. Classroom hours include 4 to 8 clinical practicum hours as assigned by the instructor, depending on student experience and after interview with prospective students. The clinical practicum component, must be approved in order to pass the course. Potential clinical hours if needed, will be held on Saturdays from 9 to 1 pm. Minority languages, other than Spanish, will have other means of clinical practicum assessment

Anyone working as an interpreter that would like to earn the certification would benefit from this class.  Many, if not all, health-care facilities, require employees to carry this certification.

Classroom portion of the class:  TBD

Online portion:  at your computer

Classroom and in class practicum dates*: 10/7/19, 10/14/19, 10/21/19, 10/25/19.

Mondays; Friday

5:45 pm to 8:45 pm. 

*Mandatory attendance for all personal meetings and in classroom practicum as this is an intense short interpretation course.

Online Class Dates:  Monday, September 30th (after 2pm) through Monday October 21st, 2019

Professor Rojas graduated from Southern Connecticut State University (SCSU) and began teaching at Central Connecticut State University (CCSU), where she is still an instructor today. Through the years she has also taught at SCSU, City University of New York Staten Island, New York, Quinnipiac University, Saint Joseph University and Hartford University. While studying for her master’s degree she worked as a Prenatal, Obstetrics and Gynecology Coordinator for 7 years at the Fair Haven Community Health Center in New Haven, Connecticut in which medical interpretation was part of her job. She also worked for 3 years as a medical and administrative assistant for a cardiovascular surgeon and workmen’s compensation doctor in Houston, Texas, where she practiced medical interpretation as well. Since 2012 she has been deeply involved with a national language translation and interpretation Services Company, training and supervising their interpreters based on her credentials as an experienced lecturer and language instructor in addition to her previous medical background and interpretation experience. Additionally she is an active member of their education and medical terminology boards. Shirley’s objectives are aiding and contributing through education to the advancement of Interpretation as a profession.