38 SPRING 2017

Developing a Spanish for

Health Professions Course:
A Preliminary Mixed-Methods
Study
Laura Levi Altstaedter
East Carolina University

Abstract: The mixed-methods pilot study described in this article traces the devel-
opment of a Spanish for Specic Purposes: Health Professions course that was designed to
help future health care professionals develop their linguistic prociency and intercul-
tural abilities. The study included nursing, medical, and dental students and was
conducted at a large public university in an area of the southeastern United States
that has experienced an increase in the Spanish-speaking Limited English Prociency
(LEP) population. The purpose of the study was to explore students perceptions of the
course and its curricular design, as well as to investigate students perceptions with
respect to a series of motivation constructs. The ndings indicated that Language for
Specic Purposes courses focused on health professions can have a positive impact on
students perceptions, while preparing language-concordant providers to more effec-
tively and sensitively meet the needs of LEP patients. Benets were related to the context-
specic nature of the course and tasks, while challenges included curricular constraints
and schedule conicts.

Key words: Spanish, curriculum for specic/special purposes, perceptions, Standards

for Language Learning

I was in Costa Rica for vacation and witnessed a trauma. I was the rst on the
scene trying to assess the injured individual. It made me realize that no matter
where I am, I want to be able to fully treat someone without having to worry
about language barriers.
Study participant

Laura Levi Altstaedter (PhD, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University)
is Assistant Professor of Hispanic Studies and Coordinator of the Foreign
Language Teacher Education Program, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC.
Foreign Language Annals, Vol. 50, Iss. 1, pp. 3856. 2016 by American Council on the Teaching of Foreign
Languages.
DOI: 10.1111/flan.12221