Medical Translation Insight

It's been a couple of years since CAN/CGSB-131.10-2008 was published by the Canadian General Standards Board. While a handful of translation companies have become certified to the standard, mostly it's been a non-issue in the translation industry.

For those of you that have missed the standard altogether, here is a quick overview.

Like EN 15038 and ASTM F 2575-06, the Canadian standard deals explicitly with the provision of translation services by individuals or companies. It aims to ensure that:

• professional translators are employed
• a supplier's human and technical resources, as well as its quality standards, are consistently managed
• language, managerial and administrative processes are fully documented
• processes are adapted to the particular requirements of the language industry
• a framework for client/supplier relations and communications gets established

These are worthy goals, and they closely mirror the requirements in the American and European standards.

If you are interested in becoming certified, contact Association de l'industrie de la langue/Language Industry Association (AILIA). Last year AILIA launched a certification program for CAN/CGSB-131.10-2008 with Orion Assessment Services.

And to find out more about the standard, take a look at the AILIA-authored article in the July 2010 issue of tcworld.


ForeignExchange Translations provides specialized translation services to drug and medical device companies - in Canadian French and dozens of other languages!