Columbus City Council will vote Monday night to authorize the Columbus Public Health Department to put money towards medical interpreters.
If approved, more than $150,000 would be used to pay two for Spanish-speaking medical interpreters who would be on site during clinic hours at the public health department.
“I think it signals that we value all of the members of our community and that we want to make sure that we’re giving the best service to everybody who walks into our doors,” says Makeda Porter, the head of health equity at Columbus Public Health.
She says Spanish language interpretation is most in demand, followed by Somali and Nepali.
“We value the diversity in our community and want to make certain that people regardless of what language that they speak that they’re able to take advantage of the services that are offered in our department,” she says.
