Occupational Safety, Health, and Well-Being Concerns and Solutions for Management Reported by Sign Language Interpreters: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

While the occupational health of sign language interpreters has traditionally focused on physical health, evidence demonstrating mental health concerns is growing and supporting a shift to a more integrated approach. We embarked on a qualitative study to guide the adaptation of a previously developed Total Worker Health® program to the context of sign language interpreting. Eight unstructured 90-min focus groups were conducted. Interpreters reported occupational safety, health, and well-being concerns and shared their solutions for management. Twenty-seven interpreters participated (aged 53.7 years; 81% female; 85% white). Predominant concerns centered on topics like workplace violence, secondary traumatic stress or vicarious trauma, lack of work–life integration or boundaries, and loss of agency or loss of self. The organizational culture of the field fostered deprioritization of self, oppression, elitism, sexism, and unhealthy relationships with interpreter peers and community members. Physical health remained a contributor, specifically the physical effects of non-physical work, aging, and differences in exposures across interpreting settings but paled in comparison to mental health and organizational culture. Solutions for management included but were not limited to prioritization of jobs, creating safe spaces/communities of supported practice, and exercise. This study supports the evolution of future research, practice, policy, and capacity building aspiring to a more integrated approach.