UCCI Course Description

The introductory unit for this course starts with an emphasis on containing contagion as a primary protocol. For dramatic interest, students will begin with an outbreak of a dangerous flu. Then using the even more interesting zombie pandemic, they will document the stages of exposure, quarantine, triage, and treatment. Students will learn the basics of medical terminology.

1) Overview of the Avian Bird Flu H5N1: Working in small groups, students will evaluate the critical components of a flu outbreak (including what data is used to determine when a true outbreak has occurred) in order to confirm why infection control remains among the most paramount of preventive measures, namely it reduces disease transmission. In preparation for assignment 2 (newscast), small groups of students will use Prezi online to create a Spanish language overview of the various aspects of the Avian Bird flu H151. Students will have the choice to research one of the following aspects for their presentation: signs, symptoms, method of transmission, precautions and treatment.

2) Newscast: Using assignment 1 (Overview of H5N1), students will create a newscast, in the form of a scripted, videotaped production in Spanish, which announces the Avian Bird flu H5N1 virus. The production can be an in-studio and on-location level of creativity, using clear, medically and grammatically-correct, complete Spanish sentences to demonstrate knowledge of extended discourse. Students can also chose to present their newscast in real time to the class. Roles will be including, but not limited to news anchor persons, news reporters, scientists, doctors, first-responders and the public. Final production will be a 2 to 3 minute videotaped production in Spanish. Students would also have the option to present their newscast live to the class. The newscast would be one of two assignment options as students could choose to produce and/or perform a Public Service Announcement (PSA).

3) Public Service Announcement: Students create a 1-2 minute PSA containing universal precautions and infection control in the context of a flu pandemic. Students will create a PSA, in the form of a scripted, videotaped production in Spanish. Students will also have the option to present their PSA to the class orally in Spanish. Students will use both formal and informal medical terminology, as well as visual aides in Spanish to thoroughly explain the universal precautions and infection control in the context of a flu pandemic. Peer reviews will be conducted using an instructor generated rubric.

4) Direct and Indirect Disease Transmission Pamphlet: Students will work in groups using the Delaware Health & Social Services Direct and Indirect Disease Transmission one-page sheet. Each group will cover a specific area of the Direct and Indirect Disease Transmission document. Students will summarize and interpret to Spanish their assigned area of the document. Using clear, medically and grammatically-correct, complete Spanish sentences to demonstrate knowledge of extended discourse, groups will introduce disease transmission basics to one another in the form of a Spanish-language pamphlet.

5) Infection Control Presentation: Using CDC Infection Control Personal Protective Equipment PowerPoint. Teacher will assign groups. Each group will cover a specific area of the presentation. Students will summarize and interpret to Spanish their assigned area of the CDC presentation. Using clear, medically and grammatically-correct, complete Spanish sentences to demonstrate knowledge of extended discourse, groups will present to the class their assigned area of the Infection Control presentation.

6) Spanish Diary Narrative: During a flu outbreak, assessment quarantine, triage and treatment are critical to maintain control of a potentially widespread medical event. Students will be assigned different roles and medical status conditions in the quarantine, triage and treatment process, including infected with symptoms, not infected, yet exposed, symptomatic, though not infected, medical caregiver and first-responder (uninfected, yet vulnerable). Using the  CDC Preparedness 101: Zombie Pandemic comic as a reference and guide, students will create a Spanish diary of narrative of the incident, which chronicles their 4-day experience during the flu outbreak. The diary will cover four days (1oo words per day). The student uses foundation parameters from the event, adding fictional narrative for effect: Day 1 Exposure (from the perspective of student’s assigned role), Day 2 Quarantine (how society is responding to the outbreak), Day 3 Treatment (who gets treated first, is there a social break-down?), Day 4 Debriefing (post-outbreak return to normalcy). Highlights of the student narratives composed from the incident will be shared during presentation to the class, delivered entirely in clear, grammatically-correct, complete Spanish sentences.

7) Word Deconstruction: Students identify and separate and define roots, prefixes, and suffixes of each word on a given vocabulary list. Lists should be comprised of 10-15 common medical terms in Spanish.

8) Word Construction: Students combine plausible new medical terms in Spanish, using their learned roots, prefixes, and suffixes. There could be a contest for longest new word, the most new words from one root, and/or the best new word created.

This unit will cover the basic anatomy and physiology, in relation to musculoskeletal and acute catastrophic injuries, using extended Spanish and medical terminology from the previous unit. Students will also apply the learned patient care protocols when discussing and evaluating specific injuries. This work will be supported by using the chapters in the text, “Un examen físico”, “En la sala de emergencia” and “En el laboratorio y en la sala de rayos X” from Basic Spanish for Medical Personnel. Patient care can be especially challenging without effective and thorough communication between the health care professional and their patient, even when speaking the same language. The ability to communicate in the native language of the patient will help reduce any possible mistakes in patient evaluation and care. Using advanced Spanish and medical terminology, students will learn specific terms and cultural phrases necessary for effective communication with a variety of healthcare professionals, in formal and informal situations. To facilitate accurate communication and understanding, students will be presented with a case scenario to introduce practical application of the key concepts covered in this unit. Students will learn related anatomy, physiology, and medical terminology in Spanish to formulate the foundation for discussion and evaluation of common injuries. In clear, medically and grammatically-correct, complete Spanish sentences, students will also perform a mock evaluation of a patient to practice these new skills.

Accidents and musculoskeletal injuries are both unfortunately common and of high interest to high school students. They are also fairly obvious and do not require extensive understanding of complex causes. In Unit 2, students will implement their new knowledge of medical protocols through role plays of hospital visits and musculoskeletal injury evaluation and learn new vocabulary and skills, as well as investigating specific injuries and related to medical professions via the following key assignments:

1) Role Play of Medical Triage Interview: After an initial presentation of a story of a visit to an emergency room with an injury (video or teacher presented) and having practiced both the vocabulary relevant to this unit (such as sprains, break, trip, crash) and the correct grammar, the students will be divided into pairs to do role plays of medical triage.. The first student will assume the role of a stable patient needing a medical evaluation. The second student will assume the role of a medical triage professional. During the interview, the patient will give his/her basic personal information for an intake form and answer the medical professional’s questions regarding the history of the musculoskeletal or head injury,while the medical professional records each response on the same form. Each student role will be executed in grammatically correct, complete Spanish. Once the interview is complete, the students will alternate roles. The first student will take on the role of Medical Professional, and the second student will take on the role of Patient. A new intake form will be used for the second interview, and both forms will be submitted for evaluation.

2) Traumatic Brain Injury Awareness - Powerpoint: Students will research head injury awareness from the perspective of a medical professional working with a community organization, such as the Brain Trauma Foundation, National Athletic Trainers’ Association, or Centers for Disease Control. Students will document their findings and present a powerpoint, as if they are the medical professional presenting to a community audience. Students will produce and present a complex written and oral report, authentically documenting the comprehension of the injuries and their treatments.

3) Diagnostic Options: Students will receive a Spanish language diagnostic sheet which contains signs, symptoms, and treatment of injuries. Students will use the Spanish language diagnostic sheet to practice recognizing common injuries as well as care for the injuries. Students will be grouped as practice teams consisting of student patients and student caregivers. Practice teams will use diagnostic sheets to quiz one another on treatment of injuries. All practice questions to the student patient will be conducted in Spanish. All responses to the student caregiver will be conducted in Spanish. In Spanish, students will explain their rationale for their chosen treatment for the condition presented.

4) Musculoskeletal & Head Injuries - Essay: Students will pick one specific injury to research. Next, they will construct an outline to aide in the process of writing a 4-5 paragraph essay, in clear and grammatically correct (medical) Spanish. The outline will document mechanism of injury, anatomy and physiology involved, the evaluation process, and possible treatment options. The essay will then expand upon these ideas, as mentioned in the outline. This assignment will engage the student in the target language, using the written format of the Spanish Standards and demonstrating a higher order of thinking.

5) Role Play of Injury Evaluation: Students will be divided into groups of 3-4 people. Each group will be comprised of a medical professional, a patient, and supportive family members who collectively research a specific injury. They will then chose roles to portray for their class presentation of an injury evaluation. Student medical professionals may choose between Doctor, Nurse, Athletic Trainer, EMT, and Physical Therapist. Using Spanish medical terminology, Patients will use Spanish verbal and nonverbal gestures to communicate with the chosen professional. Medical professionals will document patient information, the evaluation process, and patient questions. Family members will ask questions related to how the evaluation outcome affects their loved one. The class will observe and evaluate each presentation, using a structured teacher-prepared rubric.

