Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Unit Two
The Hospital
Intermediate
Concept and initial activities by Heather Musselman
with additional activities and
materials by Marni Baker Stein and Hilary Bonta
Additional support provided by Temple University and San Jose State University.
This unit was developed as part of the SHINE-MetLife Foundation Health Literacy Initiative,
as one component of Project SHINE, Center for Intergenerational Learning. For more
information about this project, go to www.projectshine.org
Acknowledgments
Thematic units were developed by ESL practitioners teaching ESL Health Literacy
classes to elder immigrants at five senior centers in Philadelphia. Each instructor selected
two topics of greatest interest to their class from a list of health literacy topics, identified
by immigrant elders participating in focus groups in Philadelphia and San Jose. SHINE
staff conducted regular curriculum development meetings at which teachers discussed
themes emerging from their classes and methods for encouraging learners to write about
these topics. Many of the lesson activities within the units are based on learner
narratives, in which elder immigrants share their experiences accessing healthcare in the
US.
The project would like to thank the elder immigrants who participated in the ESL Health
Literacy classes and who shared their stories and health concerns with us. Many thanks
to the teachers who taught the classes, participated in the curriculum development
process, formulated the topics upon which the units are based and developed many of the
activities in the units. We would also like to express our gratitude to Gail Weinstein for
her work on the Learners’ Lives as Curriculum framework, which provided the
inspiration for this curriculum development process. Many thanks to Marni Baker Stein,
Hilary Bonta, Melissa Halaway and Sharon Nicolary for their careful work in developing
additional activities and instructional materials, ensuring that activities were at consistent
proficiency levels, and standardizing the format of units.
The initial concept and activities for this unit were developed by Heather Musselman, in
collaboration with elder learners at the Golden Slipper Senior Center in Philadelphia.
Additional activities and revision by Marni Baker Stein, author of Talk it Through:
Listening, Speaking and Pronunciation (Houghton Mifflin) and Hilary Bonta of the
English Language Program at the University of Pennsylvania. Patricia Dillon, RN, PhD,
of Temple’s School of Allied Health, provided input on health content.
Table of contents
Note to Teachers!
The following websites were used in developing this site. You may find them useful references to support
your instruction.
Diversity Rx
http://www.diversityrx.org/HTML/ESSEN.htm
Re a d i n g a n d W r i t i n g P r a c t i c e
Intermediate
Goals Intermediate
for this lesson:
Below are some of the goals of this lesson. Which ones are your goals
too? Check (√) them.
In this lesson, you will read about Izabella’s trip to the emergency room.
Before you read, discuss the following questions with your classmates and
your teacher.
1. Have you or anyone you know been to the Emergency Room in the
Now you are going to read the story of Izabella’s trip to the emergency
room. Read about Izabella’s experience and then answer the questions.
One year ago, I broke my hand. I was going to my dentist when I fell.
When I got to the dental office I called my son and told him this bad news.
to fill out the forms and waited with me and my husband for one hour. Then
about my English. We waited for the doctor for a very long time. At last the
blood pressure and gave me two tablets of Tylenol, and asked me something.
Two or three hours passed when the doctor examined my hand and
took an x-ray. My hand was swollen and I could not move it. I wanted to
tell the doctor about that, but I could not explain in English. He asked me
something but I understood only some words. After they examined my hand
they put on the cast and when it dried I was let out.
Answer questions about Izabella’s story and then discuss them with your
her doctor?
past tense.
When we tell stories in English, the Simple past tense is usually used. The
simple past is used to talk about an action that began and ended in the past.
Examples:
Most verbs are regular verbs. Regular verbs are those whose past tense and
past participles are formed by adding a -d or an -ed to the end of the verb.
Sometimes the last consonant must be doubled before adding the -ed
Irregular Verbs
There is no formula to predict how an irregular verb will form its past-tense
and past-participle forms. There are over 250 irregular verbs in English.
Although they do not follow a formula, there are some fairly common
irregular forms.
be was
break broke
buy bought
come came
cut cut
fall fell
give gave
go went
have had
meet met
run ran
see saw
sit sat
stand stood
take took
tell told
Dictionaries are the best way to find out whether a verb is regular or
irregular.
Sometimes when we tell a story we also need to use the Past Progressive
going on, during some time in the past. To form the past progressive we use:
We often use the past progressive tense to talk about something that took
place (in the simple past) while something else was happening:
The past progressive can also be used to describe an action that was not
finished when another action happened.
Often the past progressive is used with words of time like while, and when.
Activity One:
Read through Izabella’s story again and underline all of the verbs or action
words. What do you notice about these words? What tense does Izabella
Read the sentences below that tell a story about an accident that Carlos had
yesterday and his experience in the emergency room and talk about the
meanings of the words in bold with your classmates and teacher. Then, fill
in the blanks with the correct form of the verb (simple past or past
progressive).
room.
wheelchair.
triage nurse.
ankle.
sentences below describe accidents that happened when people were not
paying attention to what they were doing. Read them and underline the
verbs.
Ivan: I was driving to work and talking on the cell phone, when a car
stopped suddenly in front of me. I put on the breaks but hit the
car anyway.
broke my leg.
Try to read the following advice about how to deal with reporting and
medical emergency. Discuss the meanings of the words in bold with your
classmates and teacher and then answer the questions that follow with your
classmates and teacher.
A medical emergency demands immediate action. Follow these simple steps to get help
From any telephone DIAL 9-1-1 for reporting a medical, fire or police emergency. When
2. Tell what is wrong with the victim (unconscious victim, bad fall, heart attack, etc.)
3. Give location of the victim, nearest cross street and your name.
1. DO NOT MOVE THE VICTIM unless there is danger from fire or other hazard.
5. Watch for, or have others watch for, emergency vehicles, and assist rescue
care:
-Unconscious person
-Choking
or other assault.
*pain or discomfort that radiates from the chest into either arm, neck, or jaw
-Suspected poisoning
-Serious burns
-Electric shock
-Seizure
AND DEATH!
Activity One:
**Note to teacher: Xerox the page with the game cards and cut them out.
Refer to chart A
Directions:
1. Divide learners into two teams.
2. Give each group a set of cards instructing them not to read until everyone
is ready to begin.
3. Team members will take turns reading a card aloud.
4. Then the team should collectively decide which of three categories to
place the card, (1) call 9-1-1, (2) call a doctor, (3) treat at home.
5. The winning team categorizes the cards correctly in the least amount of
time.
You burn your finger You have a pain in your You have difficulty
while picking up a hot chest that spread to speaking.
pan. your neck , jaw, or left
arm.
You cannot stop You have a fever of You hit your toe on the
throwing up. 105° F. table.
You have a sudden You ate too much and You have severe
severe headache. have a stomachache. abdominal pain.
You have a bad You develop sudden You are dizzy and have
headache. back pain. a numb tingling feeling.
You have a bad cough A pot of boiling water Your spouse is
and chest pain spilled onto your arm. unconscious.
accompanied by a low-
grade fever.
You have acute chest You feel a squeezing in You have difficulty
pain. you chest. breathing.
You feel tired after You are suddenly Your spouse cannot get
walking 3 miles. extremely tired. out of bed and hasn’t
urinated for 12 hours.
caller. Answer the questions that follow with your classmates and teacher.
**Note to teacher: Do not pass out the written message in the box below
until students are ready for the “Talk About It!” activity. Record it onto a
cassette (ask a friend to “play” one of the parts) and have students listen to
the recording. Play once or twice before they begin to listen for specific
information.
911 Dialogue
Li Mei heard her husband shout for help from the bathroom. He slipped and
fell when he was climbing into the bathtub and now he can’t move. She
decides to call 911.
Activity Two:
Now retell Li Mei’s story to a partner. Be careful to use past tense and past
progressive tense as you retell the story. Use the above sentences to help
you.
help you hear and practice pronouncing different stress patterns. Listen to
1. Sixteen 2. sixty
1. Thirteen 2. thirty
1. Forty 2. fourteen
1. Nineteen 2. ninety
1. Eighty 2. eighteen
Activity Four:
Now listen as your teacher pronounces one word from each pair. Hold up
one finger if you hear your teacher saying the word from list one and two
Activity One:
Now read the following addresses aloud to a partner. Your partner will tell
3. 13 South Broad
Role #1: You have invited your neighbor to dinner. Your address is
and she cannot move her leg. You are very worried because
your neighbor has recently had hear surgery. You call 9-1-1.
