Foreign residents in Gwangju to receive medical interpretation service

The Gwangju Metropolitan Government plans to launch a new initiative to introduce medical interpreters to assist its foreign residents.

This initiative addresses significant language barriers that prevent many from seeking necessary medical care.

"This program is designed to ensure that non-Korean speaking residents can access health care services without the daunting challenge of communication gaps," a city official said.

According to a 2022 Gwangju Welfare Research Institute survey, 32 percent of foreign residents reported avoiding hospital visits due to illness because of language barriers, with 34 percent citing communication issues as a primary concern.

The most noted difficulty in medical settings was engaging in consultations and receiving treatment, highlighted by 49 percent of respondents.

International residents face medical disparities

In response to these challenges, Gwangju is accepting applications for this project through May 7 and plans to fully implement the initiative in the latter half of the year.

Selected medical interpreters will accompany non-Korean-speaking residents to health care facilities, assisting throughout various stages of medical care, including registration, consultation, testing and billing.

The city said that while routine visits for minor ailments like colds or minor injuries are important, priority support will be given in more critical scenarios such as emergencies, surgeries and detailed diagnostics where specialized interpretation is crucial.

Details on application conditions and training schedules are available on the city's website and the Gwangju Migrant Health Center's website.

"Medical interpretation requires not only an understanding of professional medical terminology but also a deep comprehension of the foreign patients' socio-cultural backgrounds and the ability to convey precise information to medical professionals," the official said.

With this initiative, Gwangju hopes to address and possibly reduce the health care disparities its international residents face, thereby ensuring that language does not pose a barrier to receiving timely and appropriate medical treatment.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, sister publication of The Korea Times, was translated by a generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.