Professional medical and legal translation and interpretation services play an important role in personal injury cases. A motor vehicle accident can be the cause of numerous severe injuries, including a bulging disc, protruding disc and disc herniation – all of which involve a trauma to the spinal column and the vertebrae that surround it. With any motor vehicle accident, there is always the potential for a personal injury case. However, the key to building a successful personal injury claim is for the injured party to take specific steps following the accident, including:
Seeking immediate medical attention: insisting on getting x-rays, CAT scans and MRIs. Ask questions and rigorously follow the doctor’s recommendations. Talk with an attorney and never accepting compensation from an insurance company prior to discussing the claim with lawyers.
But what happens when the client is a foreign language speaker and no foreign language translation is available? They may not have health insurance, and will therefore avoid going to the hospital. If they do go to the hospital, they may be unable to ask the right questions or not be able to properly describe their pain. In this case, their medical record will lack substantial evidence of the injury. Clearly, without a foreign language translation the injured party may not fully understand what they are agreeing to. In such cases, the attorney will have to take extra steps to prove that the lack of evidence is due to the fact that no foreign language translation/ interpretation services were provided.