Supervision of refugee interpreters: 5 years of experience from Northern Norway

AbstractRefugees from distant cultures are settled in small communities in sparsely populated Northern Norway, under unfamiliar and sometimes extreme climatic conditions. A professional interpretation service is essential during psychiatric treatment, integration, and rehabilitation. However, most of the interpreters are amateurs at the beginning of their careers, recruited from among the ?local? refugees themselves. Their own need for support, supervision, and education is extensive. This paper describes 5 years of experience in group supervision offered to the refugee interpreters in this region by the Psychosocial Team for Refugees in Northern Norway, and a model for the structure and leadership of such supervision groups is presented. Supervision groups can be important tools in improving the interpretation service, strengthening the professional identity of the interpreters, and stabilizing them in a difficult and lonely job. It is highly recommended that similar supervision groups be established elsewhere, particularly when refugees are used as interpreters.