Interpreting in mental health: Social, moral and spatial divisions of labor in health care for migrants

Simultaneous interpreting in the context of mental health care for migrants faces several political issues, which result in questioning such professional practices towards patients whose mental suffering is often related to the experience of exile. Consultation sessions with migrants represent a challenge for interpreters as well. These professionals are required to position themselves in a caring relationship, while dealing with mental health professionals’ expectations together with employers’ directives, which may overlap and contradict each other. Through the prism of interpretation, the paper aims at examining the social, moral and spatial division of labour in migrants’ care, namely in the context of mental health services. The presentation is based on two separate field-works, in the cities of Rennes and Strasbourg: both regional capitals are marked by recent significant changes in migration flows and have been considered for experimenting innovative practices in promoting simultaneous interpretation in the context of mental health care.