Medical Interpreters Can Save Lives
Written by Shala Hainer Tuesday, August 02 2011
Snapshot: Elizabeth Colón
During her 25-year tenure in the health care industry, Elizabeth Colón witnessed the vital need for interpreters and translation services. Prompt access to an interpreter can mean the difference between life and death in critical situations, so she decided to meet the need head-on by founding Chicago’s Metaphrasis Language and Cultural Solutions in 2007. Many of her clients come from the health care, law, and education fields.
Colón's more than 300 translators and 100 interpreters must endure rigorous training before working with clients. She believes there's more to being an interpreter than being bilingual; they must also understand confidentiality, portraying the client's tone, and knowing how to avoid getting involved in the issues. Because interpretation carries such a weight of responsibility, Colón created a scholarship program to help provide the proper education to potential interpreters who don't have the money to pay for the courses. Metaphrasis offers the Interpreter Training scholarship several times a year.
Colón has received various honors, including recently being featured as a successful Hispanic startup company in Hispanic Executive magazine and honorable mention as one of Enterprising Women magazine's 2011 Enterprising Women of the Year.
She stays involved in professional organizations, including serving as the Midwest regional state representative for the International Medical Interpreters Association and as a board member for the Midwest Association of Translators and Interpreters. She also serves on the board of THE VOICE OF LOVE, a pro bono, all-volunteer project spearheaded by Advocates for Survivors of Torture and Trauma and Cross-Cultural Communications. Next year, the first VOICE OF LOVE training products will be provided free to agencies that support survivors of torture and trauma.
A native of Chicago, Colón spent several years in Puerto Rico. With her family speaking limited English, she learned firsthand how difficult communication in this country can be for non-native English speakers. Her company provides translation and interpretation services for more than 150 languages, with Spanish and Arabic the most common.
Womenetics: Before launching Metaphrasis, you worked with a nonprofit interpreting agency. What prompted you to branch out with your own interpreting and translation business?
Elizabeth Colón: The interpreting industry is a fast-growing field, which is expected to increase 22 percent in the next seven years. Working in a nonprofit environment also meant sitting and waiting for approval when funds were not available. I felt that an organization that I would start would need to be on the cutting edge, offering newer products and services that other agencies were not. When I would see other agencies doing what I wanted to, I knew I could do it, too, which led to my decision to start my own business.
Womenetics: What has been the hardest thing, or biggest sacrifice, with running your own business?
Colón: The biggest sacrifice for anyone running a business is taking away time from your family. As a new business owner, you want to control how things are managed, you also want to do everything yourself, and that limits your free time. Over time, you learn that you can treat your business like a 9 to 5 job and still be productive and get some sleep by building a great team and delegating.
Womenetics: To what do you attribute the rapid growth of Metaphrasis?
Colón: First, the great team of employees and interpreters who are always professional. We also have a very strong corporate culture surrounding the importance of customer service, and in today's business world, many are losing that. So instead of having an automated attendant to answer the initial calls, we have a live person. We listen to what our customers have to say. We just don't sign a contract and walk away because we have the contract. There is a process in establishing a strong, positive relationship, and we do just that. Providing a good product or service goes a long way, but the relationship is just as important.
Womenetics: You're involved in and hold leadership positions with several professional organizations. How do you benefit from these groups?
Colón: Being involved in several professional organizations allows me an opportunity to learn from other great leaders, it demonstrates my commitment to the industry and provides an opportunity for others to learn about Metaphrasis. It also allows me to keep a global view on the industry as a whole and learn where Metaphrasis has opportunities.
Womenetics: What are your plans for the future of Metaphrasis?
Colón: The future for Metaphrasis is endless. We are currently exploring a couple of new service ideas that no one currently offers. In addition to that, we definitely want to expand to other states.
Womenetics: What has been the most important lesson you have learned during your career, and how does that lesson help you today?
Colón: That integrity is important. I have had the unfortunate opportunity of seeing how some others run their business, and, sadly, it catches up to them.
Womenetics: What was the inspiration behind your company's new Intercultural Center, and how do you plan to use it?
Colón: Interpreters play a key role in the delivery of patient care. Without the interpreter, there will most likely be a breakdown of communication, which can lead to serious consequences. Also, health care is changing every day, with new innovations, diseases, and technology. It can become overwhelming and difficult for interpreters to keep up with all of this, so the Intercultural Center was created to offer professional development courses and workshops. The courses and workshops are geared to topics that are relevant in our industry. As I mentioned early on, the field is expected to increase in the next few years, and we wanted to offer a place where people could become trained as medical interpreters. We have seen a shift in the demographics of our students. At one time, we were training people in their early 20s. Now, we are seeing retired teachers, real estate brokers, nurses, and other professionals take our courses, so it was perfect timing to create the center.
Womenetics: You received honorable mention as one of Enterprising Women magazine's 2011 Enterprising Women of the Year in part because of your work mentoring and encouraging other female entrepreneurs. What advice do you typically give them?
Colón: I tell them that everything is possible if you have a plan and good understanding of the business concept. Don't fear the unknown, otherwise you won't take the leap, and be ready to make sacrifices.
Womenetics: What has the honorable mention meant to you?
Colón: Being an honorable mention reconfirmed that I was doing something right and that for all the sacrifices and risks that I took, it paid off.
Womenetics: What is the most rewarding aspect of your job?
Colón: The biggest reward for me is seeing that consumers are obtaining services in a language they speak and interpreters are earning an income during this economy. Ninety seven percent of our interpreters earn a paycheck each month.
Womenetics: With your business functioning 24 hours a day, how do you make time for yourself? What do you like to do to wind down?
Colón: I learned to end my day by 5 p.m. and have a sit-down dinner with my family. I also do yoga to stay focused, and it helps with the stress.
Based near Atlanta, Shala Hainer has been writing and copyediting since 1995. Beginning her career at newspapers such as the Marietta Daily Journal and the Atlanta Business Chronicle, she most recently wrote and edited articles for several nonprofit organizations before purchasing a flower shop in 2006. She earned a bachelor’s in communications from Jacksonville State University.
