Open research questions in Interpreting and Communication in Healthcare
56 unresolved questions extracted from the limitations and future-work sections of 1,015 Interpreting and Communication in Healthcare papers in our library. Each links back to the study that raised it.
What the literature leaves open
While most hospitals are expected to abide by laws or guidelines that mandate language services for linguistic minority patients, there is no standardized way of transforming this language policy into actual language practice and integrating that practice into a reception/admission team’s workflow.
Introduction Patients hospitalized with heart failure who do not speak English as their primary language face communication barriers, however the impact on documented History of Present Illness (HPI) and Review of Systems (ROS) has not been reported.
Language-Related Disparities in History Documentation in Patients Admitted for Heart Failure · 2026 · DOIshould examine how governance mechanisms and patterns of reliance shape ethical outcomes in clinical practice, as well as how context-specific gov- ernance strategies can be developed and evaluated across different health-care settings. Ultimately, ethical integration of LLMs in health care will depend not only on technical performance, but also on how institutional governance structures shape reliance, accounta- bility, and equitable capacity to benefit users during routine use. The authors used a generative artificial intelligence tool (ChatGPT; OpenAI) to assist with language refinement, grammar correction, and consistency of the manuscript. The tool was not used for study design, conceptual development, data collection, data analysis, result interpretation, or reference generation. All scientific content, analyses, results, and conclusions were conceived, verified, and approved by the authors. Records of the artificial intelligence–assisted editing interactions have been retained by the authors and can be made available upon request, in accordance with JMIR Publications’ editorial policy on the use of generative artificial intelligence.
Ethical Governance of Large Language Models in Health Care: Trust, Responsibility, and Equity in Routine Use · 2026 · DOISeveral limitations should be acknowledged. First, the sample size and datasets it generated are relatively small, which may limit statistical power and the generalizability of the findings. Second, the data are drawn from a single institutional context (United Nations conference interpreting) and may not reflect patterns in other interpreting settings. Third, the analysis relies on a limited set of quantitative indicators (ASL, LD, WRDC, READ), which capture specific dimensions of simplification and explicitation but do not fully account for discourse-level, pragmatic, or interactional features.
Simplification and Explicitation in Simultaneous Interpreting: Evidence from a Corpus of Arabic–English Conference Interpreting · 2026 · DOIFuture research should replicate this corpus-based methodology across other language pairs, interpreting settings, and levels of interpreter expertise to test the broader applicability of the present findings. It would also be valuable to examine additional indicators of simplification and explicitation, particularly at the discourse, pragmatic, and interactional levels. Such work would help determine whether the pattern observed here is specific to Arabic–English conference interpreting or reflects a more general tendency in interpreter-mediated communication. Also, future studies may examine other dimensions, including discourse markers and cohesive devices, which can provide deeper insights into how translation shifts operates beyond sentence-level measures. In addition, the inclusion of pause analysis and temporal features, such as hesitation patterns, speech rate, and segmentation, may help reveal how interpreters manage real-time processing demand and would contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of how interpreted output is shaped by processing constraints in simultaneous interpreting.
Simplification and Explicitation in Simultaneous Interpreting: Evidence from a Corpus of Arabic–English Conference Interpreting · 2026 · DOI0–1 (~10%) Open evidence (all criteria)a None identified Gemini output (all criteria)a Perplexity output (all criteria)a 0–1 (~7%) 1 (~5–10%) 1–2 (~5–8%) 1–2 (~5–7%) 0 (~0%) None identified None identified None…
Beyond translation: a patient-centered research agenda for artificial intelligence interpreter services in healthcare · 2026 · DOIFuture research should focus on developing strategies to effectively implement IKT to address power imbalances, leading to research that has a better chance of being useful, usable and used in practice.
Addressing power imbalance in research: exploring power in integrated knowledge translation health research · 2025 · DOILimited research has been conducted in the above-mentioned field, and the contributions that exist so far have focused on the linguistic and design features considered when producing EtR discourses; however, other central components that govern the adaptation of authentic texts for EtR needs seem to be neglected.
In library and information science (LIS), the concept of gatekeeping warrants further exploration, especially due to the strong influence it can have on information behaviors of American minoritized communities.
Refocusing of the Study of Gatekeepers among Linguistic Minorities, the Case of Spanish speakers in the United States · 2022 · DOIOBJECTIVE: To assess the extent of UK speech and language therapy engagement in assessment and management of primary progressive aphasia, determine the factors contributing to any shortfall and explore a gap in the research literature on current speech and language therapy practices with people with primary progressive aphasia.
Speech and language therapy for primary progressive aphasia: Referral patterns and barriers to service provision across the UK · 2018 · DOIEarly research in m-learning emphasized limitations of the mobile devices, such as size of the display, reduced input, small memory, abridged or specific OS version, and lack of standards, which positioned m-learning as a specific case of e-learning.
These surveys were, however, completed before the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) stood up, and while there may be great need for foreign language capabilities in DHS, such as in their border patrol or customs duties, that need has not been fully documented.
This geographic imbalance limits the handbook’s claim to global relevance and leaves critical gaps in understanding how technology shapes interpreting practices in diverse political, economic, and linguistic contexts.
