To Your Health! The 5 Most Useful Languages to Learn for Medicine

To Your Health! The 5 Most Useful Languages to Learn for Medicine The 5 Most Useful Languages to Learn for Medicine Its the stuff of nightmares.You dont feel well, and you know you need to see a doctor.But when you get there, everyone is speaking a strange language you dont understand.To make matters worse, no one seems to understand what youre saying.For countless patients, this nightmare scenario is a reality. While many hospitals and clinics have translators or translation hotlines, accessing these essential tools takes valuable time.Plus, having to communicate through an intermediary inherently ups the chances of miscommunication, putting peoples lives at greater risk.If saving lives and improving peoples health isnt a good  reason to start learning a foreign language, we dont know what is.But the question remains: What are the  most useful languages  for a scenario like the above?Well, there are plenty of useful languages that could apply. There are some that are  best for business  and work in general.  The most common languages  are useful for their sheer number of speakers.However, when de ciding which language to learn  for medicine, whether its for your own medical practice or a job as a medical worker in a specific setting, there are some factors youll need to take into consideration.Heres what you need to know when selecting the most useful language for your and your patients purposes. What Factors to Consider When Deciding What Language Is Most Useful for Your Medical Practice or JobThe first factor to consider is the region in which you intend to work or practice. Since each region has different demographics, region influences how frequently youll encounter patients who speak different languages and dictates which languages are most common.If youre in the U.S., for more information on what languages are spoken in your region, you might want to check MLA Language Map Data Center. While theres an unfortunate lack of more recent data, regional pockets of foreign languages usually remain somewhat consistent since immigrants are often drawn to areas with other immi grants from their homelands.Next, you might want to consider your specialty. Some conditions are more common in certain ethnic groups. For instance, if you want to specialize in Tay-Sachs disease, which is most common among Ashkenazi Jews and French Canadians, you might benefit from learning Hebrew, Russian, Yiddish and/or French.Finally, consider what you hope to accomplish. For instance, if you want to help under-served communities, you might consider selecting a language that, though widely spoken, isnt as widely studied. If your main goal is being able to help as many patients as possible, you might on the other hand choose from the most widely spoken languages.The 5 Most Useful Languages to Learn for MedicineFor the purposes of this list, weve combined data from Zocdocâ€"a resource dedicated to helping medical professionals grow their practices that uses their own data gathered from appointment bookings and searchesâ€"with additional resources to assess which languages are part icularly useful.While Zocdocs useful languages dont exactly represent the most widely spoken languages in the United States, there are other factors that can contribute to which languages patients want doctors to speak. For instance, many non-native English speakers are fluent enough that they dont require doctors who speak their native language. Similarly, some patients may have a trusted friend or family member who can come along to translate. The results could also be influenced by which demographics are most likely to use Zocdoc.Also, as the languages below mainly take into account factors that are relevant for medicine in the United States, you may need to consider outside factors if youre planning on working somewhere else.No matter where youre planning on working, though, you can start learning most of the languages on the list below (as well as several other popular world languages) on FluentU. FluentU takes real-world videosâ€"like news, movie trailers, commercials and insp iring talksâ€"and turns them into personalized language lessons.Check out the Health and Lifestyle category for videos about health care, nutrition, exercise and more. Learning through authentic videos means youll be experiencing the language from the same perspective as your patients, thereby making it easier for you to connect with them from a common point of understanding.Now lets look at the useful languages below.EnglishBy and large, English is still the main language used in medicine in the United States. And it makes senseâ€"according to the census data, over 230 million Americans spoke exclusively English at home. While another 60 million spoke a language other than English at home, the vast majority of these people spoke English well. So it should come as no surprise that Zocdocs research  indicates that a whopping 99.23% of searches on Zocdoc were for English-speaking doctors.So if you want to work or practice in the U.S. and arent fluent in English, this is a great reason to master the language.SpanishIn 2016, the United States Census Bureau estimated that 40 million residents speak Spanish at home, making it the second most widely spoken language in the