Doctors/medical students, have you ever had a non english speaking patient?
Question above ^ and:
Do you think it would be worth studying a language A level? Would it actually ever come into use? Like spanish?
Thanks
Do you think it would be worth studying a language A level? Would it actually ever come into use? Like spanish?
Thanks
Scroll to see replies
I am not a doctor but you will encounter a lot of foreign patients who dont speak / understand english. ideally try learning urdu (a lot of bangali, afghan and pakistani patients speak it and it is similar to hindi so those who speak hindi will get it somewhat) and polish as they are the most common foreign languages spoken in the uk. also try learning some other langages like romanian, arabic or swahili based on imigration influx.
if you want to work for msf (doctors without borders), french and arabic are paramount (as well as hospital experience).
spanish tbh, is only really of beneift if you want to relocate to spain or some countries in south america (like mexico, chile, argentina).
if you want to work for msf (doctors without borders), french and arabic are paramount (as well as hospital experience).
spanish tbh, is only really of beneift if you want to relocate to spain or some countries in south america (like mexico, chile, argentina).
(edited 8 years ago)
Original post by quasa
I am not a doctor but you will encounter a lot of foreign patients. ideally try learning urdu (a lot of bangali, afghan and pakistani patients speak it and it is similar to hindi so those who speak hindi will get it somewhat) and polish as they are the most common foreign languages spoken in the uk. also try learning some other langages like romanian, arabic or swahili based on imigration influx.
Hahahaha thank you but I think I'll stick to arabic (only know a bit), french and spanish.
Original post by geniequeen48
Hahahaha thank you but I think I'll stick to arabic (only know a bit), french and spanish.
no worries but just be prepared for eventualities (a lot of translator apps are extremely good like microsoft translator app for iOS/droid/windows). you do have to still try and clarify like dosage instructions for drugs for example as it can be somewhat confusing if you say something like take 1-2 4 times a day
Original post by quasa
no worries but just be prepared for eventualities (a lot of translator apps are extremely good like microsoft translator app for iOS/droid/windows). you do have to still try and clarify like dosage instructions for drugs for example as it can be somewhat confusing if you say something like take 1-2 4 times a day
Oh okay, that's nice to know.
Original post by geniequeen48
Question above ^ and:
Do you think it would be worth studying a language A level? Would it actually ever come into use? Like spanish?
Thanks
Do you think it would be worth studying a language A level? Would it actually ever come into use? Like spanish?
Thanks
Languages I think are always useful regardless, and even more so if you're thinking of working abroad or in global health. One of my biggest regrets was not choosing a language and sticking to it during 1st year since by the time I will have graduated I could have been near fluent at it, so yes if you enjoy languages then studying them at A-level is a great option.
Spanish is very useful if you want to work in Latin America or in the US. I know doctors working in California whose workload are around 50% Hispanic patients. French would be very good if you want to volunteer or work in Sub-Saharan/Central Africa; Arabic for Middle East, North Africa; Russia for Central Asia etc. Basically any of the UN official languages would put you in a great position for mobility.
Lots and lots of non-English speaking patients in the UK - varies on where you work, of course. Sadly, in most cases, languages you learn at school are not the helpful ones. I've found the languages I've most commonly needed have been eastern European and languages spoken in India / Pakistan. I speak fluent French (did A-level and some undergrad study) and used this overseas in a medical setting in French-speaking Africa, but I can count on one hand the number of times it's been useful in the UK.
Entertaining though, to amuse the NICU nurses by having in-depth conversation in French with a parent in French about expressing breastmilk and NG tubes… Niche skills and all that. And I have broken bad news once, in French, in a complex ITU setting. And I once consented a patient for an OGD in Russian. Heh.
