Pandemic Gives Push to Remote Sign Language Interpretation

Tokyo, April 5 (Jiji Press)--Japanese municipalities are increasingly introducing sign language interpretation services using smartphones as the coronavirus pandemic makes it difficult to offer such services in person. The significance of sign language interpretation is growing as people with hearing impairment are increasingly having difficulty reading the facial expressions and lip movements of others due to face masks. But interpreters have no choice but to decline requests from clients with suspected COVID-19 symptoms or who want to visit places with high infection risks. "I feel scared at times when I have to take off my face mask for communications," said Kazuyo Ochiai, a sign language interpreter in Tokyo. To address the pandemic-induced difficulties, 41 of the country's 47 prefectures and 29 municipalities have introduced remote sign language interpretation services, according to the National Research Association for Sign Language Interpretation. Noriko Miyazawa, a director of the association, said that sign language interpreters are concentrated in populated areas. "If remote services spread, it will meet needs in regions with a small number of interpreters," she said. But challenges remain. There are people, especially seniors, who struggle with using smartphones. In April last year, the city government of Hachioji, Tokyo, launched a remote sign language interpretation service using a smartphone app. But the service had been used only 81 times as of January, or some 10 pct of cases in which the city supported hearing-impaired people, mainly through the dispatch of interpreters. This limited take-up is apparently because not many people, especially the elderly, are used to smartphones or have such gadgets. The city government is considering renting out large-screen tablets, after being told by a user of the remote service that it was difficult to see the interpreter in a small smartphone screen. Miyazawa said that in many cases, not only users but also interpreters are unfamiliar with smartphones. "It's necessary to offer training courses," she said. She also said there is a delay in the introduction of remote sign language interpretation services in areas where the COVID-19 situation is not serious. Kumiko Nakanishi, a director of the Japanese Federation of the Deaf, pointed to difficulty indicating off-screen objects in remote services. "It's difficult to convey subtle nuances and emotions," she added. END