CIEE, Santiago, D.R.

This is an advanced course in Spanish for students who are native or heritage speakers, have completed six semesters of university Spanish language instruction, or are focusing on advanced linguistic and communicative skills for professions in the health environment. Students will master health-related terminology including vocabulary from the healthcare field, health promotion communication, health management and policy, while also exploring cultural nuances and contemporary discussions around the eco-social aspects of health in the Dominican Republic and other Spanish-speaking communities. Through role-playing, readings, debates, and real-world activities, students will enhance their ability to serve in Spanish-speaking healthcare environments with fluency and cultural competence. This course is ideal for future healthcare professionals to improve their Spanish language skills and cultural understanding. This course elevates students to the Superior level of the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) and C1 level according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR).

This course has been designed to help English-speaking students apply the knowledge acquired in the Pre-Professional Healthcare Issues course through community service focused on primary care. Students will make an Analysis of Health Status (ASIS) followed by a project with the purpose of improving those health problems identified in the community. The course is based on the practical application of priority healthcare programs, addressed to rural and urban areas, and it will be performed under the Primary Health Care strategy, emphasizing
health promotion. These programs include prenatal care, health care to children and adolescents, extended vaccination program, chronic diseases, prevention of uterine-cervical and breast cancer, sexually transmitted diseases, birth control, prevention and treatment of tuberculosis and endemic diseases (Malaria, Dengue, Chikungunya, Cholera, among others). The course offers training on the appropriate educational techniques that allow students to get involved in community health care promotion and prevention. Moreover, the course will engage students in the application of the most useful health care tools, such as family records, diagrams, and identification badges for pregnant women, chronic patients´ records, and children´s identification card, among others. In order to comply with the course requirements, students will be visiting First Level Health Care Centers in their communities during the first five (5) weeks. Visits during this period will be held three (3) days a week for three (3) hours (45 field hours). The last three (3) weeks will comprise a rural stay (45 field hours), an urban stay (15 field hours), and final research and presentations (30 research hours).

This course has been designed to introduce English-speaking students to social health, public health, and primary health care emphasizing particular characteristics of the Caribbean region, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti. The course follows an integrated and multidisciplinary approach to individual and community health by means of social and medical science concepts that allow for critical and logical analysis of health determinants and their impact on people's health, health system's organization and functions, and the health-illness scheme that contextualizes health based on cultural characteristics.