Major Vent

Orange Tree · May 11, 2010

You haven't? Please tell me you didn't think I was talking about growth as in height and weight. Let me put it another way. If your goal in life is more than an entry level job, a tiny apartment, and a rudimentary formal education in the US, you will need to master the language.
ummm. . . my mom had a pet poodle and her name was Peaches?!?

Hehe, no....not height and weight. I just haven't heard the ,"it's for their own good" angle before. Ruby Vee's post, above, is what I usually hear. (love Ruby Vee, btw! Her nursing stories make me laugh, then cry, then laugh again) In any case, politics bore me. I am not trying to "win" the discussion.....just trying to share my own experience I think Peaches is a good name for a poodle.:redpinkhe

allnurses Guide · May 12, 2010

Hehe, no....not height and weight. I just haven't heard the ,"it's for their own good" angle before. Ruby Vee's post, above, is what I usually hear. (love Ruby Vee, btw! Her nursing stories make me laugh, then cry, then laugh again) In any case, politics bore me. I am not trying to "win" the discussion.....just trying to share my own experience I think Peaches is a good name for a poodle.:redpinkhe

We're very colorful. Orange trees and peaches and rubies and I'm assuming your pet turtle is green. . .let's see. . . how can I tie this to the thread topic. . .can't do it. Alas. Peaches was a toy poodle (not versed on poodle size jargon she was really little) with peach-champagne colored ringlets, she remained a fluffball without the French poodle cut. Cute x infinity. :)

Penelope_Pitstop, BSN, RN · May 12, 2010

We're very colorful. Orange trees and peaches and rubies and I'm assuming your pet turtle is green. . .let's see. . . how can I tie this to the thread topic. . .can't do it. Alas. Peaches was a toy poodle (not versed on poodle size jargon she was really little) with peach-champagne colored ringlets, she remained a fluffball without the French poodle cut. Cute x infinity. :)

I feel left out...

oooh, but my username WAS BlueHenRN. :)

All right, feeling a part of the "in-crowd" once more.

impala66 · May 12, 2010

I have to tell a funny story that relates....Recently I had a pt, very sweet man. He knew 2 words, "thank you" and Tylenol". I was doing the daily round with him and another provider in a clinic room on the language line with an interpreter. Well, they call an ear blasting Code Blue overhead and the NP and I go flying out of the room, down the stairs to the Code. We turn around and there is Mr. S standing behind us. Poor guy must have thought the place was burning down!

Sadiewrap · May 12, 2010

Maybe you could give these patients a letter board with pictures on it so they could at least get their basic

needs met.

I think there are computer programs that translate languages for you.

HoneyDinkley · May 13, 2010

So this has lately been a pet peeve of mine at work, patients that live in this country and speak NO English. I can totally understand and sympathize with how scary it must be to be visiting get sick and be hospitalized in a country where you do not understand the language and what the people around you are trying to convey but when you LIVE here?!? Whenever I have visited other countries I have made an effort to learn the basics of their language to make them more at ease, after all I am in their country I don't think they should have to make special accommodations for me. But I am so tired of calling an interpreter to explain what I am doing 15 times during the shift, after I've already had them come up and explain in detail what would be happening and when throughout the night and clarifying any questions that the patient had. Do I need to learn more patience for my diverse patients or does this irk anyone else as well?

Hi Louis;

I feel the exact same way as you and have mentioned this to someone myself. It's not right that people who don't speak English and live here expect us to speak their language or get an interpreter, yet when I travel to a country where English isn't the primary language I make sure I try to blend in and learn their language. But this is a part of nursing we have to accept.

Donnuh · May 13, 2010

It does not bother me at all. I feel that part of nursing is the ability to adapt and work in a multicultural setting. I barely graduated but I recalled that during my clinicals many of the patients are elderly patients who does not speak English because they came to the U.S at a very very late age. Whatever circumstances that prevent them from speaking English is not what I am worry about. What I am worry about is that they get the best care they can get and that they feel comfortable in a place where they do not understand anybody! I would use that interpreter 20,30,40, and etc. times if I had to. Whatever makes the patients comfortable. I know it takes up our time to use the interpreter phone, but a few mins of our time will not outshine the satisfaction that the patients get!

allnurses Guide · May 13, 2010

I feel left out...

oooh, but my username WAS BlueHenRN. :)

All right, feeling a part of the "in-crowd" once more.

. . . yeah, and you're in the Car-related Username club, too. Luuuckyyyy. . . (imagining my bratty ten-year old voice) Don't mind me. I have an odd fascination for people's usernames, and more importantly (to me) why they choose them. Maybe I'll start a thread about that over on Allnurses Central sometime.

