Global Health at Home
There are many ways to engage in global health activities without leaving Philadelphia:
- Be a Penn Language Link Interpreter
- Learn Medical Spanish
- Bridging the Gaps
- Reciprocity: Host an International Medical Student at Penn
Penn Language Link
Penn Language Link is a group of medical, nursing and undergraduate students who provide volunteer interpreter services to patients with Limited English Proficiency throughout the University of Pennsylvania Health System (UPHS). Volunteers reduce cultural barriers to care, ensure effective doctor-patient communication, gain valuable clinical experience, and get to have a great time doing it.
To become a Penn Language Link Interpreter, you must have fluency in the language. Each prospective interpreter is interviewed in the relevant language by one of the current certified interpreters to ensure language fluency. To volunteer, even if you are unsure about your language ability, please contact a coordinator (Nancy Etzel, Marc Hoffmann, or Gabriela Marein-Efron) who will arrange an assessment to determine if you will be able to help out. Once selected, interpreters undergo a 16-hour certification program where they learn medical interpretation techniques and receive training in cross-cultural competency. Upon completion of this program, volunteers are certified medical interpreters, ready for the hospital. Those who speak more than one language only need to train once for certification in all relevant languages.
A Note on History: Penn Language Link was founded in 1997 through the partnership of a University of Pennsylvania medical student named Joyce Lee, Dr. Steven Larson, Hilda Luiggi, and HUP’s Department of Patient and Guest Services. Growth has been impressive -- the result of dedicated service by a number of special students. Read more about it.
For additional information about Penn Language Link and their current projects, visit their website.
Learn Medical Spanish
Medical Spanish courses are offered free of charge by the School of Medicine during the fall and spring semesters. The courses are taught in the evening by faculty from area universities who specialize in Medical Spanish. Classes are offered at beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels. No prior Spanish knowledge is required to enroll in the beginning level. Students wishing to enroll in the intermediate level course should have a working knowledge of basic Spanish language, grammar, as well as basic conversation skills, while advanced students should have conversational fluency as this course is conducted entirely in Spanish. Format of the classes varies according to level. The beginning course focuses on skills needed for basic doctor-patient communication, the intermediate course goal is to enhance vocabulary and refine the conversational skills needed in a medical context, and the advanced course aims to enable Spanish speakers to build the medical vocabulary needed to obtain a detailed medical history and perform a physical exam in various specialties. The Medical Spanish course is coordinated by medical students who announce the schedule in the first two weeks of September. Dr. Iris Reyes is the Faculty advisor and Mrs. Hilda Luiggi is the Academic Programs coordinator. The student coordinator for the 2008-9 academic year is Ariana Flores. Please contact Ariana for more information.
Bridging the Gaps
Bridging the Gaps (BTG) is dedicated to providing service to underserved populations in the USA while training community responsive health and social service professionals. BTG seeks to provide meaningful service in a system of care that is often unresponsive to the needs of vulnerable populations, thus serving those who are most vulnerable in terms of health: those for whom services are often limited, difficult to access, or non-existent, and for whom significant health disparities exist. At the same time Bridging the Gaps teaches our future health professionals about the reciprocal connections among a community's socio-economic circumstances, the health care system, and the health of the population. To learn more, visit the BTG website.
Host an International Medical Student at Penn
Whether you are currently planning an international experience, have recently returned from one, or will engage in one some time in the future, hosting an international medical student is a positive way to reciprocate the hospitality you will no doubt experience in your travels. As a peer host, you will also develop another personal international contact.
Medical students from affiliated international institutions do clinical and/or research rotations here at Penn's School of Medicine. They are typically on campus for one to three months.
Peer hosts are Penn medical students who help visitors learn how to safely enjoy the campus and the city. They also provide social contacts for extracurricular activities. They do not provide housing. To facilitate your getting together, Global Health Programs can arrange to pay for a meal for you and your international guest. If you are willing to serve as a peer host, please contact Global Health Programs.
Last updated: August 17, 2009