Role #2: You are a 9-1-1 dispatcher: You are trying to get as many
details as you can from the caller so that you can give the
victim and any medical information the caller has about the
victim.
Real Practice
Intermediate
Real Practice!
2. What can you learn (such as CPR, first aid or how to administer a
shot) to respond to this kind of emergency?
3. If this emergency occurred and you had to call 9-1-1, what would you
say to a 9-1-1 dispatcher to describe the location of your house?
4. What words would you say to describe the emergency? What details
about medical conditions or medications would you want to be sure to
tell the 9-1-1 dispatcher?
Vocabulary Log:
In the space below, write down all of the new words you learned during this
Activity
lesson Four:
that you want to remember. Try to separate your list of words into nouns
(person, place or thing), adjectives (describing words) and verbs (action
words). For extra practice use them in sentences of your own.
Think
New about
words a timeduring
I learned that you or lesson:
this someone you know had an accident. Write
about it below making sure you use the simple past and past progressive
Nouns:
tense. When you are finished, share your story with a partner.
Adjectives:
_____________________________________________________________
Verbs:
_____________________________________________________________
Below are some of the language goals you worked on during this lesson. Check
_____________________________________________________________
(√) what you learned from this lesson. Add more ideas if you wish.
_____________________________________________________________
I learned to…
_____________________________________________________________
Use the simple past and past progressive tense when telling a story
Learn how to effectively communicate with the 9-1-1 dispatcher in the
_____________________________________________________________
case of an emergency
Pronounce numbers and street addresses
_____________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
Re a d i n g a n d W r i t i n g P r a c t i c e
Intermediate
In this lesson, you will read about the frustrating experience one patient had
when he could not communicate with his doctor. Before you read, discuss
2. How does it make you feel when you have problems communicating
3. Since the year 2000, in the United States, there has been an executive
office or the hospital? If yes, who helped you to find this interpreter?
surgeries. During all of the three surgeries, my children have been the
help you in the case that you need translation at the doctor’s office or
hospital?
Now you are going to read about the experience one patient had when he
could not communicate with his doctor. Please read the story and then
“Once I had a friend who was brought to the hospital in an ambulance and
he needed urgent surgery, but when the doctors got together, they couldn’t
understand [him] when he was talking about his symptoms, so my friend had
to call his English teacher and ask her to come explain what was
happening.”
2. How was the patient finally able to communicate with his doctor?
3. The Mayo Health Clinic suggests that your children, close friends and or
caretakers should have the following information about you in case you are
Why? Chances are good that your doctors can provide important
an emergency or a crisis.
outlines your decisions about your health care, such as whether or not
heart disease.
surgery.
Do you have someone (a child, friend or caretaker) who could provide this
information for you in the case that you needed emergency surgery?
Ask your surgeon to tell you about the type of operation, technique used, and
why it should be performed. (Ask for pictures and drawings to help you
understand.)
Ask the surgeon about his experience with this procedure – how many times
operation is not done at this time, can it be done later? What are the
What exactly are the expected or possible benefits of doing the procedure?
What are the problems, complications, or conditions that are the risks of the
procedure? What are the risks of the type of anesthesia to be used? What are
A second opinion is very reasonable for an elective procedure. This will not
be a problem with the first surgeon who will recognize this as a normal
1. Are there any words in this reading that you do not understand? If
2. The reading suggests that if you do not agree with your doctor’s
3. Would you feel comfortable telling your doctor that you would like to
for patients to follow before they are admitted to a hospital for surgery. If
you or your group members have never had an operation, try to imagine
what kinds of instructions a doctor would give a patient who is going to have
surgery
**Note to teacher: Do not pass out the dialogue below until students
are ready for the “Talk About It!” activity. Record it onto a cassette
and have students listen to the recording. Play once or twice before
they begin to listen for specific information.
Nurse: Yes. You can have clear liquids up to two hours before the
surgery. After that, you cannot drink anything. Not even water.
