top of page
Fortaleza
Doctora, un minuto
By: Stephanie Singer
Doctora, un minuto:
Cuando estábamos saliendo del cuarto, la
paciente, a quien vamos a llamar María, me
agarró la mano con dulzura. María quería que
me quedara atrás porque tenía preguntas. Yo
no me había dado cuenta de que los doctores
hablaron únicamente en inglés y ella no pudo
entender. Me dijo que solo había entendido
“you will have to stay another day” pero nada
más.
Le expliqué que tiene insuficiencia cardíaca y
que, al salir del hospital, necesitaba visitar a
su médico primario y continuar con el
seguimiento. María empezó a llorar porque
llegó de Cuba hace dos semanas y no sabe a
qué doctor acudir debido a la barrera del
idioma. Con su consentimiento, busqué a un
trabajador social que hablaba español, y así
ella pudo empezar a tomar control de su salud.
Visité a María al día siguiente, y ella estaba tan feliz.
Sabía el plan de tratamiento y lo que tenía que hacer
para prevenir otro episodio de insuficiencia cardíaca.
El haber tomado solo diez minutos de mi día para
explicarle todo lo que estaba pasando cambió por
completo su perspectiva. Ya no tenía ansiedad; estaba
enfocada en mejorar y salir del hospital.
Doctor, one moment:
As we were leaving the room, the patient, whom
we’ll call Maria, gently grabbed my hand. Maria
wanted me to stay behind because she had
questions. I hadn’t realized that the team of doctors
had spoken only in English, and she couldn’t
understand. She told me she had only understood
“you will have to stay another day” but nothing
else.
I explained to her that she has heart failure and
that, after leaving the hospital, she needed to visit
her primary care doctor and continue follow-up
care. Maria started crying because she had arrived
from Cuba two weeks ago and didn’t know which
doctor to go to due to the language barrier. With
her consent, I found a social worker who spoke
Spanish, who helped Maria take control of her
health.
I visited Maria the next day, and she was so happy.
She understood her treatment plan and what she
needed to do to prevent another episode of heart
failure. Taking just ten minutes of my day to
explain the medical plan and how we were going
to move forward allowed her to change her
outlook. She no longer felt anxious; she was
focused on improving and getting discharged.
If you've taken the time to read this, thank you; it truly means a lot that you're making an effort to understand. Unfortunately, this isn’t a one-off story—it’s a recurring issue that affects many, and it's not just Spanish-speaking patients who face these challenges.
I hope you'll take a moment to consider how you can make your patients feel seen and heard— allow them to bring their culture into the room. Celebrate it. Ask about it. Even small gestures, like showing interest in their traditions, can make all the difference.
Let’s create a space where every patient feels seen and valued for who they are, not just for their
condition.
bottom of page