Not_A_Hat_Person, RN · May 14, 2010

So this has lately been a pet peeve of mine at work, patients that live in this country and speak NO English. I can totally understand and sympathize with how scary it must be to be visiting get sick and be hospitalized in a country where you do not understand the language and what the people around you are trying to convey but when you LIVE here?!? Whenever I have visited other countries I have made an effort to learn the basics of their language to make them more at ease, after all I am in their country I don't think they should have to make special accommodations for me.

English is not an easy language to learn. How do you know they haven't tried to learn English, but failed?

Ruby Vee, BSN · May 14, 2010

english is not an easy language to learn. how do you know they haven't tried to learn english, but failed?

while we cannot know for sure whether or not the person has attempted to learn english, the fact is that we're an english speaking country. if you choose to live in an english speaking country, you are responsible for being able to communicate in english. even if that means you drag your children everywhere with you to translate, or hire your own interpreter to sit with you in the hospital. the hospital should not be responsible for every immigrant who has been in this country for years and hasn't managed to learn the language of the country in which they've chosen to live.

rn/writer, RN · May 14, 2010

I think many of us can understand that older folks entering a new country might have a more difficult time learning a new language. Especially English. But some of the people who are older now were young when they came here. There are people who have spent decades in this country and never learned to speak basic English. Yes, I'm sure there are some who, for whatever reason, couldn't learn. But that isn't the majority. It just isn't.

In this area, as in so many others, we have warped the idea of facing a challenge into the mark of being a victim. People used to have problems that needed to be solved and obstacles they had to work to overcome. Now they have issues that need to be accommodated and compensated for. We have communicated to so many groups in so many ways that little or nothing will be expected of them. After all, they are needy and disadvantaged. We will do all the heavy lifting. We will be ashamed of ourselves for asking them to put themselves out. We will efface ourselves and our own needs to meet theirs, and not just temporarily as a stepping stone, but in ever increasing amounts and levels until we have exhausted our resources and have nothing left to give.

I'm am not for extreme solutions--cutting off accommodation cold turkey is both impractical and harmful--but I do think there should be a real push for people to learn English. Boundaries need to be set on the number of situations in which the government and businesses are required to provide translation. Schools ought to aim for an immersion environment with bilingual help used as a bridge rather than a substitute for communication in English.

The need for translation ought to be shared, with the consequent inconvenience falling on both communities. Why? Because it's human nature to take the path of least resistance, and that path right now allows people to enter this country and live here for a long, long time without ever having to shoulder the primary burden of effective communication.

Some say it is discriminatory and racist to expect people to learn to speak English. If they were referring to folks who don't live here, I'd say they were right. But if you want to partake of the American dream, do your part. I think it is more discriminatory and racist to view an intelligent and capable immigrant population as a bunch of victims who just can't quite measure up and manage to do what previous immigrant populations accomplished in decades past.

If you don't have to do something, you often don't.

GM2RN · May 14, 2010

I think many of us can understand that older folks entering a new country might have a more difficult time learning a new language. Especially English. But some of the people who are older now were young when they came here. There are people who have spent decades in this country and never learned to speak basic English. Yes, I'm sure there are some who, for whatever reason, couldn't learn. But that isn't the majority. It just isn't.
In this area, as in so many others, we have warped the idea of facing a challenge into the mark of being a victim. People used to have problems that needed to be solved and obstacles they had to work to overcome. Now they have issues that need to be accommodated and compensated for. We have communicated to so many groups in so many ways that little or nothing will be expected of them. After all, they are needy and disadvantaged. We will do all the heavy lifting. We will be ashamed of ourselves for asking them to put themselves out. We will efface ourselves and our own needs to meet theirs, and not just temporarily as a stepping stone, but in ever increasing amounts and levels until we have exhausted our resources and have nothing left to give.
I'm am not for extreme solutions--cutting off accommodation cold turkey is both impractical and harmful--but I do think there should be a real push for people to learn English. Boundaries need to be set on the number of situations in which the government and businesses are required to provide translation. Schools ought to aim for an immersion environment with bilingual help used as a bridge rather than a substitute for communication in English.
The need for translation ought to be shared, with the consequent inconvenience falling on both communities. Why? Because it's human nature to take the path of least resistance, and that path right now allows people to enter this country and live here for a long, long time without ever having to shoulder the primary burden of effective communication.
Some say it is discriminatory and racist to expect people to learn to speak English. If they were referring to folks who don't live here, I'd say they were right. But if you want to partake of the American dream, do your part. I think it is more discriminatory and racist to view an intelligent and capable immigrant population as a bunch of victims who just can't quite measure up and manage to do what previous immigrant populations accomplished in decades past.
If you don't have to do something, you often don't.

:yeah: