Medical Spanish in Underserved San Diego County

Author(s): Garcia, Marco | Abstract: This FCMISP, developed with the assistance with Dr. Natalie Rodriguez, aimed to provide an immersion experience in medical spanish through a variety of methods. The majority of the medical Spanish selflearning was achieved through the use of Canopy. The “booklearning” of Canopy was supplemented by clinical experiences throughout several underserved clinic sites in San Diego County where Spanish was able to be practiced during patient encounters. Additionally, based on the time spent at a variety of community sites, I came face to face with the social determinants of health that often times prevented or hindered our patients’ abilities to seek out care. Overall, the experience was an exceptionalone that was not only practical in allowing me to practice medical spanish but also one that helped me better understand a patient population that has difficulty with accessing medical care.