Spanish Minor for Health Sciences

Department Contact:

Chair: Dr. Robin L. Cadwallader, rcadwallader@francis.edu, 814-472-3342
Coordinator: TBA

Program Description:

There are almost half a billion Spanish-speakers in 21 countries worldwide and over 55 million in the US. As a Franciscan institution that emphasizes service, Saint Francis University wants its students in the health sciences to be prepared to meet the needs of their patients. At the same time, it wants to assure that these students be as competitive as possible when seeking jobs. The goal of this minor is to prepare students for jobs in health care in areas of the country where Spanish-speaking doctors, nurses, OTs, PTs and PAs are urgently needed. The main objectives of the minor are to refine skills in conversational medical Spanish at the Intermediate Mid to High level of the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines so that students will be able to communicate with their future Spanish-speaking patients and their families. Students will also study alternative healing methods, Latino cultures in the United States, and learn about and discuss immigration issues.

Student Learning Outcomes:

Upon completion of the minor, students will be able to:

• Conduct medical interviews in Spanish, examine patients, give physical exams, take family medical histories in Spanish using the appropriate medical terminology;
• Explain and discuss diseases, medical procedures, pharmacotherapy, diet and other health-related issues in Spanish using the appropriate medical terminology;
• Demonstrate knowledge of grammatical aspects in Spanish in order to discuss health-related topics and to give recommendations (e.g. present indicative and subjunctive, present perfect, future idiomatic and simple past tenses, the comparatives of equality and inequality, the superlative, indefinite and negative pronouns, formal commands);
• Express feelings and emotions and exchange opinions in Spanish using socio-cultural nuances;
• Discuss cultural concepts, including cross-cultural comparisons of ancient alternative healing methods, explain and discuss how Spanish-speaking cultures deal with and treat different diseases and medical conditions, and warn patients about the dangers of combining certain traditional herbal remedies with prescribed pharmaceutical medications;
• Discuss Latin American cultural concepts including the Other, the marginalization of indigenous populations, classism and racism, power and democracy;
• Discuss the cultural backgrounds and diversity of the many Latino cultures in the US, the history of immigration in the United States, and issues pertaining to economic migration and the rights of refugees.

Total Credits Required:

15 credits