Review of Book: The Routledge handbook of interpreting, technology and AI by E. Davitti, T. Korybski & S. Braun · 2026 · DOIThis may mean that these language determination practices may seem obvious to researchers and practitioners or that they are under-studied, under-reported, and non-standardized.
Future research should explore the use of alternative prompts and varying levels of human intervention to improve translation quality and ensure culturally appropriate, clinically relevant translations across diverse languages.
This paper examines the under-researched field of Polish–English telephone interpreting, with particular focus on the interactional environment and methods of connection.
Over-The-Phone Commuity Interpreting: A Corpus-Based Analysis of Interpreted Interactions in Community Settings · 2025 · DOIThe study may provide empirical support for further research on conjunctive-based explicitation in interpreter training and interpreting directionality, and offer pedagogical implications to improve interpreting training at the discursive level.
A corpus-assisted investigation of conjunctive-based explicitation in student trainees’ consecutive interpreting performance between English and Chinese in interpreting competition · 2024 · DOIHowever, it is not only language barriers that interpreters are expected to address, but also gaps in the knowledge, beliefs and values that are rooted in the social norms of the two or more respective cultures.
So far, this element of the criminal proceedings has received little attention in research, and knowledge on practical implementation of the formal requirements and the related informal practices is scarce.
The work of intercept interpreters in lawful communication surveillance: A daily trade-off between formal requirements and informal needs · 2023 · DOIGiven the novelty of the topic, the impact of in-booth CAI tool support on the SI of numbers is still largely under-researched.
Due to a scarce research in the field so far, the aim of this paper is to discuss an empirical longitudinal study of simultaneous interpreting of a Nobel lecture from Spanish into Polish.
Many Polish migrants do not speak Norwegian or have insufficient knowledge of the language, which makes it difficult or impossible to communicate with health personnel.
Invisible rights: Barriers and facilitators to access and use of interpreter services in health care settings by Polish migrants in Norway · 2018 · DOIAs CELBAN expands, and in light of its current profile as a high stakes language assessment tool, a time for reflection and review is warranted.
If attention is not paid to possible alterations by interpreters to the original utterances of the witness and duty of care is lacking in the procedure of obtaining statement from witnesses through such interpreters, the official legal record may not be an accurate one.
A case study of interpreter-mediated witness statement: police interpreting in South Korea · 2016 · DOIFinally, there is only limited evidence that small talk may contribute to establishing an interpersonal relationship between clients and professionals across language barriers.
Most-cited papers in Interpreting and Communication in Healthcare
- What Is the Point of Equality? · Ethics · 1999 · 1,760 citations
- Do Professional Interpreters Improve Clinical Care for Patients with Limited English Proficiency? A Systematic Review of the Literature · Health Services Research · 2006 · 1,182 citations
- Instrument translation process: a methods review · Journal of Advanced Nursing · 2004 · 954 citations
- Errors in Medical Interpretation and Their Potential Clinical Consequences in Pediatric Encounters · PEDIATRICS · 2003 · 580 citations
- Patient and Public Engagement in Integrated Knowledge Translation Research: Are we there yet? · Research Involvement and Engagement · 2019 · 159 citations
- Preventing and reducing ‘coercion’ in mental health services: an international scoping review of English‐language studies · Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica · 2020 · 113 citations
- Reporting of the Translation Process in Qualitative Health Research: A Neglected Importance · International Journal of Qualitative Methods · 2022 · 79 citations
- Migrants' perceptions of using interpreters in health care · International Nursing Review · 2009 · 69 citations
- Knowledge translation in developing countries · Journal of Continuing Education in the Health Professions · 2006 · 69 citations
- The Role of the Health Care Interpreter in a Clinical Setting—A Narrative Review · Journal of Community Health Nursing · 2014 · 64 citations
Most recent work
- Advancing linguistic justice in courtroom interpreting: A digital humanities approach to interpreter-mediated communication · Language & Communication · 2026
- Language Equity in Pediatrics: Caring for Children From Families Who Speak a Language Other Than English · Pediatric Annals · 2026
- Participating through speaking, or? Linguistic participation during placement at the hospital · Migration and Language Education · 2026
- Training legal translators and interpreters: Creation and reception of didactic materials and resources to train non-professional translators and interpreters in languages of lesser diffusion · Estudios de Traducción · 2026
- Mapping the field: a systematic review of non-professional interpreting and translation in Italy. · Estudios de Traducción · 2026
- From Training to Practice: Evaluating the Role and Training of Lesser Diffusion Languages Interpreters and Mediators in Healthcare Services · Estudios de Traducción · 2026
- Propuesta de un modelo de competencia interpretativa para la formación de intérpretes en México · Estudios de Traducción · 2026
- Speaking the same language: understanding patient satisfaction with interpreter services in primary care · British Journal of General Practice · 2026
- Functionalist approaches to interpreting · 2026
- Ressenti des professionnels de santé sur l’interprétariat professionnel en soins ambulatoires : une étude qualitative en Pays de La Loire · Santé Publique · 2026
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