CHI

CCHI states that CHI™ certification is a language-specific performance certification for Spanish, Arabic, and Mandarin interpreters. If your working language is not one of these three, CCHI's CoreCHI™ and CoreCHI-P™ credentials are described as available to interpreters of all languages.

CoreCHI™ is described as knowledge-based and tests core professional knowledge, critical thinking, ethical decision-making, and cultural responsiveness for interpreters of every language. CHI™ is performance-based and language-specific, focusing on interpreting skills and abilities, with emphasis on all modes of interpreting in a healthcare encounter, sight translation, and healthcare document translation.

CCHI states the CHI™ exams place emphasis on all modes of interpreting in a healthcare encounter, sight translation, and healthcare document translation. A sensible order is to build interpreting-mode fluency first, then sight translation speed and accuracy, then written healthcare document translation, since the latter two depend on the same terminology and register control.

CCHI describes its certifications as recognized as the benchmark of excellence in the industry and notes NCCA accreditation as a recognition of the rigor with which CCHI has established its certification. The exams are performance-based, so passing depends on demonstrated interpreting and translation ability rather than recall alone. CCHI does not publish a difficulty rating in the source material reviewed.

Yes. CCHI states that its CoreCHI™, CoreCHI-P™, and CHI™-Spanish certifications are accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA), and that these are the only accredited interpreter certifications in the United States. CCHI became the first national organization certifying healthcare interpreters to receive NCCA accreditation in June 2012, when the oral performance CHI™-Spanish certification was accredited.

Because CHI™ is performance-based, weaknesses in delivery rather than knowledge tend to cost candidates: incomplete renditions, dropped or added meaning, and loss of register. Sight translation and document translation reward accurate terminology and faithful formatting. CCHI does not publish an official list of failure causes in the source material reviewed, so treat this as preparation guidance rather than an official statement.

CCHI states that interpreters applying for CCHI certification must submit their application and payment online. Organizations that want to pay for employees to get certified can arrange invoicing and payment by check, and CCHI offers special pricing when a group of applications and exams are paid for by an organization; details are available from CCHI billing.

CCHI states that the exam specifications are evidence-based and directly correlate to data from a national survey, the Job Task Analysis (JTA) Study, and that the latest national JTA study was conducted in 2016. The JTA identified tasks performed by entry-level healthcare interpreters and the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to perform them.

CCHI maintains a National Certified Interpreter Registry that includes CoreCHI™, CoreCHI-P™, and CHI™ certification recipients as well as candidates. A "Candidate" status means the interpreter is eligible to take the corresponding exam but has not taken it yet, and "Revoked" means CCHI has revoked the certification or candidate status. A downloadable verification PDF is available for each record.