Nurse: Clear liquids means anything you can see a newspaper through
such as apple juice or chicken broth. Also, do not take any
aspirin or ibuprofen for three weeks before the surgery.
Nurse: Great. If you have any questions feel free to call me.
Questions:
instructions?
6. Why isn’t the patient allowed to take aspirin or ibuprofen for three weeks
fluids.
let the machine breathe for you until it’s removed (usually
within 12 hours).
o You won’t be able to talk with the tube in. You can nod
1. An action or situation that started in the past and continues in the present.
2. An action performed during a period that has not yet finished. Example:
She has been to the doctor twice this week (= and the week isn't over yet.)
5. An action when the time is not important. Example: He has had heart
surgery. (the fact that he has had heart surgery is what is important, not
For irregular verbs, see the Table of irregular verbs at the end
of this lesson.
Positive Statements
Negative Statements
Questions
Negative Questions
Examples: 8
now.
5. When the precise time of the action is not important or not known.
Rose has taken her sister to the emergency room and learned that she will
with the nurse by answering the following questions. Fill-in the blank with
the correct form of the verb; either simple past or past perfect.
Nurse: I need to ask you questions about your sister’s conditions. Ok? Has
Rose: Yes she has high blood pressure and heart disease. For the past 10
Rose: She (have) ________________ high blood pressure for 20 years and
Nurse: Has she had any operations for her heart or any other problems?
Nurse: Has she had any previous hospitalizations other than for her heart
Rose: No. She (smoke) _____________ until her heart attack but then she
quit.
Rose: No
Now role-play this same situation with a partner. Imagine you are going
into the hospital for surgery. Take turns acting out the conversation with
one person playing the role of nurse asking the questions above and the other
Activity Three:
sentences to a partner.14
happen.
left arm.
phone rang.
muscle.
1) Two people leave the classroom. While they are gone, the teacher passes
out three to four index cards with medical instructions (see chart B for the
cards) to one of the remaining students. That student reads the cards aloud
and the class discusses the card to make sure everyone understands.
2) Student number one returns to the classroom. The cards are read to the
student two times. He/she may ask two questions for clarification.
3) Student number two returns to the classroom. Student number one must
tell student number two what was read from the cards. The other students in
the room may correct anything that is incorrect or missing. The cards are
read again to check the accuracy of student number one’s memory.
Take two Tylenol and Fast after midnight. Drink only clear liquids
Do not take any aspirin. Keep your foot elevated Stay in bed for a week.
as much as possible.
Call the hospital if you Do not eat any salt. Eat only bland food for
bathroom by noon
tomorrow.
Take 3 cc’s of this Drink plenty of fluids. Call the ER if you have
hours.
Real Practice
Intermediate
Real Practice!16
The best way to stay safe and get the best care possible in your hospital is to
• Tell all of your doctors about any prescriptions and over the
• Make sure your doctor knows about any allergies and adverse
• Make sure that all health professionals involved in your care have
• If you are having surgery, make sure that you, your doctor, and
your surgeon all agree and are clear on exactly what will be done.
understand. If you feel you need translation services ask for them.
• When you are being discharged from the hospital ask your doctor
• When your doctor writes you a prescription, make sure you can
read it.
me? How often should I take the medicine? Are there any special
17
Vocabulary Log:
In the space below, write down all of the new words you learned during this
lesson that you want to remember. Try to separate your list of words into nouns
(person, place or thing), adjectives (describing words) and verbs (action
words). For extra practice use them in sentences of your own.
Nouns:
Adjectives:
Verbs:
Below are some of the language goals you worked on during this lesson. Check
(√) what you learned from this lesson. Add more ideas if you wish.
I learned to…
Use the simple past and past progressive tense when telling a story
Learn how to effectively communicate with the 9-1-1 dispatcher in the
case of an emergency
Pronounce numbers and street addresses
___________________________________________________________
Source: http://www.fitnessmanagement.com/FM/information/articles/library/clip/clipart0798.GIF
In this lesson, you will read Anna’s description of her trip to the hospital.
Before you begin, read the following definitions with a partner and then
you?
doctor or nurse?
not?
One patient talks about feeling confused about her visit to the local hospital:
couple of days before, I fell down. I tripped on a cord and fell down in my
apartment and hurt all my left side. The head too, a little bit, not much. And
it was ok. I was on my feet and it ached a little bit, but not much. At night
before the day I went to the hospital, I lay on my left side and all around me,
the walls, the ceiling, began to whirl. The sensation was extremely awful. I
second time. This time, it was even worse because I felt like being thrown
I waited until morning and then very cautiously went out of bed.
me “Go to hospital.” I can say nothing because you fell down.” And then,
my son took me to County Hospital. There, there was no line at all. I was
only one emergency patient. It was Sunday. I was taken to a small, small
room with all the gadgets. And I lay there 3 hours. The nurse measured my
told me all is okay. I asked him, “What will be next with me? I cannot lay on
my left side.” He told me, “It’s in your ear.” The nurse gave me 2 pills and
in 10 minutes she told me, “Go on your left side.” And I was afraid. Nothing
Activity One:
Discuss the meanings of the words and phrases in bold with your teacher.
Read the sentences and write T if the statement is true and F if the statement
is false.
_____4. When she laid down on her right side, the room began to whirl.
_____6. When she turned on her left side, the feeling became worse.
_____12. The nurse gave her two pills and she was fine.
Now discuss the questions below with your classmates and teacher.
3. If you were Anna, what questions would you ask the doctor about
Learning to be Assertive!24
your own rights and feelings and the rights and feelings of others.
Adapted from information from the Counseling and Mental Health Center at The
University of Texas
push the button. You need to 2. I know you are very busy but I
because....
Most people are not assertive and are too polite or meek because they do not
want to displease others. However, if you are not assertive, your doctors and
nurses may not be aware of your needs and feelings. This may make you
feel angry over time and may result in serious problems for your health care.
In addition, in the United States, doctors and nurses will expect you to be
assertive. If you are too polite or meek, your busy doctors and nurses will
probably not take the time to figure out what you want or need and will
spend more time with patients who are communicating more directly with
Meek Assertive
1. I know that you are a very 1. Would you ask the doctor if it
1. Basic Assertion
2. Sensitive Assertion30
This type of assertion lets the other person know that you understand them
and you are sensitive to their needs. It usually contains two parts- a
I know you've really been busy, but I have been having this pain in my
arm all day. I am really worried about it and I want you to call the
doctor.
This occurs when the other person fails to respond to your basic assertion32
and continues to not respect your rights. When you make your second
assertion you need to be firm. It may even include the mention of some type
of action on your part, made only after several basic assertive statements.
For example,
sleeping on these dirty sheets for two days. If you do not change them
from others?
• Are you able to say "no" when you don't want to do something?
How to begin
Develop a value and belief system which allows you to assert yourself. This
When you are communicating with your doctors and nurses, make direct eye
contact; keep your posture open and relaxed; be sure your facial expression
agrees with your message; keep a normal tone of voice, do not yell; and
practice with your classmates and teacher. You can also practice on your
friends and family, but tell them what you are doing first! Ask for their help;
medical professionals. First, work with your partner to underline the words
and phrases that are not appropriate. Then write an improved dialogue for
the patient and caretakers. When you are finished writing, read your new
*Note – as you are reading, discuss any words you do not know with
1. Amira is six months pregnant and has been experiencing bad stomach
pains. Her family including her father, brother and sister are with her in her
room. She is modest and does not want to be examined in front of men and
confused about all of the options and does not feel that a patient should
make final decisions. He also thinks it might be a good idea to get a second
Dr. Davis: So if cancerous cells remain in your liver after the operation we
will need to make decisions about how aggressively we treat
the cancer.
Tzu-Hung: Aggressively?
Dr. Davis: Yes... You might decide to undergo chemotherapy and
radiation. Or you can try just radiation. Or if the cancer does
appear to be gone, you might decide not to pursue these
therapies.
Tzu-Hung: Who decides -- me?
Dr. Davis: That’s right. We will need to discuss each option. I will give
you information about each and then you can read and talk
about it with your family. I also recommend that you seek a
second opinion from another doctor. But the next time I see
you, I will need to know your decision.