United States. Because the Spanish language is so widespread in the United States, its relevant for any medical professional. However, its particularly relevant in areas with large Hispanic populations.According to Pew Research Center, the states with the largest Hispanic populations are California, Texas and Florida. With 15 million Hispanic residents, California alone hosts over 25% of the nations Hispanic population.However, Hispanic residents also make up a significant percentage of residents in several other states. For instance, more than a quarter of the population of New Mexico, California, Texas, Arizona and Nevada are Hispanic.With growing Hispanic populations across the United States, the Spanish language will be particularly relevant in areas of increased growth. According to Pew Researc h Center, states that have seen the Latino population grow most rapidly since 2000 include South Dakota, Tennessee, South Carolina, Alabama, Kentucky, Arkansas, North Dakota, Maryland, North Carolina and Virginia.In fact, the need for Spanish in medicine is so extreme that some even argue that all United States physicians should speak Spanish, as discussed in an article from the AMA Journal of Ethics.RussianBelieve it or not, Russian is one of the  most searched languages for physicians after Spanish.The United States Census Bureau estimates that nearly 900,000 people in the United States speak Russian. While its not one of the most widely spoken languages in the United States, its still phenomenally useful for medicine in some places, largely because the population is more condensed than many other groups.In fact,  MLA Language Map Data Center  estimates that over 25% of the Russian-speaking population in the United States live in New York. Another nearly 17% live in California. Th erefore, if youre looking to practice medicine in these major hubs, Russian might be the language for you.ArabicArabic is also a commonly  searched language for physicians. With the  United States Census Bureau estimating that over 900,000 people in the United States speak Arabic, its no wonder so many people are searching for Arabic-speaking doctors.This is particularly true in regions with a large Arab population. Zocdoc found most searches came out of Illinois, Virginia and New York. However,  MLA Language Map Data Center  indicates that there are additional large population centers of Arabic speakers in California and Michigan.Plus, if youre interested in the historical foundations of medicine, Arabic could come in handy, since a lot of early research was done by Arab scholars.FrenchFrench is more widely spoken in the United States than you may think. The  United States Census Bureau estimates that over 1.2 million people in the United States speak French. Another nearly 740,000 speak French Creole.MLA Language Map Data Center  reports that the highest number of French speakers in the United States are located in New York, California and Louisiana. If youre looking to branch out and learn French Creole, this is most widely spoken in Florida and New York.However, French is so much more useful than the number of speakers within the United States alone would lead you to believe. This is a great language to look at if youre considering usefulness worldwide. World language resource Ethnologue estimates that there are over 76 million native French speakers in the world. However, an additional 208 million people speak French as a second language. Therefore, while you might not be able to connect with patients in their native language, speaking French could help you connect with many in their second language.Additionally, if youre interested in humanitarian work, French could come in handy. Doctors Without Borders originated in France, and French is widely spoken in countries where they work, such as  Belgium and Democratic Republic of Congo.So if youre looking to learn a useful language for medicine, consider these five languages.Your patients will thank you! And One More ThingLooking for engaging resources to learn your target language? Then youre going to love learning with FluentU!FluentU makes it possible to learn languages  from music videos, commercials, news and inspiring talks.  Its all stuff that native speakers  actually watch.  With FluentU, you learn real languagesâ€"the same way that natives  speak them. FluentU has a wide variety of videos like movie trailers, funny commercials and web series, as you can see here:FluentU App Browse Screen.FluentU has interactive captions that let you tap on any word to see an image, definition, audio and useful examples. Now native language content is within reach with interactive transcripts.Didnt catch something? Go back and listen again. Missed a word? Hover your mouse over the subtitles to instantly view definitions.Interactive transcript for Carlos Baute song.You can learn all the vocabulary in any video with FluentUs Quiz Mode. Swipe left or right to see  more examples for the word you’re learning.FluentU has quizzes for every videoAnd FluentU always keeps track of vocabulary that you’re learning. It uses that vocab to give you a 100% personalized experience by recommending videos and examples.Start using FluentU on the website  with your computer or tablet  or, better yet,  download the FluentU app from  the  iTunes  or  Google Play  store.