Second Language

[Animal Midwife]

I know learning a second language is useful for the human medical field. Would it be just as helpful in becoming a vet?

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[katashark]

I know learning a second language is useful for the human medical field. Would it be just as helpful in becoming a vet?

Yes. You have to talk to pet owners. A lot find Spanish useful depending on the area you work in

 

[FeartheDogMonky]

Agreed. It depends on the area, but Spanish is widely helpful. I speak Russian and German though and have only used it a handful of times, mostly to make the clients feel more comfortable and to break the ice. Learning another language will never hurt you.

 

[rockatiel]

Took six semesters of Spanish total and still am not fluent it would be so helpful to be blilingual, America is growing in diversity! Lots of work goes into learning a second language but it surely pays off.

 

[dyachei]

Agreed. It depends on the area, but Spanish is widely helpful. I speak Russian and German though and have only used it a handful of times, mostly to make the clients feel more comfortable and to break the ice. Learning another language will never hurt you.

Russian would have helped in a few cases at my clinic!

Spanish and depending on the area, Chinese, are the biggest 2.

 

[SocialStigma]

I'm bilingual (English is not my native tongue) and have found it to be helpful on several occasions. I've also acted as a translator for some of my coworkers too.

 

[FeartheDogMonky]

Russian would have helped in a few cases at my clinic!

Spanish and depending on the area, Chinese, are the biggest 2.

Oh wow, too cool. I guess it depends on where you practice. I've had a couple Russian speakers here in So. Florida and back when I lived in CA, but down here it's mostly Spanish. Aside from Spanish, it's pretty uncommon to find a client that doesn't speak enough English to get through the visit. It's fun to catch people off guard though when they find out you speak their language

On a side note - Can anyone tell me if writing Rx directions in any language other than English is acceptable? We were having this discussion at my clinic and nobody knew the answer. Thoughts?

 

[dyachei]

Oh wow, too cool. I guess it depends on where you practice. I've had a couple Russian speakers here in So. Florida and back when I lived in CA, but down here it's mostly Spanish. Aside from Spanish, it's pretty uncommon to find a client that doesn't speak enough English to get through the visit. It's fun to catch people off guard though when they find out you speak their language

On a side note - Can anyone tell me if writing Rx directions in any language other than English is acceptable? We were having this discussion at my clinic and nobody knew the answer. Thoughts?

I think it is acceptable but I would include English just in case. But since we don't have an official national language, I don't see why you couldn't as long as you made sure to put in the notes what you wrote (and the translation)

 

[LyraGardenia]

On a side note - Can anyone tell me if writing Rx directions in any language other than English is acceptable? We were having this discussion at my clinic and nobody knew the answer. Thoughts?

This doesn't answer your question, but one of the vets I work with once told me to never put "give once daily" on prescription labels for Spanish-speaking clients, since "once" is Spanish for "eleven." I guess she once had a client think they were supposed to give the medicine eleven times a day.

 

[pinkpuppy9]

This doesn't answer your question, but one of the vets I work with once told me to never put "give once daily" on prescription labels for Spanish-speaking clients, since "once" is Spanish for "eleven." I guess she once had a client think they were supposed to give the medicine eleven times a day.

Oh wow! The more you know, right? I only learned up to 10 in kindergarten...

The clinic I just left enforced SID meds to be written as "Give ___ every 24 hours," BID as "Give ___ every 12 hours" and so on. It's interesting to learn how clients can misinterpret something you thought you wrote out very clearly, English speaking or not.

 

[StartingoverVet]

Russian would have helped in a few cases at my clinic!

Spanish and depending on the area, Chinese, are the biggest 2.

I agree Chinese is probably a good idea these days.

 

[Minnerbelle]

Oh wow! The more you know, right? I only learned up to 10 in kindergarten...

The clinic I just left enforced SID meds to be written as "Give ___ every 24 hours," BID as "Give ___ every 12 hours" and so on. It's interesting to learn how clients can misinterpret something you thought you wrote out very clearly, English speaking or not.

It's not uncommon for clients to think once daily to mean anytime during the day as long as it's the next calendar day, etc...

 

[Animal Midwife]

Agreed. It depends on the area, but Spanish is widely helpful. I speak Russian and German though and
have only used it a handful of times, mostly to make the clients feel more comfortable and to break the ice. Learning another language will never hurt you.

You learned Russian AND got to use it! Wow.

This doesn't answer your question, but one of the vets I work with once told me to never put "give once daily" on prescription labels for Spanish-speaking clients, since "once" is Spanish for "eleven." I guess she once had a client think they were supposed to give the medicine eleven times a day.

Haha! Good thing the client called up before administering the medication!

 

[Jota93]

Being bilingual helps you in any field, not just the veterinary field. It opens so many doors. With the growing hispanic and latino population, Spanish as a second language is becoming more and more useful. I learned English during my kindergarten-first grade years, but if you have the opportunity to learn Spanish (or any language for that matter), don't let that opportunity pass.