This unit will progress from the focus on musculoskeletal and acute catastrophic injuries to explore the phenomena of heart attack, one of the most prominent disorders of the cardiopulmonary system. Students will learn the basic structures and functions related to the prevention, cause, and treatments for heart attacks and related illnesses. Then students will develop both a deeper knowledge of the causes and treatments of diseases/disorders of the cardiopulmonary system as well as increase their ability to communicate about it in culturally appropriate ways to diverse audiences of laypersons and health professionals, such as patients, family members and paramedics. Students will also produce and present complex written and oral products including anatomy posters, board games, patient interviews, case histories, and educational pamphlets.

Starting with a case scenario presented in Spanish of an elderly male with heart problems, such as the ones provided in the chapter “En el consultorio del cardiólogo” of Basic Spanish for Medical Personnel, students will then see a video on females’ heart attacks and will compare and contrast the incidence of heart attacks in males and females in a Venn diagram. Students will learn basic anatomy and vocabulary of the cardiopulmonary system to make a poster of a body outline with the systems on it. They will use the poster as the basis for designing a board game which will be based on the functioning of a normal circulatory system (like the old game CIrculation). They will use medical and lay terms to create challenges in the game, with cards that give examples of factors that can cause or alleviate symptoms of heart disease. With the knowledge gained from designing the game, students in pairs will develop a skit about a patient with heart problems and his/her medical provider. The first step in developing the skit will have the students create a medical screening form with the relevant medical terminology to use to interview, evaluate and diagnose this patient. Then students will receive instruction in culturally appropriate interpersonal patient care and review of the parameters of HIPAA, Students will present the skits in pairs, having chosen together the patient’s status, medical issues, and emotional responses. After presenting the skit, students will write a one and a half page written report on a single patient’s history and appropriate treatment options. They may use the scenario of their skit as a basis for this. Then students will be led through reading a variety of articles about treatments,including conventional and alternative medicines, using as one the text’s chapters “Problemas de hipertensión which has notes on folk medicine, diet and exercise, and the article on “Síntomas de un ataque al corazón,”. Finally, students will create a pamphlet in Spanish on a chosen cardiopulmonary illness, its causes and treatments. This will be used as the culminating assignment to assess mastery. With the model of the interworking of the cardiovascular and pulmonary systems, they will be ready to approach the combined digestive and endocrine systems that are at work in the next disease, diabetes.

While the second unit has taught students about treatment and protocols, the next step is to study a more complex set of symptoms as experienced in the cardiopulmonary systems. The initial scenarios will involve heart attacks, a prominent disorder of the cardiopulmonary systems. Students will learn about the interrelationship of the two systems, risk factors and diseases and extend their knowledge and practice of the medical protocols. Unit assignments will include learning different registers used to describe symptoms and diseases in medical and lay terms.

1) Compare/Contrast Venn Diagram: After giving oral responses to comprehensible input on a scenario of an adult male’s heart attack, students will complete written answers, in the context of questions to show their comprehension of the original Spanish scenario of a heart patient and his treatment. Students will also be shown a short video in Spanish on women’s heart attack symptoms, with graphic representations and text. Students will complete a worksheet on what the symptoms are, and will make a Venn diagram to indicate which gender has which symptoms and where the overlap exists. In a think-pair-share activity, students will speculate why men and women present with different symptoms and how that leads to the statistic of why men have more heart attacks but women die more often from heart attack.

2) The Body Poster: Students will learn cardiovascular and respiratory systems in Spanish to create a poster that has the body outline and the two intertwined systems on it. Organs that need to be included and labeled (in both medical terms and lay language where appropriate) are (but not limited to) the heart, arteries, veins, capillaries, oral cavity, pharynx, larynx, trachea, lungs, bronchi, and alveoli. Students will learn to discuss the functioning of these parts of the systems in Spanish. These posters will become the basis for the board in the next assignment.

3) Board Game on Cardiopulmonary System and Heart Health: Students will take their knowledge of the functions of the organs (how the lungs get oxygen from the air, take it to the heart where it is pumped to organs and returned with CO2 to be exhaled from the lungs) as the basis for the movement of action in a board game which they will design in groups. (See the URL for pictures of out of print Circulation: An Incredible Journey). The point of the game students are designing is to incorporate the disease and treatment processes. Students will learn about and use cards (that they might land on a square for) in three categories: a) the physiological processes that cause heart attacks, such as hardening of the arteries, plaque build-up, high blood pressure; b) the risk factors that cause these processes, such as smoking, consumption of junk food, lack of exercise, genetics; and c) the actions a person can take to prevent the processes, such as exercise, stress reduction, and healthy eating. The cards should have both an illustration and a Spanish description of a specific situation, e.g. “You come home every night and watch tv without doing any exercise.” If you land on this card, you might be penalized by having to take only half the number of steps on your following dice throw. Similarly, getting a plaque build-up card would slow your pace while eating a vegan diet would increase it. Teachers will provide rubrics for the number of cards each group must have in their game and specificity of the actions.

