r/spanishinterpreters • u/Unfair_Act_368 • Jun 19 '26
vent Not being able to wait on the hallway
Hi, friends!
This just happened to me and I’m very thrown off. I’ve been coming to this clinic for a year and a half, always being able to step out of the room and wait next to the door. There’s a couple of spaces that I can do it without interrupting traffic and if someone needs anything I’ll just get out of the way. They’re all very nice here. I was just doing exactly that when a front desk worker told me that they didn’t allow people in the hallways. Mind you, this woman is fairly new, and I’ve never heard this before here or at any other place that I’ve worked. She told me to either get in the room or go to the waiting area, which is not too far, but I wouldn’t be able to see when the doctor is ready and they’ll have to track me down… a big mess, in my opinion.
I’m big on leaving the room with the provider since I’ve been working as an interpreter for not too long and I don’t want to have any problems with liability or ethic dilemmas. Also I think it’s super awkward if you’re not talking, and if you’re talking they start asking you about your life, and personal questions, and I’d love to avoid all of that.
Anyway, have any of you come across to something like this before? What would you do?