Usually, if a language is needed, there may well be a member of staff somewhere who speaks that language who can translate (particularly true for southeast Asian languages), if it's a planned outpatient appointment or something less urgent then interpreters can be booked. Otherwise Language Line is your friend. Language Line is a phone interpreter system where you both sit by a phone (if you're lucky there are two headsets but this has never happened to me) - you tell the interpreter on the other end of the phone what you want to ask the patient, you pass the phone to the patient, the interpreter asks the question and gets the reply etc, then the phone comes back to you and they tell you the answer in English. Desperately tedious and often not that effective, but can nonetheless be a lifesaver at 3am to at least get the basics when the patient doesn't speak a word of English. Otherwise, google translator…
If you're interested in languages and want to learn one, then great, go for it, added bonus if you get to use to at work one day. As has been said (and it's my personal experience too) it can be useful if you want to go overseas in the future to a country that speaks that language. However if you're not that interested really and it's purely to be potentially useful in a UK hospital, then it's probably not worth it.
Entertaining though, to amuse the NICU nurses by having in-depth conversation in French with a parent in French about expressing breastmilk and NG tubes… Niche skills and all that. And I have broken bad news once, in French, in a complex ITU setting. And I once consented a patient for an OGD in Russian. Heh.
Usually, if a language is needed, there may well be a member of staff somewhere who speaks that language who can translate (particularly true for southeast Asian languages), if it's a planned outpatient appointment or something less urgent then interpreters can be booked. Otherwise Language Line is your friend. Language Line is a phone interpreter system where you both sit by a phone (if you're lucky there are two headsets but this has never happened to me) - you tell the interpreter on the other end of the phone what you want to ask the patient, you pass the phone to the patient, the interpreter asks the question and gets the reply etc, then the phone comes back to you and they tell you the answer in English. Desperately tedious and often not that effective, but can nonetheless be a lifesaver at 3am to at least get the basics when the patient doesn't speak a word of English. Otherwise, google translator…
If you're interested in languages and want to learn one, then great, go for it, added bonus if you get to use to at work one day. As has been said (and it's my personal experience too) it can be useful if you want to go overseas in the future to a country that speaks that language. However if you're not that interested really and it's purely to be potentially useful in a UK hospital, then it's probably not worth it.
That's what NHS interpreters are for. IMO the most useful languages to learn are probably things like Urdu, Gujurati and other languages of that region, followed by Polish and eastern european languages.
I've yet to encounter a poorly Spanish tourist :P So my Spanish has gone to waste for now haha. It's great to have learnt a language though, it is a life skill and ultimately it helps to open doors. I know I for one would love to live and work in Spain. Crossing my fingers their economy sorts itself out. Still terrifically useful on holidays.
I've yet to encounter a poorly Spanish tourist :P So my Spanish has gone to waste for now haha. It's great to have learnt a language though, it is a life skill and ultimately it helps to open doors. I know I for one would love to live and work in Spain. Crossing my fingers their economy sorts itself out. Still terrifically useful on holidays.
(edited 8 years ago)
Original post by geniequeen48
Hahahaha thank you but I think I'll stick to arabic (only know a bit), french and spanish.
As everyone above has said, if you are thinking of studying a language purely with the intent of using to communicate with patients in the UK, French and Spanish are probably not your best options. However, if you want to learn a language because you enjoy languages and because you want to come across as well-rounded on your personal statement, French and Spanish should be absolutely fine
As a GP in Scotland I have a lot of patients who don't speak English. Polish and Rumanian are the commonest languages I need. NHS Fife pays for language Line, a commercial company where you communicate via a phone translator on speaker phone. Out patients uses the same system. If it's a long face to face consult they'll pay for a face to face translator.
If I was going to learn a language just for the NHS I'd go for sign language.
If I was going to learn a language just for the NHS I'd go for sign language.
As a nurse in Birmingham it's quite common that I encounter both patients and relatives who can't speak English or English isn't their first language. I have quite a few colleagues who can speak languages like Urdu (commonly needed with the mix we have here in Brum) which can be incredibly useful for ad hoc communication, but we use interpreters for important conversations, it's what they're there for.
Hmm :/ You guys are making me reconsider my a level choices...should I learn spanish just in case?
Original post by geniequeen48
Hmm :/ You guys are making me reconsider my a level choices...should I learn spanish just in case?
Your chances of needing to use Spanish as a doctor in the UK are pretty slim...
Original post by geniequeen48
Hmm :/ You guys are making me reconsider my a level choices...should I learn spanish just in case?
No, not if you are doing it 'just in case'. I thought we'd made it clear that the European languages you learn at school are not going to be helpful in the NHS. Only do it if you are genuinely interested in languages.
Original post by geniequeen48
Question above ^ and:
I work in a high immigration area. I'd say 15-20% of patients don't speak any English.
I'd echo as above - the languages you'd need are Punjabi, Urdu, Polish. Only a small number of others ever come up.
Original post by geniequeen48
Hmm :/ You guys are making me reconsider my a level choices...should I learn spanish just in case?
What thread are you reading?! What "guys" are making you think that?
Original post by seaholme
I've yet to encounter a poorly Spanish tourist :P
I did once! The ortho consultant gave him one line through google translate before walking away. You can probably guess what it was:
Spoiler
Hi,
I applied for Medicine this year and I studied Spanish at AS. I personally loved learning the language and hope to continue to develop my language skills at medical school. An A-level in a language gives you a much more in-depth understanding of the language and although it's almost been a year since I went to a Spanish lesson in my sixth form, I can still pretty much speak the language fluently. I would say go for it if you have an interest in learning a language, not just because you want to study Medicine. I'm definitely glad I chose Spanish!
Posted from TSR Mobile
I applied for Medicine this year and I studied Spanish at AS. I personally loved learning the language and hope to continue to develop my language skills at medical school. An A-level in a language gives you a much more in-depth understanding of the language and although it's almost been a year since I went to a Spanish lesson in my sixth form, I can still pretty much speak the language fluently. I would say go for it if you have an interest in learning a language, not just because you want to study Medicine. I'm definitely glad I chose Spanish!
Posted from TSR Mobile
Original post by nexttime
I work in a high immigration area. I'd say 15-20% of patients don't speak any English.
I'd echo as above - the languages you'd need are Punjabi, Urdu, Polish. Only a small number of others ever come up.
What thread are you reading?! What "guys" are making you think that?
I did once! The ortho consultant gave him one line through google translate before walking away. You can probably guess what it was:
I'd echo as above - the languages you'd need are Punjabi, Urdu, Polish. Only a small number of others ever come up.
What thread are you reading?! What "guys" are making you think that?
I did once! The ortho consultant gave him one line through google translate before walking away. You can probably guess what it was:
Spoiler
Haha its cos my bro always tells me choose a levels that are HELPFUL. So I thought studying spanish would be a waste. I do generally enjoy learning languages and who's to say in the future I'll be a doctor/medical student? I could always be working in something else. My mum is a phlebotomist and where I live more and more spanish immigrants are flooding in so she said it would be a good idea to learn it cos she encounters a lot of spanish patients and plus I think it would be cool to understand what they are saying when they walk past me on the streets
(I know I shouldnt ease drop lol). But yeah I'll study it and hopefully it should come in to use one day.
If you get in to medicine, most universities have a language student-selected component in which you can be given time to learn a language of your choice, which seems helpful in this case! I'd do some research around which universities offer what if you think you'd like to do something like that
Original post by antonyzac
If you get in to medicine, most universities have a language student-selected component in which you can be given time to learn a language of your choice, which seems helpful in this case! I'd do some research around which universities offer what if you think you'd like to do something like that
Wow okay! Do you have anymore information about it? Is it when you study the 6 year degree and apparently you have a year to study something else (what my GP said) like a language and you'd have an extra qualification with your medical degree?
I think UCL might do that as they surprisingly asked for a foreign language GCSE at least at a C grade
Original post by geniequeen48
Wow okay! Do you have anymore information about it? Is it when you study the 6 year degree and apparently you have a year to study something else (what my GP said) like a language and you'd have an extra qualification with your medical degree?
I think UCL might do that as they surprisingly asked for a foreign language GCSE at least at a C grade
I think UCL might do that as they surprisingly asked for a foreign language GCSE at least at a C grade
Ah you're talking about a BSc, which is what I'm currently doing at UCL! You can't do a language in the BSc year. At UCL at least, a student-selected component is a short module you do every week for about 3-4 hours. A language SSC is an option; you don't get a qualification for it, and you just need to pass in order to progress to the next year at medical school (the grade doesn't count), but it definitely provides a spring-board for further learning! There are so many courses you can do at UCL outside of the official medical school. I know a friend that attended voluntary Punjabi classes after lectures on Mondays, for example
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