Tulane..what language population

[Yoyomama88]

Besides english, do most patients in the NO area speak spanish...not french right? Also can anyone elaborates more on the foundations of medicine program, is it just basically PBL...

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[ChubbyChaser]

Besides english, do most patients in the NO area speak spanish...not french right?

In new orleans, I would suggest learning hick....JP! I didnt mean to offend anyone.

 

[AKN]

It used to be Creole (a French derivative). I don't know now -- perhaps they've scattered (from Katrina) and Spanish-speaking builders have moved in?

 

[dtrainer]

English is the predominant language although there has been a large influx of Spanish speakers post-Katrina. You can notice the French influence (noticeably in the names of things) but it isn't really spoken. Heck, people can't even pronounce the street names properly if they are in French.

 

[hermit]

More like ebonics.

 

[DiddlyTwang]

lots of hispanics in town after katrina

 

[biggiesmallsiz]

More like ebonics.

that's messed up.

 

[LizzyM]

According to the 2000 census, only ~4% of the population of New Orleans was foreign born and about 8% spoke a language other than English at home (but it is noted that most people who speak a language other than English at home also speak English as well).

At that time (2000) about 67% of New Orleans' population was African American.

While the population has shrunken since Katrina, I think that it is safe to say that the non-English speaking population there is quite small.

 

[luckycharms08]

According to the 2000 census, only ~4% of the population of New Orleans was foreign born and about 8% spoke a language other than English at home (but it is noted that most people who speak a language other than English at home also speak English as well).

At that time (2000) about 67% of New Orleans' population was African American.

While the population has shrunken since Katrina, I think that it is safe to say that the non-English speaking population there is quite small.

but post-Katrina, there was a huge influx of Spanish speakers brought in by FEMA to rebuild homes. At my Tulane interview, they did stress that there was a significant Spanish speaking population present in New Orleans now and they even offer Medical Spanish as an elective.

 

[LizzyM]

In 2006 the estimated population of New Orleans was 224,000 and 4% were Hispanic; add the estimated 10,000-14,000 undocumented workers and you have a Spanish speaking population of about 23,000 (~10%).

This is relatively low in comparison to many US cities but it is a bump from pre-Katrina and it may be the case that there are not sufficient bilingual health care workers or interpreters to serve the population.

 

[Old Grunt]

Actually, the official language of New Orleans is "Yat".

It's pretty close to english though, so you should be okay.

 

[zpiff]

but post-Katrina, there was a huge influx of Spanish speakers brought in by FEMA to rebuild homes. At my Tulane interview, they did stress that there was a significant Spanish speaking population present in New Orleans now and they even offer Medical Spanish as an elective.

You are absolutely correct. I actually took a class about this when I studied in New Orleans for a semester.

 

[Na1a]

that's messed up.

Well, maybe it was poorly phrased, but I wouldn't dismiss the point.

I worked once at an office for a company in which 90% of employees were Black (all from low-socioeconomic backgrounds and with minimal education), and they definitely had their own language. I could barely understand anything when spoken to in person, let alone when I got asked questions over the phone. I hated answering the phone because I would always find myself trying really hard to decipher their speech and would often have to ask people to repeat themselves. Many seemed to take it as a personal insult, but I really just couldn't understand them!

 

[loser]

There is a large Vietnamese population in New Orleans. Most people here are native English speakers but the most common non-English languages you will come across are Vietnamese and Spanish. Contrary to popular belief most locals don't even speak French. Many street names are French but the locals don't even pronounce them properly.

 

[LizzyM]

In 2000 there were approximately 25,000 who self identify as ethnically Vietnamese in the entire state of Louisiana (population just under 4.3 million) and most lived in the New Orleans area. As of last fall, it was estimated that 90% had returned to the area.

Do keep in mind that most came to the area after the fall of Saigon (1975) and others are US born. I would question whether a significant proportion are non-English speaking.

There was a significant influx of Spanish-speakers after Katrina but most recent news stories report that these workers are leaving the area.

 

[ManualEvac]

You would be wise to learn some basic medical spanish to work in ANY urban area these days. Here is a list of areas with majority Hispanic populations to date, and the number is expected to grow rapidly.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._communities_with_Hispanic_majority_populations

I was really surprised to find out that most of the patients at the indian reservation clinic where I volunteered spoke Spanish as a first language, and barely any younger people spoke the indigenous language anymore. Most spoke some English, but I used my Spanish every day and made nice with the docs and nurses as a result (bonus. Spanish is easy...learn some basic verbs and put "o" at the end of many common ailments and complaints and you're halfway there.

 

[loser]

At the agency I used to work at we had to hire a Vietnamese interpreter. Most of the Vietnamese people here do speak English with fluency levels ranging from knowing just a little bit of English to being a native English speaker. However, a significant minority are not completely fluent in English. There are some who do fine with English on a conversational level but they get tripped up on more complicated things. They have trouble understanding/communication medical info, legal info, insurance info, and other subjects that are more complicated than everyday conversation. Some of the older Vietnamese don't speak English at all.

On a practical level it would be more useful to learn Spanish than Vietnamese though. Spanish will be useful in ANY urban area including New Orleans whereas Vietnamese is much more obscure outside of Vietnam or New Orleans.