Washington State Translation Program

The Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) is a helping hand and lifeline for one out of every four Washington residents. Each year, more than 1.5 million children, families, vulnerable adults and seniors come to DSHS for protection, comfort, food assistance, financial aid, medical care and other services. In order to make those services more accessible to all of Washington's residents, the Department translates all notices, application forms, and important agency documents into seven languages: Chinese, Cambodian/Khmer, Laotian, Korean, Russian, Spanish and Vietnamese. To serve clients who speak less common languages, the agency contracts with private companies to translate materials into another 86 languages on an as-needed basis.

The goal of this program is to ensure that Washington's Social and Health Services are available and accessible to all Washington residents.

Each month, approximately 3,500 to 4,000 documents are translated into 60 or 70 of the less common languages. In the event that the agency is unable to provide written translation of an important document, it sends a notice to clients that oral translation services are available at one of its local offices. In order to improve the quality of its interpretation and translation services, Washington developed a language certification test for all interpreters and translators working for the agency, including contractors.