“Sometimes I take the Stories with me and I cannot let them go”: Vicarious Trauma and Mental Health of Spanish-language Medical Interpreters

Spanish-language medical interpreters are essential to equitable healthcare delivery, yet their mental health needs remain underrecognized. This qualitative study explored how hospital-based interpreting shapes mental health and contributes to vicarious trauma among 12 Spanish-language interpreters in a southwestern metropolitan area. Semi-structured interviews conducted in January and February 2024 were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis. Findings revealed that interpreters experience significant psychological burden, including anxiety, depression, panic attacks, and symptoms consistent with vicarious trauma—driven by high-acuity clinical encounters, emotional labor demands, first-person interpretation practices, and, critically, institutional neglect. The Job Demands-Resources model framed these experiences: demands were substantial while resources remained inadequate. However, interpreters demonstrated remarkable resilience sustained by peer support, personal coping practices, and a profound sense of purpose in serving their communities. Participants identified concrete institutional solutions, including protected peer debriefing time, monthly support meetings, and supervisory responsiveness. These findings extend existing interpreter literature by highlighting how organizational conditions—understaffing, inadequate compensation, and professional marginalization—amplify psychological burden in hospital settings. The study underscores that medical interpreter well-being is not peripheral to care quality but foundational to it, and that meaningful institutional investment in mental health supports is essential to sustain this vital workforce.