Essential Medical Mandarin for Health Care Providers

Abstract

OPEN ACCESSJuly 21, 2009Essential Medical Mandarin for Health Care Providers Cen Zhang, BS, Aroonsiri Sangarlangkarn, BA, David Luo, BS, Alexander Millman, BA, Kevin Su, BS, Charles Tong, BS, MS, Jenny Lin, MD Cen Zhang, BS Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Google Scholar More articles by this author , Aroonsiri Sangarlangkarn, BA Mount Sinai School of Medicine Google Scholar More articles by this author , David Luo, BS Mount Sinai School of Medicine Google Scholar More articles by this author , Alexander Millman, BA Mount Sinai School of Medicine Google Scholar More articles by this author , Kevin Su, BS Mount Sinai School of Medicine Google Scholar More articles by this author , Charles Tong, BS, MS Mount Sinai School of Medicine Google Scholar More articles by this author , Jenny Lin, MD Mount Sinai School of Medicine Google Scholar More articles by this author https://doi.org/10.15766/mep_2374-8265.3180 SectionsAbout ToolsDownload Citations ShareFacebookTwitterEmail Abstract Introduction: As of 2000, over 46 million people in the United States do not speak English as their primary language, and over 21 million speak English less than “very well.” This language barrier represents a serious problem for the delivery of quality health care. The Essential Medical Mandarin course was designed to address this problem. Methods: This intensive 2-hour course introduces the Chinese language to physicians and other health care providers and exposes them to a number of culturally relevant topics, including demographics, health concerns, health care beliefs and practices, and alternative therapy specific to the Chinese-speaking population. The first hour is dedicated to didactic learning: teachers present the basic courtesy expressions and survival questions necessary in a medical interview. The second hour is a small-group interactive session in which students polish their Chinese pronunciation in a simulated patient-physician encounter. During the small-group session, individuals can learn additional phrases and vocabulary not covered in the first hour but pertinent to their specialties. All teaching materials and reference flash cards are provided in a packet to encourage future self-directed learning. Results: To assess the class's effectiveness, we administered an end-of-course survey with three sections: overall course quality, participant experience, and participant background. From three courses offered in spring 2008, 35 surveys were collected. Respondents gave the course a score of 4.63 out of 5 for overall quality. Among individual components of the course, Medical Terminology ranked first, receiving the highest score (4.68), while Pinyin Introduction received the lowest (4.35). These high ratings suggest that participants found the course well organized and taught. All 35 students (100%) indicated that they would recommend the course to their colleagues, while 34 participants (95%) would attend another session. These results indicate that participants found the course valuable and worthwhile. Discussion: Implementation of the course requires teachers fluent in Mandarin. They should also have a basic understanding of Chinese culture and beliefs regarding disease processes and medicine in general. To teach an inherently difficult language in a short amount of time, we emphasized the framework of Mandarin and the construction of a foundation from which future skills could be more easily acquired. Rather than introducing numerous vocabulary words and phrases, the curriculum familiarizes students with the four tones, provides key ways to pronounce common consonants and vowels, and emphasizes mastering the basic phrases for the clinic. After the lecture, participants were divided into small groups, each with an instructor, and given the opportunity to practice, review, and work on phrases pertinent to their areas of expertise. This strategy of distilling a vast amount of information followed by small-group sessions tailored to individual needs was very effective for reinforcing basics as well as building new and more relevant vocabulary. Educational Objectives By the end of this course, learners will be able to: Recognize culturally relevant issues that can facilitate communication between health care providers and their Chinese-speaking patients.Demonstrate proper pronunciation and usage of basic Chinese medical expressions.Utilize support and resources to encourage future self-directed learning. Sign up for the latest publications from MedEdPORTAL Add your email below FILES INCLUDEDReferencesRelatedDetails FILES INCLUDED Included in this publication: EMM Course Packet.pdf To view all publication components, extract (i.e., unzip) them from the downloaded .zip file. Download editor’s noteThis publication may contain technology or a display format that is no longer in use. CitationZhang C, Sangarlangkarn A, Luo D, Millman A, Su K, Tong C, Lin J. Essential Medical Mandarin for Health Care Providers. MedEdPORTAL. 2009;5:3180. https://doi.org/10.15766/mep_2374-8265.3180 Copyright & Permissions© 2009 Zhang et al. This is an open-access publication distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike license.KeywordsLanguageMandarinChinese Disclosures None to report. Funding/Support None to report. Loading ...