Tzu-Hung: Just you tell me what to do. I don’t want to decide.
3. Svetlana does not like taking Western medicine, usually preferring to take
homeopathic treatment. When she does take medicine, she usually takes a
smaller dose than recommended and stops immediately as soon as she feels
better even when her Doctor asks her to take it longer. She has asthma and
is supposed to use an inhaler twice a day. But she doesn’t unless she feels
bad. She just had an asthma attack and is talking about her medication with
a nurse.
operation. The nurses are always rushing and never talk to her. They rush
into the room, quickly do something and then leave. Prima wants to know
5. Chang-Ho is in the hospital with his wife to visit his daughter who is
41
recovering from surgery after delivering a baby. His daughter cannot
move and needs help to sit-up and hold her new baby. He and his wife do
not think the nurses have enough time to help their daughter and are upset
Chang-Ho: You must let my wife stay here past visiting hours.
Nurse: I’m sorry, what did you say?
Chang-Ho: (Yelling) My daughter cannot stay alone. Your nurses cannot
take care of her and she needs her family.
6. Mariko and Takeru are talking to their cardiologist about Mariko’s health
condition. Unfortunately they do not understand the doctor who uses a lot of
technical language.
Activity Two:43
Read through the situations below. First, write some ideas about what to say
if you were the patient in each situation. Then practice your polite but
assertive language in pairs. For each situation take turns being the patient
1. The nurse hands you a cup with 4 pills. You check your list of
medications and there are only 3 pills on your list. What can you say
to the nurse?
2. You are having severe chest pain. You call 9-1-1 and an ambulance
comes. You want to go to a specific hospital. What can you say to the
emergency medical technician?
3. You want to know which hospital your doctor recommends for your
condition. What can you say to your doctor?
7. You’ve been given an IV drip and your arm is very swollen and
discolored. What can you say to the nurse?
and healthcare and then do the activities with your classmates and
teacher.46
Different cultures have different expectations about contact between health care
professional and patients. Below are examples of some expectations you might find
in the U.S health system. Read them and discuss any words you don’t know with
your teacher.
The patient has a right to know everything about his or her condition, even if
during examination.
A patient should look a doctor or nurse in the eye as they are speaking although
The patient is the person who makes the final decision about medical treatment
unless he or she is too sick. Family members and doctors help in the decision
making but in most cases, the patient has the final decision making power.
The patient’s family members are expected to stay in the hospital only during
visiting hours. Most patient care is provided by health care professionals, not
family members.
48
In small groups or pairs talk about which expectations are similar to those
Activity Four:50
Now read the story below about Minh, whose husband has different cultural
My husband had been in the hospital for about 2 hours when the trouble
began. He had been feeling very dizzy and had been experiencing bad
My husband was so upset that he left the hospital and now my husband
system.
your country?
or upset you?
How do you say and write the following numbers? Fill in the chart with the
correct information and discuss your answers with your classmates and
teacher.
100
1,000
10,000
100,000
1,000,000
130
1, 230
13,030
130,313
1, 213,433
6%
4.5%
1/3
**Note to teacher: Do not pass out the written message in the box below.
Record it onto a cassette and have students listen to the recording. Play once
or twice before they begin to listen for specific information.
About 32 million people in the United States speak a language other than
English at home. A recent study of hospitals found that more than 11% of
During the 1980s, 9.5 million people came to America from over 100
countries. 80% of this group came from outside Europe, the traditional
which interpreters are required also has greatly increased. In some cities,
residents speak more than one hundred different languages and dialects.
Despite the growing need for health care services for groups speaking other
languages, many health care providers have not done enough to provide
times health care providers rely on untrained bilingual staff, such as janitors
or food service workers, and friends and family members of patients for
Patient care has often suffered because of this. Children have been asked to
interpret for parents about sensitive matters such as sex and spousal abuse.
cause delays in diagnosis and treatment, the use of needless and expensive
Listen again and fill in the blanks with the missing numbers and words.
doctors.
First read the questions below. Now listen again and check off the answers
increasing.
workers
ask him to use paper and a pen to draw pictures. If I still didn’t
The words written in bold are examples of the present conditional tense.
