improving the quality of mental health interpreting in victoria

4. Rural and Regional Issues
It is important that any programs developed should be available to interpreters who work
outside metropolitan settings. This is particularly important in those regional areas of
Victoria where refugees are being systematically re-settled.
Recommendation 4.1
It is recommended that the State Government makes available to non-metropolitan
interpreters the support that will enable them to participate in professional
development and formal award training programs in Mental Health Interpreting.
5. Incentives to Participate in Further Training
Most interpreters now work in a privatised and fragmented system of interpreting service
provision. It is recognised that appropriate incentives may be required to encourage
interpreters to participate in further training. There are two broad groups of possible
incentives:
1. Financial support for meeting the costs of further training.
2. The institution of processes that will make interpreters who have undertaken further
training more competitive in securing work in mental health services.
Recommendation 5.1
It is recommended that VOMA makes available a number of full and part scholarships
that would encourage appropriately qualified interpreters to undertake training in
mental health interpreting.
VOMA should consider this an extension of the current scholarship program for general
interpreter training.
Recommendation 5.2
It is recommended that the Mental Health Branch establishes mechanisms that would
encourage mental health service agencies to give preference to interpreters who have
received training at an acceptable level in mental health interpreting.
Conclusion
This project has demonstrated that there is renewed recognition that the field of mental
health interpreting involves specialist skills and that these skills need to be built on the
competencies required for professional interpreting. To enable these specialist skills to be
developed all key stakeholders have acknowledged the need to develop relevant curriculum
and training programs. This is critical, to enable interpreters themselves to work more
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