4) Medical screening form for a skit: Students will develop a medical screening form based on the information learned in the making of the board game. This form will include physiological data and patient history (family history, risk factors) and will be written in medical Spanish for the health care professional.

5) Skit: Students will develop a skit between a patient with a heart problem and a healthcare professional. They will use the medical screening form they developed in the earlier assignment, but will have to translate it to lay language for the actual patient interaction. Students will be instructed in the parameters of HIPAA and culturally appropriate language and behavior with respect to gender, race, religion, age, and language (GRRAL). The final skit will be graded both on the clarity of communication in Spanish and the quality of medical care reflected in the interaction.

This unit will expand students knowledge and understanding of protocols in preventative health practices while reinforcing their knowledge of Spanish medical terminology, basic anatomy and physiology and the cardiopulmonary system as they relate to the endocrine system. Referring to Basic Spanish for Medical Personnel’s chapter :Cib el dietista” which is about diabetes in the Hispanic population, this unit will introduce students to a diabetes scenario that will require them to communicate with laypeople and health professionals in Spanish. Specifically, students work within the scenario in Spanish on introductions, learning medical terminology, communicating with patients effectively, empathizing with family members, giving basic directions and administering and managing the follow up care of patients. Students will develop conversations in Spanish in which they will take the role of a healthcare worker what in order to give advice and suggestions to their patient in Spanish. Students will also engage in conversations in Spanish in which they will compare and contrast different aspects of diabetes care while explaining and supporting their expert opinion. Through the use of Spanish language, students will learn the basic functions of the endocrine system and how it affects patients with diabetes. Students will also use medical terminology to identify anatomy that addresses the specific patient scenario in Spanish. Additionally, students will use Spanish to evaluate and diagnose patients. Students will accomplish outlined tasks by demonstrating their knowledge of cultural perspectives and practices while communicating with patients in situations that will require them to improvise adequate responses to unpredictable situations. Students will reach these goals by using district-approved texts and supplemental materials.

In a rigorous academic learning environment, students are challenged to advance their command of the Spanish language and culture using extended discourse in a professional context. Students will communicate formally in Spanish in relation to occupations or functions involved in the patient consent of treatment, and the management of diabetes. This unit is designed to be taught almost exclusively in Spanish as students will be provided medical terminology throughout the course with the English-Spanish translations.

Building on the understanding of the interrelationship of the cardiopulmonary system, in this unit, students learn about the complex interworking of the digestive and endocrine systems in diabetes, a disease that is a major concern in U.S. and in the Latino community. Here, students’ knowledge and use of protocols with Spanish speakers will shift to understanding and maintenance of an ongoing condition, diabetes, and the face to face interviews become more complex with phone interviews.

1) Presentation with Graphic Organizers: Working in small groups, students will use graphic organizers to create a presentation in Spanish of the various parts of the endocrine system such as the hypothalamus, the thyroid, or the pineal and pituitary glands to describe and explain the structure and function of each as well as how they work together as a system. Each group of students will choose a different topic and present their chosen topic to the class. Students will use extended language to present key information to an audience of listeners while demonstrating understanding of key ideas found in authentic texts thereby extending their knowledge and understanding of Spanish medical terminology.

2) Managing Appointments: Students will produce a role play presentation in Spanish. Students are required to learn vocabulary that will enable them to help patients scheduling their appointments and complete medical forms by including in the role play a back to back telephone conversation that raises the rigor by taking students out of the visual cues. In order to do this, the students will work in cooperative groups and use the “think, pair, and share” method to make a list of the essential vocabulary needed. The instructor will then create a comprehensive list of the vocabulary from all of the groups. After reviewing the comprehensive list, the students will go back into their cooperative groups and will create questions and answers related to patient information, importance of reimbursement systems in relationship to health care practices and medical history that enhance the engagement of oral and written conversations. They will use these questions and answers to create role plays which will be presented to their peers. Students use extended Spanish language to produce accurate pronunciation of vocabulary and grammatical forms that will be assessed by instructor during presentation of role play in order to demonstrate understanding of the main ideas and most details in the Spanish language. This assignment will challenge students to use the Spanish language in a professional context.

