Pharmaceutical companies are very focused on new technology because it enables enormous progress in the pharmaceutical sector. Therefore, the demand for innovative pharmaceutical translation services is also growing, and new trends in medical translation and localization are emerging, which determine the future of communication in the sector. This article delves deeper into some of these topics, particularly highlighting the value of pharma content localization.
Specificity of pharmaceutical translations
Each type of translation requires high precision. However, when it comes to pharmaceutical and medical translations, we are entering a highly delicate sector. The pharmaceutical industry is very sensitive because it is directly related to health. The permissible margin of error is practically zero. Consequences of poor translation can be very serious. In addition to perfect knowledge of the language, the translator must be able to reach every type of recipient of a pharmaceutical document, e.g. a patient or a health care professional, and is also obliged to comply with applicable legal regulations. This is extremely difficult, which is why pharmaceutical and medical translations usually involve specialized translators.
A breakthrough in the pandemic
The Covid-19 pandemic has unexpectedly accelerated the era of digitalization in many industries, especially pharmacy and medicine. This included the development of different new media, such as tools and applications that enable the delivery of remote instructions to patients regarding self-examination or medication administration. As a result, in Europe, the number of visits to doctor’s offices decreased by as much as 70% and the number of registered doctor accounts offering telemedicine advice increased by 23%. Industry organizations then moved largely to digitally conducting and monitoring clinical trials and began using a range of multimedia to provide patients with information and support online.
Speech recognition and translation
For remote patient consultations, speech recognition and automatic translation technologies are extremely useful. Real-time speech-to-text translation enables healthcare providers to communicate with patients in their native languages, overcoming language barriers and improving the accessibility of healthcare services. We already have such tools today, offering an automatic real-time speech translation system that can be successfully used in both voice and video conversations, providing instant translation in audio and in a wide range of languages. Such functions are possible thanks to the use of various technologies, such as language identification, automatic speech recognition and more. For now, these tools are in a constant phase of development and improvement and cannot be used on a daily basis with full confidence, because when human lives are at stake, there is no room for experimentation. However, there is a high probability that thanks to continuous improvement, this will change in the near future and real-time translations will allow healthcare providers to fully communicate with patients in their native languages, overcoming language barriers and increasing the accessibility of medical services.
Content localization tools
Content localization is a process that goes beyond ordinary translation, because it focuses on adapting the translated material to the different cultural and linguistic characteristics of a given target group. The technological development of translations and localization of pharmaceutical content will certainly be based on automatic tools, thanks to which the entire process will be not only faster, but also more effective, which will allow the industry to develop more dynamically and provide wider access to medicine for people from all over the world.
Personalization and patient focus
Localization for pharmaceutical and medical translations will no longer be focused only on doctors and researchers. Patient empowerment and engagement are and will continue to be key to modern healthcare, increasing the need for a patient-centric location. Tailoring translations to individual patient needs will ensure that each person receives not only accurate information, but also personalized guidance tailored to their specific medical requirements. That is why it will be so important to adapt documents available to the patient, e.g. medical records, discharge notes and drug labels, to the patient’s individual cultural and linguistic preferences. A patient-centric location will undoubtedly improve patient safety, regulatory compliance and healthcare quality.
Regulatory compliance
Healthcare industry is subject to particularly stringent regulatory regimes in order to maintain the highest standards of patient safety and quality. Unfortunately, there is no single legal system in the world that would apply everywhere, so ensuring translations comply with the regulations is a big challenge. An additional difficulty is the fact that, in addition to national regulations, there are also regulations of various organizations, such as the guidelines of the European Medicines Agency (EMEA), international standards: ICD-10, Meddra, DSM-V and the regulations of the European Union. For these reasons, it is critical that future advances in medical translation and localization focus on easy and automated regulatory compliance in several areas.
Video and multimedia localization
Video and multimedia information is becoming increasingly common in medical communications. Localization of multimedia materials is crucial to effectively reach audiences around the world. The integration of specialized tools and technologies supporting translation, subtitling and voice-over for multimedia information is one of the developing and future aspects of pharmaceutical translation and localization.
Summary
Technology and content localization are crucial to the future of medical and pharmaceutical translation. These areas continue to evolve and as the world becomes more and more connected, they will impact the future of healthcare by overcoming language barriers and ensuring patient safety and health internationally. The future of translations in the medical and pharmaceutical industries is certainly interesting and promising.