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Evaluation of a Medical Spanish Elective for Senior Medical Students: Improving Outcomes through OSCE Assessments

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Abstract

Background

There is no standardized curriculum or assessment method that addresses Spanish skills in U.S. medical schools. The authors implemented a 10-week Clinical Medical Spanish elective for fourth-year medical students.

Methods

Data were collected for 58 students from 2013 to 2015 pertaining to pre- and post-course self-evaluation of Medical Spanish comfort level and Objective Structured Clinical Examinations.

Results

Student comfort level with Spanish-speaking patients improved for performing history and examination skills (P < 0.05). Standardized Patient (SP) and faculty-rated fluency were each higher than the student self-rated pre-course fluency (P < 0.001). Fluency levels were higher than the faculty rating of student ability to perform the medical interview (P < .001).

Discussion

Differences in student self-rating, SP scores, and faculty assessment illustrate the complexities of assessing medical skills in a second language, and highlight the importance of training and evaluating medical students and hospital staff in the appropriate use of Medical Spanish.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Illinois College of Medicine, Chicago, IL, USA

    Pilar Ortega, Yoon Soo Park & Jorge A. Girotti

  2. Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center, Chicago, IL, USA

    Pilar Ortega

Authors
  1. Pilar Ortega
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  2. Yoon Soo Park
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  3. Jorge A. Girotti
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Pilar Ortega.

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Funding

This study was funded in part by the Centers of Excellence Program, Health Resources and Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, grant no. D34HP24461.

Ethical Approval

This study was approved by the institutional review board of the University of Illinois at Chicago. Approval date: June 9, 2015, Protocol no. 2012-0783. All procedures performed in the study were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

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Ortega, P., Park, Y.S. & Girotti, J.A. Evaluation of a Medical Spanish Elective for Senior Medical Students: Improving Outcomes through OSCE Assessments. Med.Sci.Educ. 27, 329–337 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40670-017-0405-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40670-017-0405-5

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