# When does a discharge summary need translation and legalisation?
Source: https://www.lafit-trans.com/en/faq/document-legalization/legalization-of-discharge-summary-epicrisis/
Medical translation shaped by the document’s purpose
A discharge summary records the diagnosis, treatment, investigations and follow-up advice after a hospital stay. Translation and any certification are selected according to the destination country, the recipient and the purpose for which the record will be used.
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A discharge summary is a dense medical record. It may contain the final and associated diagnoses, ICD codes, medical history, investigation results, procedures, operation notes, medicine regimens, the patient’s condition at discharge and follow-up recommendations. Each part is translated in the context of the relevant medical specialty rather than as a list of isolated terms.
## When is a discharge summary translated?
Translation is commonly requested for continuing treatment abroad, a consultation with a foreign specialist, a second medical opinion, a claim to a health or travel insurer, a medical assessment or an administrative procedure. The recipient may be a hospital, medical board, insurer, court or public authority. That purpose determines the language, format and whether investigation reports, prescriptions, imaging reports and other attachments form part of the assignment.
## What does the medical translation cover?
The complete set is reviewed as one connected record. The patient’s and hospital’s names, admission and discharge dates, diagnoses, doses, units, laboratory values and references to attachments are checked across every page. Latin names and international abbreviations are retained where medically appropriate, while the remaining terminology follows established usage in the target healthcare system.
Handwritten additions, unclear stamps, abbreviations with several meanings and differences between a medicine’s brand name and active ingredient require particular attention. Tables and values are arranged so that their relationship to the test and reference ranges stays clear. In a larger medical file, terminology is kept consistent across the discharge summary, outpatient records and investigation results.
## How is a discharge summary issued in Bulgaria handled?
For treatment or consultation abroad, a professional translation of a complete, legible record is often sufficient. Where the summary is submitted to an authority, court, insurer or another formal recipient, a certified translation, authenticated copy, apostille or another form may be requested. The route depends on the hospital’s status, the signatures and seals on the actual copy, the destination country and the recipient’s written rules; no single legalisation chain applies to every discharge summary.
## How is a discharge summary issued abroad used in Bulgaria?
When used in Bulgaria, the translated record may be intended for a treating doctor, hospital, medical assessment board, insurer, court or another institution. For clinical consultation, complete and accurate medical content is normally the priority. A formal procedure may also impose requirements for the original, certification of the translation or authentication under the rules applicable to the issuing country.
## How are electronic records and attachments handled?
An electronically signed file, a record with a verification code and a scan of a paper original are different formats. For an electronic discharge summary, the visible signature, hospital and verification data are preserved together with the links between the main record and its attachments. Any recipient requirement for a particular file format or a certified paper copy is reflected separately in the service proposal.
## How are the price and delivery time determined?
The price reflects the language pair, length, medical specialty, legibility, tables, attachments, requested format and delivery time. Administrative certification, where applicable, is quoted separately from translation. La Fit Trans combines medical translation, editorial review and preparation of certified copies in a proposal that identifies the agreed deliverable, timing and delivery method.
Confidentiality is integral to the handling of medical documents. Materials are used only to provide the commissioned service and access is limited to the people involved in translation and review. The completed translation may be supplied electronically or on paper, while a set of several medical records retains consistent names, dates and terminology throughout.
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