Program Review, 2005
Hi Alan,
Good to hear from you. My month in Oaxaca was fantastic... I went from ordering a few tacos and a beer to doing an entire history and physical in spanish without the use of the translator phone. My office staff were blown away.
Alex M. M.D.
Program
Medical Spanish Immersion (MSI) provides unique opportunity for American medical personnel to learn Spanish while working in hospitals, public health clinics and physicians' offices in Oaxaca, Mexico.
Guided rotations are supplemented by contextualized language instruction and rich cultural experience.
In Oaxaca, rotations take place at Clinica Publica Xochimilco, Hospital General "Dr. Aurelio Valdivieso" (Oaxaca's public hospital), and Hospital "Presidente Juarez," a 150 bed facility belonging to Mexico's highly regarded social security system.
Each weekday, students work in one or more Mexican health-care facilities. Students who wish immersion well off the beaten path may -- after a 10 day in Oaxaca City -- choose to reside in San Lucas Camotlan, the last Oaxacan municipio to be connected to the state road system.
In addition to hospital and clinic work, daily instruction includes "chalk-talk conversation groups" coupled with exploration of Oaxacan markets, shops and homes. Hands-on Spanish-language cooking classes and guided archaeological exploration of the spectacular ruins at Monte Alban add "chispa" to MSI training.
Welcoming home-stay accommodation enriches your experience, simultaneously deepening understanding of Mexican culture and enhancing language acquisition through friendship.
A full roster of Medical Spanish Immersion participants consists of 9 participants.
Special accommodation is now available for a single student.
Duke University Medical School, the Duke Physician Assistant Program and the University of North Carolina Medical School at Chapel Hill collaborate with Medical Spanish Immersion. Medical Spanish Immersion is strengthening its relationships with Keck Medical School (USC) and University of Washington's Physician Assistant Program.
To start learning Spanish on-line, please visit our free on-line learning tools.
Environment
Oaxaca provides an unusually tranquil colonial environment renowned for hospitality, cuisine, music, dance and handcraft.
Oaxaca - situated 5200 feet above sea level - is blessed with warm days and cool nights, obviating many of the rigors typically associated with travel in the tropics.
Oaxaca merges 16 native cultures, each with its own language. Since 500 B.C. Zapotec and Mixtec cultures have dominated Oaxaca Valley. Oaxaca Photo Gallery
Program Details
Medical Spanish Immersion is a unique, highly effective, individually-tailored program offered at unusually low cost.
Medical Spanish Immersion accommodates your calendar.
Programs are available in 10 day increments.
A minimum stay of ten days is recommended. Longer stays are encouraged.
Medical Spanish Immersion is available for one to nine students.
A ten day program for a full roster of eight or nine students costs $875.00 (US), plus round trip airfare currently priced between $600.00 and $675.00 from the Eastern seaboard.
The full cost (exclusive airfare) for one student is $1350.00. (US)
For two, three, four or five students, the cost is $1050.00.
The full cost for six or seven students is $950.00.
Participants enjoy 10 - 12 hours of daily language-learning opportunity, except Saturday and Sunday when students undertake 6 hour excursions to outlying archaeological sites, natural "wonders" and craft towns, concluding with dinner in the company of your Spanish professor.
Participants enjoy 10 - 12 hours of daily language-learning opportunity, except Saturday and Sunday when students undertake 6 hour excursions to outlying archaeological sites, natural "wonders" and craft towns, concluding with dinner in the company of your Spanish professor.
While investigating air travel options, please visit Continental Airline's website -- www.Continental.com Continental flies directly to Oaxaca from certain U.S. hubs, a direct approach that many travelers find more satisfactory than flying through Mexico City.
Medical Spanish Immersion does not provide medical (or evacuation) insurance. Happily, our participants have never needed neither. To rest assured, American Express credit card holders qualify for "Travel Medical Protection" (TMP) for as little as $59.00 per year. TMP covers medical and dental expenses up to $25,000.00 whenever a policy-holder is more than 150 miles from home. For more information, please call 1-800-297-2900. If you are not an AMEX cardholder, you may wish to contact Travelex at 1-800-228-9792, or visit their website at www.travelex-insurance.com
Medical Spanish Immersion covers all ground costs including tuition, delightful home-stay accommodation, three delectable meal a day, entrance fees, guide fees and excursion transportation costs.
Medical Spanish Immersion may be tax decuctible. Please consult your accountant or lawyer.
Additional Information
To reserve a space or to learn more about Medical Spanish Immersion, please phone Alan Archibald at 919-370-0686, or email AlanArchibaldo@Gmail.com
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