LINTON – Greene County General Hospital (GCGH) has successfully concluded its first session of Spanish classes for employees, a new initiative aimed at enhancing communication with Spanish-speaking patients and their families.
Fourteen GCGH employees and members of the administration team recently graduated from the inaugural 13-week course, which focused on teaching the basics of the Spanish language. The decision to offer these classes stemmed from GCGH Chaplain, Rhonda Haynes, ThM, MA, BS, who identified a growing need within the hospital and the broader community to connect with the increasing Spanish-speaking population in the area.
Haynes, who holds a Master’s Degree in Intercultural Studies with an emphasis on teaching cross-culturally, is fluent in Spanish, having learned the language while living in South America. She has nine years of experience as a professor at the college and seminary levels. She has taught English as a second language (ESL) in South America and currently in the Czech Republic.
Haynes applied her ESL teaching methods to this Spanish course, stating, “It can be intimidating to try and speak to or help someone who speaks a different language, so I wanted to help our team become more comfortable with the language and understand some basic grammar and vocabulary to better serve the families and patients.”
GCGH plans to offer a second session of Beginning Spanish Classes for its employees this Fall.
