Maham’s Journey – In Her Words

Coming to the UK to be with her civil engineer husband, Asif, was one of the most exciting times in Maham Qureshi’s life.

Asif’s extended family were already living in Scotland and looked forward to welcoming their eldest son’s wife. Once settled in her new home, the young teacher looked forward to retraining and embracing her new life in Scotland.

She was determined to improve her English to help her find a teaching role and restart her career. In the meantime, her family were happy to help translate whenever needed.

Seeing this as a short-term arrangement, Maham agreed, and it seemed to work well for a while.

However, when she discovered a lump in her breast, she soon found herself attending a series of medical appointments. Family members accompanied her to the doctor to help with communication, but Maham found it uncomfortable discussing intimate details in front of them.

Uncomfortable raising the issue with Asif, she began to play down the problem and avoided attending further check-ups. As the lump became larger, she returned to her GP, who recognised that something was wrong.

The doctor asked to speak to her alone and soon discovered Maham felt uncomfortable sharing intimate information in front of her loved ones.

Although empathetic, the GP explained that the lump needed to be aspirated for analysis. It was eventually decided to bring in a translator to help Maham proceed with the medical treatment she needed.

Yet bringing in a translator takes time and can require the healthcare professional and patient to revisit parts of the conversation they already had.

For someone facing the possibility of cancer, this was far from ideal.

This is the type of situation in which the translation application InMyWords comes into its own.

Had the GP had access to the application from the outset, Maham could have had immediate access to a translation tool that supported a more private and natural conversation.

InMyWords was designed by INT6, specialist providers of tailor-made business software and solutions.

The app allows conversations to continue organically. People can speak or type in their own language, helping to preserve the natural flow of the conversation.

Translation happens turn by turn, allowing questions, answers and follow-up queries to continue naturally.

In healthcare, conversations can be complicated and peppered with medical terminology, as well as words and phrases that relate to earlier parts of the discussion.

General-purpose translation tools are not always the best option in these situations.

InMyWords uses the wider conversation to help interpret each turn, rather than treating every sentence in isolation. This provides a more fluid experience and allows the application to be developed around the terminology and situations that healthcare providers, and other service providers, actually encounter.

Crucially, it is about helping two people understand each other, rather than simply converting words from one language into another.

For Maham, being able to communicate directly and privately with her GP could have made a worrying experience much easier.

For healthcare providers and other organisations working with people who speak different languages, InMyWords offers another way to help conversations happen when language might otherwise become a barrier.

Because sometimes, understanding isn't just about finding the right words. It is about making sure people feel able to speak.