This is a course for Spanish language students to acquire the communicative skills and abilities within this professional sector along with the necessary background on Hispanic cultural and society in order to develop the best healthcare practices. The material will be applied in Spanish immersion in a medical centre.

Here at CIESE-Comillas we believe that speaking Spanish and the cultural aspects of Hispanic society are a growing value in the world of medicine and healthcare. An understanding of Spanish and Hispanic American society, especially its customs and attitudes towards health, are key to the success of healthcare practices with Spanish speaking patients. The particular features of medical attention and the different specialties are the basis for this course’s contents, which starts with common material, interpersonal relations and communicating with the Spanish speaking world, to then focus on professional specialties and the medical centers where they will participate in professional immersion.

Student profile

The course is aimed at professionals in the healthcare field and graduate or post-graduate students in these or relevant fields. The biomedical cluster’s team will perform an exhaustive study of the student’s professional needs in order to design an itinerary for professional immersion that suits their profile.

The academic staff at CIESE-Comillas will also suit the program’s content to the student’s needs according to their language level.

Aims

This program’s main aims are:

• To provide students the right tools to obtain effective and affective communication, proper conflict resolution and the proper management of all situations involved in treating patients.
• How to manage aspects such as non-verbal communication, the use of the environment and the importance of what is said and not said, with the aim of obtaining efficacy and a better understanding of the context.
• To analyze communicative situations by highlighting the necessary communication skills and rhetoric as well as written documents used in medical practice.
• To provide language immersion via a healthcare professional’s hands-on work in a healthcare centre.

Programming

Common course material: 

• Healthcare in Spain and Latin America.
  Scientific research in healthcare.
  Healthcare culture and attitudes towards medicine. Professionals, users and patients.
  Anatomy and physiology.
  Disease, symptoms and life stages. General pathology.
  Medical history, diagnostic tests and treatments. Clinical history
  Primary care centers
  Hospitals
  Ethics and deontology. Patient confidentiality. Official Colleges and medical associations.

Specific course material 

• The doctor-patient relationship: effective communication in the consultation.
  Family medicine in Spain and Latin America.
  Medical specialties in the Spanish and Latin American healthcare sector (I).
  Medical specialties in the Spanish and Latin American healthcare sector (II).
  Mental healthcare in Spain and Latin America.

Assessment

The assessment will be for training purposes with the aim of controlling each student’s learning development and needs along the process. An initial diagnostic assessment will be taken to evaluate the student’s starting point and needs. Throughout the course the students will use a learning diary which will serve as an assessment and self-assessment tool. The students will perform a self-assessment and collaborative assessment of the oral and written activities.

Accreditations

A diploma issued by the Comillas Foundation.