3) Research and Synthesis: Students will use extended medical terminology and key vocabulary to research medical data relating to the prevention, diagnosis, pathology, treatment and the importance of reimbursement systems in relationship to the delivery of patient care for diabetes. Students will produce a 500 word persuasive essay that synthesizes the research and includes cultural sensitivities as outlined in GRRAL (gender, race, religion, age, and language). Student’s Spanish Language use will be assessed using an AP level rubric.

This unit is the culminating unit for the course. Students apply everything they have learned in previous units to explore health career options. Since previous units require students to research careers related to each specific specialty students integrate that research into this unit. Each student explores and researches three health career specialist that interest them in the medical field. They will then create in Spanish a E-portfolio presentation such as; “Prezi, LiveBinder, etc., explaining the career options in detail. They will include the job description, daily duties, educational requirements, job opportunities and salary range.

Completing this unit will provide an opportunity for a reflective congruent and coherent essay of a minimum of 250 words in Spanish where students identify strengths and make a plan to address barriers to success that they may encounter as a medical professional. The students will also need to include a section on the disorders that the practitioner could encounter including symptoms, treatment, and prevention. Students will then present their E-portfolio presentation in Spanish to the panel of medical industry professionals that utilize a rubric for evaluation of the E-portfolio presentation. The assessment rubric will include appropriate medical terminology, engage in oral conversations and written correspondence.

After learning the basic protocols and three types of intervention (emergency, serious but chronic, and long term maintenance) and playing a “medical personnel”, in this culminating unit, students will synthesize knowledge and skill from all previous units to select a specific health career to research, and develop a coherent plan to explore future educational and professional opportunities. Students will have the opportunity to speak in Spanish with health care professionals and prove what they know.

1) Careers Writing Assignment: Students will integrate personal interests by researching medical careers that pertain to patient treatment of injuries,cardiopulmonary, and diabetes conditions. The student will complete an inquiry based data research and compile a minimum of 250 words of congruent and coherent written information in Spanish. This assignment will require students to include written formal Spanish language in a narrative form that summarizes their data information. The student will create an electronic portfolio that encompassse the research data from their chosen medical careers that are relative to patient treatment with injuries, cardiopulmonary, and diabetes conditions.

2) Venn Diagram: In cooperative learning groups students research the career opportunities and the requirements for education, training, certification, and licensure and produce a list in Spanish for discussion to compare and contrast of skills and aptitudes of all the health career options that increases the rigor by asking students to prepare guiding questions for a discussion that will compare and contrast skills and aptitudes of selected health career options. This assignment will allow student to analyze and communicate in written Spanish the requirements for education, training, certification, and licensure information using relevant concepts of research factors that define lifestyle differences between and among different ethnic, racial, and cultural groups within the Latino population.

3) Letter of Invitation: Students will research the related professional organizations and industry associations associated with the careers they have chosen. Students will invite medical industry advisors to present information on the specific health career choice. Students will compose a business letter and recognize the elements of communication using a sender-receiver model in Spanish with a minimum of three medical professionals requesting them to be a guest speaker by outlining the main topics that students want the speaker to address. The English guest speaker who is presenting will have a student who interpret the information in Spanish. Additionally, students will make a follow up call that incorporates the elements of communication using a sender-receiver model in Spanish to confirm their attendance as a guest speaker and a panel interviewer. This will provide engagement in Spanish conversations that provides real world experiences.

4) Scenarios: Students in small groups will select and analyze the research from professional Spanish language medical journals of the diseases or disorders of the aforementioned that the practitioner may encounter differentiating between symptoms, treatment, and prevention of the medical conditions and compose 3 congruent, coherent, and cohesive written scenarios in a for each disease or disorder.

5) Panel Evaluation of Final Interview: The second component to this lesson will include a review of a variety of case scenarios presented in the course materials that describe a variety of diseases or disorders to practice in the Spanish language appropriate responses to questions from the interview panel. To prepare to respond to the interview panel students will create a list of expected questions and then answer them in Spanish. This activity will provide practice in Spanish using extended language that will demonstrate their understanding of the real life situations that are addressed in their chosen medical occupational career. Students will use a teacher generated rubric to evaluate the different areas of the Spanish content standards being addressed in the presentation.