1. An Overview of this service which is utilised by the
Waikato District Health Board

2. • Interpreting
• Translating
• Interpreter Training
• 24 hr 7 day per week service
• Will travel throughout the country if required
• Offer interpreters in over 40 languages
• Can be accessed via DHB
• Available for private consultation, not just health-related
• Based in Hamilton

3. • Arabic * German * Russian
• Assyrian * Hindi * Samoan
• Bengali * Indonesian * Somali
• Burmese * Japanese * Shona
• Cambodian/Khymer * Kiswahili * Spanish
• Cantonese * Korean * Taiwanese
• Congolese * Kurdish * Thai
• Dari * Lao * Tongan
• Dutch * Malay * Urdu
• Farsi * Mandarin * Vietnamese
• Filipino * Pashtu
• French * Portuguese
• Fukienese * Punjabi

4. • Formal interpreters with Decypher undergo training and must
demonstrate fluency in order to work for the service - their fluency
in English is such that they can interpret medical jargon from
clinicians and medical questions from clients
• Formal interpreters are well-versed in the cultural norms of the
client, as they often (but not always) come from that same cultural
group - they can guide behaviour in the home environment
• Formal interpreters do not have the same emotional investment in
the client that a family member may have, therefore they are more
likely to provide accurate answers to questions
• Family members who are expected to interpret often feel stress in
this role, particularly when they are young adults
• It is the right of the client in the Health and Disability
Commissioner’s Code of Rights to have access to effective
communication

5. In this section, you will hear a basic greeting as I have been
taught it, and learn three different cultural norms that you may
encounter from 6 different ethnic or religious perspectives. They
are:
• Te Reo Maaori
• Mandarin
• Hindi
• Portuguese
• Samoan
• Thai
I will have a go at saying the greeting, then you can have a turn,
just click on the little speaker!

6. • Basic greeting – KIA ORA
• Remove your shoes before entering
the house
• There is a strong chance that your
client will have family members
present, and decisions may be made
collectively
• Some clients may like to start a
session with karakia
(New Zealand History Online, 2013)

7. (Mandarin has MANY dialects, and there is
no single “Chinese” culture.)
• Basic greeting – NI HAO MA (How are
you?)
• Check the feet of the person who answers
the door to know if shoes are okay, or if
you need to put on slippers, or are okay
in socks
• You will often be served tea, it is rude to
decline or ask for something different
• There will be family present, either
husband/wife, or other generations
(City University of New York,
n.d.)

8. (The main, but not only,
language in India, like China,
there is no singular culture.)
• Basic greeting – NAMASTE
• Dress conservatively,
especially cover cleavage and
legs if you are female
• Take off your shoes before
entering the home
• Physical contact between men
and women should only occur
if it is essential
(Open Arms Project, 2012)

9. (Colonial language also
spoken in Brazil, Angola,
Mozambique, East Timor,
Guinea Bissau, Macau, Cape
Verde, and Goa and Daman
provinces of India.)
• Basic greeting – OLA
• Many Portuguese speakers
are Catholic
• Initial contact is very polite
and quite conservative
• Maintain eye contact
(carlos, 2010)

10. • Basic greeting – TALOFA
• Dress conservatively, cleavage
covered, and skirts or pants
below the knee
• Samoan people respect
politeness and good manners,
especially early on in the
relationship
• Take off your shoes before
entering the house
(Flagartist.com, 2011)

11. • Basic greeting depends upon
whether you’re male or female.
• Men say SAWASDI KHAP
(pronounced sa-wat-dee cup)
• Women say SAWASDI KA
(pronounced sa-wat-dee kah)
• Sitting with your legs crossed is
considered impolite
• Avoid too many gestures when
speaking – bad manners
• Do not stand next to older people
who are sitting if you need to speak,
talking over the top of the head of
older people in particular is very
rude
(Wikimedia Common, 2011)
MEN WOMEN

12. • carlos. (2010). The Portuguese empire [Image]. Retrieved from
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1286457
• City University of New York. (n.d.). Where the main Chinese “dialects” are spoken [Image].
Retrieved from http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/core9/phalsall/texts/chinlng2.html
• Flagartist.com. (2011). Flag map of Samoa [Image]. Retrieved from
http://flagartist.com/art/svg/flags/flag-map-of-samoa-flag-map-openclipart-org-commons-
wikimedia-org/
• New Zealand History Online. (2013). Maaori placenames map [Image]. Retrieved from
http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/media/photo/maori-placenames-map
• Open Arms Project. (2012). India Openarms! [Image]. Retrieved from
http://theopenarms.wordpress.com/2012/02/26/india-openarms
• Wikimedia Commons. (2011). File:Flag map of Thailand [Image]. Retrieved from
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Flag_map_of_Thailand.svg