Kevin Estrada, a third-year student pharmacist at the College of Pharmacy’s Knoxville campus, is working on a program to allow students in professional programs such as pharmacy to learn Spanish to better serve their patients.
“Spanish is not typically a part of health professional training,” Estrada said.
He said while many patients in the US are primarily Spanish-speaking, it can be difficult for them to find bilingual professionals to meet their needs. Born and raised in Puerto Rico, Estrada is a native Spanish speaker and has tutored and done translation in the past. He has combined his knowledge of the language and experience with language learning to develop a new method specifically designed for students in professional programs.
“Naturally within the professional programs, people are very busy, and the work is very challenging,” he said. “I’m trying to develop a program with that in mind so that the work is manageable, not overwhelming.”
Estrada said the challenges of language learning are often finding the right material for the learner’s level and having space to practice the language and implement what is learned. He is seeking to address both of those issues with his new method.
Estrada began designing the program last year, with assistance and guidance from Kenneth Hohmeier, PharmD, associate professor in the Department of Clinical Pharmacy and Translational Science. He said although the program is experimental, he expects that it will be successful, and he hopes to give it a test run in the college soon. He said a language program will benefit students and the college, but it will ultimately benefit patient care.
“By allowing people to develop this ability of understanding Spanish, they can relate that they care so much better,” he said. “If a person sees that you’ve put in the effort to know their language and really relate to them, they will follow and trust you more as a professional.”
