This study explores interactional sequences involving Italian doctors, English-speaking patients and language mediators serving as interpreters. Doctors rather unusually and repeatedly ask mediators to transfer what they are saying to the patients, for instance via terms like “le spieghi” (“explain to her”) or “le diciamo” (“let's tell her”). Such turn structures appear to bear a dual function: (a) notifying that the issue addressed in the doctor's turn may be critical, sensible or novel in some way; (b) projecting a participation of the language mediator to do “something more” than merely translate, e.g. clarify or handle the criticalities signified by the doctor, “redesigning” them for the patients.