About our Team

Our Mentors
Our Certified Graduates
About Marlene Obermeyer

Marlene

Marlene and Dr. Kelly Martinkus


IMIA Minority Languages Division First Chairperson
CMIE, First Chairperson

Former Member: Texas Association of Healthcare Interpreters (TAHIT)
Former Member: National Council on Interpreting in Healthcare (NCIHC)
Member: Kansas Association of Nursing Continuing Education Providers (KANCEP). 2005 to 2009.
Approved Provider for Nurses Continuing Education: California State Board of Registered Nursing, 2012 to 2019.

Marlene is a cross-cultural trainer and curriculum designer for cultural competency programs and professional medical interpreter training. A registered nurse with over thirty years of hands-on bedside nursing, she originally came from the Philippines, completed her nursing education in the U.S., and has obtained additional certificates in cross-cultural training and transcultural nursing. She has designed and authored over 100 contact hours of continuing education courses for nurses. She is webmaster and website designer for websites including two continuing education websites and a professional organization. She is a certified eCollege instructor.

Marlene is an advocate for language-specific medical interpreter training and for interpreter training for medical professionals and healthcare providers. She is the director of Culture Advantage Professional Medical Interpreter Training offering Language-Specific Medical Interpreter Training for bilingual individuals from physicians to nurses to professionals in non-medical professions in Arabic, Chinese Mandarin, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, and Vietnamese. Programs in other languages are currently in development.

Marlene was the first chair of the Commission for Medical Interpreter Education (CMIE), a division of the International Medical Interpreters Association. CMIE established standards for medical interpreter education. Marlene advocated for a minimum of 60-Hour training for medical interpreters, including 20 hours of training in medical terminology in both languages.

Additionally, Marlene was the first chair of the Minority Languages Division of the IMIA and presented a plan for minority language speakers to improve opportunities for their professional training and recognition.

Marlene designed and presented the first IMIA Medical Terminology Boot Camp which has been presented in many cities all over the US.

As a minority language interpreter and with her over 30 years of experience as an RN in different capacities, Marlene and her team of healthcare professionals and professional interpreters, are uniquely qualified to prepare professional interpreters that meet the expectations of healthcare professionals.

Developer and Presenter: IMIA Medical Terminology Boot Camps
    2010
    2011
    2012
    2012 NCTA Medical Terminology Boot Camp
    2013 BootCamp Difficult Situations and Exploring Mental Health Interpreting Duke University, Durham, NC
    2014 IMIA Conference Medical Terminology Boot Camp and Difficult Situations Boot Camp with Dr. Kelly Martinkus, Houston, TX

Cultural Training and Consulting Clients:

    Wichita School District, Wichita, KS
    Cargill Wichita
    Sprint Overland Park, KC
  • IMHER, Wichita. Consultant. Nurses continuing education provider:to provide education and training to the health care community in culturally and linguistically appropriate care.
  • Wichita School District. Wichita, KS
  • Cargill Wichita. Predeparture and Post-Arrival Cultural Training for International Executives and Managers
  • Sprint Overland Park, Kansas City, Predeparture and Post-Arrival Cultural Training for International Executives and Managers
  • Wichita Area Technical College. Consultant for CEU-Provider Approval for Nurses from California and Kansas State Boards of Nursing.

Medical Interpreter Training Clients:

  • United States Catholic Conference of Bishops Washington, DC. Training of Guatemalan Interpreters (Speakers of 5 Languages)
  • Rockford Healthcare Systems, Illinois. Training of Staff Interpreters
  • Ohio Health Partners, Ohio. Training of Staff Interpreters
  • Interpreters of the Northshore, MA. Training of Freelance Interpreters.
  • United Healthcare Group, Las Vegas, Nevada. Training and Assessment of Bilingual Healthcare Staff.
  • Healthcare Partners, California. Bilingual Healthcare Staff Assessment.

Marlene, with her Medical Mentors and CMI/CHI instructors, has personally trained and tested over 100 medical interpreters including bilingual physicians, nurses, physical therapists, respiratory therapists, medical assistants, and other bilingual professionals through her innovative Culture Advantage Professional Medical Interpreter Online and Blended Online-Onsite Training. She has also trained over 200 interpreters through IMIA Medical Interpreter Boot Camps. Marlene is the original designer and presenter of the IMIA Medical Terminology Boot Camp.

About Kelly Martinkus

Kelly

Kelly Martinkus, MD, CMI, is a graduate of the Culture Advantage Medical Interpreter Training Program and is delighted to be a Culture Advantage Mentor and the Manager of Program Development-Medical Division at Culture Advantage!
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