When English Isn’t Your First Language: Proofreading for Clarity and Confidence

In psychological and rehabilitation assessments, the written report is more than just a record — it’s a legal and professional document that must be crystal-clear for readers. For psychologists and rehabilitation professionals whose first language isn’t English, even excellent clinical insights can sometimes be overshadowed by small errors in grammar, punctuation, or usage.

Over the past 30+ years, I’ve proofread many such reports for clients from a variety of language backgrounds, including Arabic, Urdu, Farsi, and Cantonese. While the clinical content is always strong, certain patterns tend to appear — simply because the grammar and style rules in English differ from those in other languages.

My process often starts with a custom macro that corrects common issues automatically — such as capitalization, missing spaces after punctuation, or British/American spelling mismatches — and then I do a careful pass by hand to ensure the final text is accurate, consistent, and legally sound.

Before & After: Common ESL Proofreading Corrections

Example 1 – Capitalization & Punctuation

Before: patient was seen on january 5 for follow up. he reported improvement in pain levels After: Patient was seen on January 5 for follow-up. He reported improvement in pain levels.

Example 2 – Pronoun Usage (languages without gender-specific pronouns)

Before: The patient stated she had difficulty sleeping because his room was noisy. After: The patient stated she had difficulty sleeping because her room was noisy.

Example 3 – Article Placement

Before: Patient reported pain in left knee since two days. After: The patient reported pain in the left knee for the past two days.

Example 4 – Consistency & Clarity in Legal/Insurance Context

Before: He said, “Doctor not explain results,” and appeared frustrated. After: He said, “The doctor did not explain the results,” and appeared frustrated.

Even small changes like these can make a big difference in how a report is read and understood — particularly by insurance reviewers, lawyers, or other professionals who may be looking for precision.

If English isn’t your first language, working with a proofreader who understands both the clinical and legal sides of assessment reporting can help you ensure that your work is presented exactly as intended — clear, professional, and free from distracting errors.