58
We use the conditional tense to talk about imagined or untrue events.
If I were in the hospital, I would not be afraid to ask for help when I
need it.
for my patients.
Notice that a comma (,) separates the clauses when the if clause is before the
59
result clause. When the if clause and the result clause change places, you
comma
and would + the base form in the result clause. Look at the chart below for
some examples.
verb.
If she were a doctor, she would provide interpreters for all her
patients.
hospital,
dollars
If I were you, I’d get a second opinion from a doctor before having surgery.
Contractions
I would = I’d
he would = he’d
we would = we’d
nursing care.
3. If Yasmin didn’t understand her doctor, (she) _____________ ask for help
from an interpreter.
classmates and teacher, talk about would you do if you were in a similar
*Note – as you are reading, discuss any words you do not know with your
Situation #1
Carla has been admitted to the hospital after her doctor noticed that her heart
was beating irregularly. She knows that she will undergo a series of medical
tests but she doesn’t understand how long she will be in the hospital or if she
will go home that evening. She is embarrassed because she thinks maybe a
Wen-Liu has been in the hospital for a day and is very angry with one of the
nurses. This nurse never smiles, roles his eyes every time Wen-Liu asks a
question and waits for a long time when Wen-Liu presses the buzzer. At one
point the nurse yelled into his room that he must wait after Wen-Liu asked
for a drink.
Situation #3
Maria’s husband has been diagnosed with cancer. Her doctor has been very
kind and she respects him. Her doctor told her that there are different
treatments her husband could get. Maria is confused and would like to get a
second opinion from a different doctor but is embarrassed and doesn’t want
My Rights as a Patient
protected by law.
was in the hospital I felt like I was concerned with the patient more.
Korean, Philadelphia
66
had very different experiences in the hospital. Compare and contrast the two
1. Why do you think they have very different opinions about hospital X?
know with your teacher. Then decide whether or not they are true. If you
feel it is true, write T on the line. If your opinion is that it is false, write F on
the line.
_______1. You have the right to free medicine while in the hospital.
hospital staff.
_______4. You have the right to know the names of all the medical
________6. You have the right to have someone in the operating room while
________7. You have the right to decide what treatments and procedures
you want.
Source:http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/dm/pubs/complications_kidneys/images/ManCheckingBloodPressure.
Real Practice
Intermediate
Checklist for learning:
Below are some of the goals of this lesson. Which ones are your goals too?
Check (√) them.
Real Practice!
Are you interested in learning more about your rights as a patient? The
following list will help you to better understand your rights a patient and
Patient's rights are to be supported by all medical and dental treatment health facility
personnel and are an integral part of the healing process. These patient rights are:
Health Care. The right to quality care and treatment consistent with available
resources and generally accepted standards. The patient has the right to participate in
planning medical treatment including the right to refuse treatment to the extent
permitted by law and government regulations and to be informed of the consequences
of his/her actions.
Respectful Treatment. The right to considerate and respectful care, with recognition
of personal dignity and consideration of the psychological, spiritual, and cultural
variables which influence his or her perceptions of illness.
Identity. The right to know, at all times, the professional status and credentials of
health care personnel, as well as the name of the health care provider primarily
responsible for their care.
Explanation of Care. The right to an explanation from a committed and trained staff
member in plain language of the diagnosis, treatment, procedures, and anticipated
outcomes of care. Patients and their families have a right to be informed by a
committed and trained staff member of unanticipated outcomes of care and events.
When it is not possible or medically advisable to give such information to the patient, it
will be provided to family members or another appropriate person.
Vocabulary Log:
In the space below, write down all of the new words you learned during this
lesson that you want to remember. Try to separate your list of words into nouns
(person, place or thing), adjectives (describing words) and verbs (action
words). For extra practice use them in sentences of your own.
Nouns:
Adjectives:
Verbs:
Below are some of the language goals you worked on during this lesson. Check
(√) what you learned from this lesson. Add more ideas if you wish.
I learned to…
Use the simple past and past progressive tense when telling a story
Learn how to effectively communicate with the 9-1-1 dispatcher in the
case of an emergency
Pronounce numbers and street addresses
___________________________________________________________