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McGraw-Hill’s Complete Medical Spanish is an illustrated medical Spanish
text-workbook specifically geared to healthcare professionals, in
particular, physicians, physicians’ assistants, nurses (including NPs,
LVNs, LPNs, MAs), medical attendants, lab technicians, and ancillary
medical staff.
The book is composed of ten chapters or lessons. Each chapter
introduces grammar concepts (often referred to as “structures,” which
somehow sounds less threatening), vocabulary, and dialogues that
attempt to follow the order in which your patient visit takes place. For
example, you will learn to greet a patient, take vital signs, interview
him or her, find out the chief complaint, review the medical history,
give a physical exam, and then recommend prescription or follow-up
instructions. Vocabulary and dialogues for various lab tests are also
included. Many significant cultural aspects are also interspersed
throughout each chapter, culminating with the last lesson that focuses
on “Cross-cultural communication.”
Each chapter follows a logical progression and introduces vocabulary
by means of pictures that are generally related to a single topic.
The initial vocabulary section of each chapter is followed by related
exercises, dialogues, and/or crossword puzzles. Grammar concepts
are explained in a simple, clear, and concise manner. Although grammar,
per se, is not stressed, it is reinforced by constant repetition—the
very manner in which we learned our native tongue as children.
The purpose of the illustrations and the suggested method of instruction
is to encourage you to avoid translating from Spanish to English
and vice versa. Instead, you are encouraged to relate the image
or concept directly with the appropriate Spanish word, thus eliminating
an entire and irrelevant translation step. |
