People in healthcare should speak Spanish, she said

[Paulie G]

I had a 78 year old woman patient, bunch of kids and grandkids in the room. The patient spoke only Spanish and the grandson was translating. As I was exiting the grandma patient said something forceful so I turned and asked the man what she'd just said, and it was exactly that: "People in Healthcare should speak Spanish."

I was, well, insulted, speechless, fill in the blank. The patient had not been much of a problem until then. I stared at the grandson and didn't reply, just left. As I thought about it, I started thinking. I'm not a foreigner, why should I learn another language? I'm in the middle of the country to boot! And, why are these people insulting their caregiver anyway?

Talking this out with other nurses, I guess I wasn't the first one to hear such stuff. Is this something I should get used to?

[hijadecalifas]

I think health care providers should learn Spanish.Why? Because it is the second most common language in the world.

It's also important to note that the first most common language is not English. It's Mandarin Chinese. Good thing I know already know that. Thanks Mom and Dad!!! :heartbeat

[tntrn, ASN, RN]

I once had a Spanish-speaking patient, who was born in Chicago, ask my lunch relief RN, in perfect English, "Where's the nurse who speaks Spanish?" That was me, of course, and until I got that report when I returned from lunch, I didn't know she could speak English. I don't mind speaking Spanish to my ability, but after that, it was English baby.

Now like I said, I don't mind doing what I can, and have learned a lot from my patients and their families, but I do not think it should be required of me.

[redhead_NURSE98!, ADN, BSN]

I lived my whole life in a state that has been taken over by "those Foreigners " and have heard this same tired argument many times. Your comment about "entitled attitude" amazes me. Let me get this straight ; a sick 78 year-old hospitalized patient has an entitled attitude and you feel insulted because they don't speak english ???? How do you think she feels when her family leaves at night and she can't communicate with her nurse ? Do you think she might be scared ? She might not understand english but a smile is universal. Maybe you could make a difference - isn't that what nurses are supposed to do ?

I'm trying to see how you'd think she was insulted because someone ELSE doesn't speak English. I think she felt insulted because she was expected to speak a foreign language in her own country. Is she...supposed to favor Spanish, or should she also learn French, Chinese, Japanese, Farsi, and Lithuanian, in order to please her patients? (I may have made the last one up.)

[redhead_NURSE98!, ADN, BSN]

So inappropriate. #1: once you're over age 12, language learning becomes extremely difficult.

So, I'm forgiven from learning all other languages. Cool.

[Otessa, BSN, RN]

What's the difference between Russian, Arabic, Spanish, French-Swedish, you ask? If you happen to be in the United States, it means that all but Spanish don't count for much, but Spanish-speakers constitute a huge group. Most of these people are NOT illegals, either. Someof them have families which have lived in the western U.S. from the time it was snatched from the Mexicans in the middle of the 19th century.

The "English-only" entitled attitude on this thread is disturbing.

Back in "the day" our native language could have been German, Norwegian, Russian, etc. but THOSE immigrants and their families spoke their native tongue at home and worked like H@$* to learn English since they now lived in the US.......not so much with the group described in the OP.

[WarmBlanket]

Ok folks ! To break the tension heres a FUNNY story about a patient that spoke no english ; Many years ago I did a travel assignment in a very small southern town (that will remain unnamed). A patient came from surgery, and I spoke a few words in spanish to her. My co-worker said to me "I didn't know you spoke Mexican". I told her the patient was from the island of Puerto Rico - a commonwealth of the US. My co-worker insisted that the United States IS NOT ALLOWED to own any islands ! Then to prove her point she mentioned Cuba and .... Hawaii ! Apparently Japan owns Hawaii but we are allowed to travel there without a passport. True story.

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

i lived my whole life in a state that has been taken over by "those foreigners " and have heard this same tired argument many times. your comment about "entitled attitude" amazes me. let me get this straight ; a sick 78 year-old hospitalized patient has an entitled attitude and you feel insulted because they don't speak english ???? how do you think she feels when her family leaves at night and she can't communicate with her nurse ? do you think she might be scared ? she might not understand english but a smile is universal. maybe you could make a difference - isn't that what nurses are supposed to do ?

i think you must have misread the original post. the poster was saying that the patient insulted her in spanish by saying that healthcare workers should speak spanish. that's an entitled attitude -- you move to a country where you don't speak the language and expect to accomodate you. if she's scared when her family leaves at night, i'm very sorry for her. that does not mean i need to speak spanish to make her more comfortable.

[Katie82, RN]

I learned Spanish in school and did some interpreting both as a nurse and as a non-professional, and let me tell you, speaking it has opened doors, even in the upper midwest.

I worked in public health in a clinic that provided care to a large Spanish-speaking population. I speak Italian, so Spanish was not that difficult to pick up. I learned medical Spanish so I could provide better care to my patients, and it prevented having to wait for a translator. My Spanish is not perfect, but I can make myself understood. I have also found that I noticed many of my clinic translators were not delivering an accurate translation, and I found myself having to correct them.

I learned Spanish because I felt it made me more professional, not because I was made to feel pressured by my patients. As a matter of fact, they have helped me a great deal with my vocabulary, and I have always felt that they are greatful that I am making an effort.

[fromtheseaRN, BSN, RN]

as a side note, i have traveled overseas numerous times to countries whose native tongue was not english, and never found anyone who could not speak english fluently with me. seems that in other countries the citizens understand the value of being able to communicate in several different languages. i'm still trying to understand why americans don't get that, or are so opposed to it.

[Katie82, RN]

i think you must have misread the original post. the poster was saying that the patient insulted her in spanish by saying that healthcare workers should speak spanish. that's an entitled attitude -- you move to a country where you don't speak the language and expect to accomodate you.

i lived in italy for two years and found americans to be the worst for finding fault of those who do not speak english. tourists are the worst. unlike us, italians take foreign language in school at a very early age - most take english or french. if someone did not speak english, i used my high school french until i was functional in italian. but, unlike a lot of my american friends, i never felt that the locals were stupid because they did not speak english. you're right, it is a sense of entitlement, but we have created it by presenting so much bilingual material in our workplaces.

[Motivated grandma]

I work for a global organization and it is crazy that Americans only know one language. Many people from other cultures now 3 and sometimes 4 languages. I think we should all know Spanish too. (FYI - I don't know Spanish, but I would like to learn).

And if we lived in a place like Europe where we could travel inexpensively to other countries, we'd probably be speaking more than one language, as well. We live in a huge country where - until the last couple of decades - travel was too expensive for the vast majority of folks here.

[redhead_NURSE98!, ADN, BSN]

Ok folks ! To break the tension heres a FUNNY story about a patient that spoke no english ; Many years ago I did a travel assignment in a very small southern town (that will remain unnamed). A patient came from surgery, and I spoke a few words in spanish to her. My co-worker said to me "I didn't know you spoke Mexican". I told her the patient was from the island of Puerto Rico - a commonwealth of the US. My co-worker insisted that the United States IS NOT ALLOWED to own any islands ! Then to prove her point she mentioned Cuba and .... Hawaii ! Apparently Japan owns Hawaii but we are allowed to travel there without a passport. True story.

Dear GOD!!! lol