Mary Washington students are known for their commitment to service, and for putting their academics into practice. In January 2024, before the new spring semester began, a group of student members of the UMW Global Medical Brigade traveled to Panamá to assist local residents with their healthcare needs. This was not their first trip to Panamá. The first was in January 2019. The UMW Global Medical Brigade is a chapter of Global Medical Brigades, an international movement of students and medical professionals who work with local communities and staff to implement sustainable health systems, in remote, rural, and under-resourced communities. Global Brigades also supports economic development, sanitation and clean water projects. (https://medical.globalbrigades.org/)
Soon after that first trip to Panamá in 2019, a group of students approached Associate Professor of Spanish Marisa Martínez-Mira about offering a course in medical Spanish. She decided to try it out as a topics course, first offered during the COVID-19 pandemic in January 2021. It enrolled 9 students for that intensive online synchronous course that was part of a trial Winter term. Now offered as SPAN 394 Spanish for Medical Purposes, it is a regular and popular offering in the department. SPAN 394 is a course aimed at heritage/native Spanish speakers and Spanish majors interested in medical Spanish as well as Pre-Med students/other medical professionals with intermediate-level Spanish knowledge. The main goal of the course is to learn specialized vocabulary (in Spanish) related to different medical fields so that students can use it in individual/group class activities and oral (professional) presentations while honing their grammar and conversation skills. Students also read various articles that focus on socio-cultural aspects related to Hispanic communities, both in Spanish-speaking countries and in the US. This allows them to (a) learn about the main (medical) issues that affect those communities, (b) develop an understanding of cultural attitudes related to the treatment of Spanish-speaking patients and their relationship with their healthcare providers, and (c) use their newly acquired vocabulary in a contextualized way. Last but not least, students write on discussion boards to reflect critically/share their opinions about the articles they read and link this content to the topics discussed in class. The course content provides the necessary tools to succeed professionally in a bilingual medical context.
Hannah Stottlemeyer (2024) a double major in Biomedical Sciences and Spanish, is taking Spanish 394 this spring semester.
I have been lobbying for this class to be offered since freshman year! As a Biomedical Sciences and Spanish major, I have learned the prevalence of Spanish-speaking patients and the importance of being able to communicate smoothly with those individuals. This class exposes people, especially science majors, to an entirely new domain of Spanish that will be extremely helpful in their future careers.
Hannah also participated in this year’s Medical Brigade trip to Panamá, as one of the student leaders of the UMW chapter that organized the trip from planning and fundraising, to implementation:
This was UMW’s 3rd trip abroad to Panama to provide medical and dental care to underserved communities. This experience is one that fills hearts, redefines gratitude, and teaches each of us so much. Serving with Global Medical Brigades is the most impactful organization I have ever been a part of, and it is an honor to serve alongside my peers.
Seeing the success of Spanish 394, and the needs of both students and health care professionals in the Fredericksburg area, Dr. Martínez-Mira worked with the Modern Languages and Literatures Department Chair Dr. Marcel Rotter and Director of UMW Nursing Dr. Janet Atarthi-Dugan to create a new certificate program recently approved by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia: Spanish for Health Care Professionals. It is open to both degree-seeking and non-degree-seeking students. The Certificate in Spanish for Health Care Professionals provides current and future doctors, nurses, phlebotomists, receptionists, and others who work in the health care sector the speaking routines to communicate with their Spanish-speaking patients. With its 4-5 classes (depending on prior experience), it allows professionals to learn after or before work and complete the certificate in 1-2 years.
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