[queenjean]

I am trying to learn Spanish. My dh is a spanish teacher, and I took a year in high school, grew up around a lot of Spanish speakers, so I have an ear for it. But I need some help.

I can say the basics that a TOURIST needs, because that is what all the independent Spanish instruction books/sites have. I also have a Medical Spanish book that helps some. What I want is a good Medical Spanish book for the OB/newborn nurse.

Any book or website suggestions? I want to be able to ask things like "Is the baby breastfeeding well? Do you feel she is getting a good latch? Are your nipples sore? Is your milk in? How is your blood flow? Are you passing any clots? Are you saturating a pad an hour?" etc. My dh can help with some of this; but he's not as good at the breastfeeding and bloodflow stuff!

Thanks!

J

[Elvish]

I don't own any text books at all. I had one for a while that was called 501 Spanish Verbs and it helped with verbs & conjugation. However, my conversational/work Spanish I learned from living it & speaking it as much as I could.

Kudos to you for wanting to learn. It really helps.

[Halinja]

I bought a little pocket book called "labor and delivery in my pocket" by Nancy Martineau. In the back was several pages of common phrases and words you would need specifically in labor and delivery, as well as some more generic medical terms/phrases like "I'm going to start an IV. "

It's been a great little reference for me.

[NurseNora]

You're lucky you have some tourist Spanish. My only Spanish is OB related. When I go shopping in Nogalas, it is no help that I can ask if your water is broken (rompa su bolsa de agua) or if you've had an sexually transmitted diseases, when what I need is to be able to ask how much is that and do you have it in a much larger size?

The Las Angelas County Breastfeeding Task Force has some wonderful pamphlets in both English and Spanish that can be downloaded. You'll be able to get some Spanish from them. They are very simple and have good drawings. Some of the topics are: Sore nipples, hand expression of milk, extreme fullness, getting a good start at breastfeeding and my favorite, Breast Fed BAbies Don't Need Formula. It's at breastfeedingtaskforla.org

The Mass Breastfeeding Coalition also has some good information that can be downloaded in both English and Spanish. I like the one on how to tell if the baby is getting enough. massbfc.org

[queenjean]

Thanks!!!!

[TravelNurse4Life]

I am a travel nurse and before I actually took a Spanish course, I was really struggling communicating with my patients, especially, if the assignment is in the areas of mostly hispanics. I tried going to the library and borrow some Spanish books, I also considered going into community college and taking a class, but knowing the time I need to invest in the actual semester, it takes to long. I finally decided to take 3 weeks of study abroad in Costa Rica. It was the Medical Spanish class I took, by far it was the best experience in a quick time to really learn the language. I stayed with a family. I went with this company www.spanishformedical.com

Also try watching TeleNovelas (Spanish Soap Operas) Good way to listen. Good luck.

[NurseBean]

I agree with the immersion idea. I also went to Costa Rica for a month and stayed with a family. It was an AMAZING experience and I would highly recommend it. It really is the best way to learn a language. The program I did was called Adventure Education Centers.

[Jprime_69]

hec yes! that spanish for medical is a great program! everything was cool and i learned a lot from it.