Languages: The Struggle Of Immigrants

In the opinion of this author, the vast majority of all physicians have had only the briefest exposure to the vast ravages of poverty in the United States. During their medical-school rotations and residency training, the lives of disadvantaged people can provide clinical opportunities to learn and

I am no immigrant. I have been living in this country ever since I was born. My brother, sister, and I are all first generation citizens. Both of my parents were born in Mexico, and at an early age came to the United States. They are now living happily in the U.S as citizens. Growing up I only spoke one language, Spanish. Being Mexican this was the only way I could communicate up until kindergarten. Although it was such a long time ago, I remember how hard it was for me to adjust. I know I had a strong accent, and I was sometimes ashamed of it. On occasion I remember accidentally speaking Spanish to my classmates. “Did you finish your homework?" “Si, todo esta-”. “I mean, yeah, all done.” I often got these confused looks on their face whenever this happened. The next year in first grade I became accustomed to English. I no longer spoke spanish to my parents. When the realization that I could no longer speak Spanish hit my parents, they were shocked. Personally I was also disappointed. Especially today, in a school with a general population of Hispanics I would love to be able to converse with them. I often get people asking if I speak Spanish and I tell them why I can’t, but can understand what the words mean. All because I did not want to look different in a school where people were primarily white back then. I don’t recall many people of my race at this school at all.

I was nine years old when my family made the stannous decision to come to America; with only a few clothes and barely any money, the pursuit of the American dream seemed more like a fantasy than anything else. Ever since I was young, I was drawn to the medical field. Looking back, it all appears as a nightmare now: a cold room, no electricity, and my parents imploring for the nurses help. Yet this nightmare was my firsthand experience at the detrimental effects of a limited healthcare. Growing up in a poor town of Albania, I faced minor health concerns, but it wasn’t until I got sick with a common cold that my life almost ended. The unsanitary hospital condition and the lack of medications were part of the sad reality I could not escape from. Thus today, it is my goal to make a significant contribution to the health of the future generations. My passion for the medical field combined with my determination on building and perpetuating an outstanding healthcare service, has lead me to pursue a master’s degree in Health Administration

Language is much more than a method of communication. Permeated within it are traditions, customs, and legacies of one’s culture. The identity of an entire population is in the distinct vocalizations of their native language. Unfortunately, as a wave of immigrants enters the United States at young ages, many face language barriers that pose significant challenges. Language barriers affect a multitude of immigrant populations to different degrees. This, in turn, causes many of them to abandon not only their native tongue but a piece of their ethnic identity, as well. In Maxine Hong Kingston’s personal narrative,“The Language of Silence,” she describes the difficulties she experienced throughout her childhood with a language barrier as a

The first and second year after moving from China to the United States, I was afraid to talk to strangers because my English was not quite well. I had to depend on my husband to deal with my personal business, such as making a doctor’s appointment, calling to the bank, or questioning the DMV officers. Douglass says, “being a slave for life began to bear heavily upon my heart” (62). Being a dependent and helpless adult is a shame for me. In addition, I did not have extra money to go to school to improve my English skills. Thus, I stayed home all the time to avoid the embarrassment that happened when I did not understand strangers’ conversation. Meanwhile, being silent at home leaded worries to my future. I realized that I had to improve my oral English to gain self-confidence. I spent time reading various articles on the internet, and I watched English dialogues’ videos on YouTube. As a non-English speaking immigrant living in the U.S., I challenged myself to overcome difficulties to integrate myself into a new

What does it feel like to be raised in an immigrant family? In the essay “Mother tongue” by Amy Tan, the author describes how her mother’s English influences her in her career and life that the “mother tongue” does not limit her as a writer, but shaped her and her perception on life instead. And her attitude to her mother’s English changes from the initial embarrassment to the final appreciation.

I have been given many opportunities to help others and make an impact in Johnson City through organizations like the Family Medicine Interest Group at ETSU, serving as the coordinator for student involvement in free clinics. I have also been able to make an impact through medicine in Cleveland, TN by way of the Good Samaritan Clinic. This is a free clinic in downtown Cleveland that I have been volunteering at for the past seven years. I have also been directly involved in the start-up of the Just Care clinic in Mountain City, TN, a medical student ran free clinic in rural Appalachia. I was also been able to spend time in rural Guatemala with a medical team from my undergraduate university helping diagnose, treat, and care for patients whom receive little to no regular healthcare. From my own first hand experiences in both Guatemala and my time spent in the Just Care and Good Samaritan Clinics, I have seen the impact that an inadequate health care system can have on a population. I hope to use my medical and public health training in areas that do not have adequate access to health

Although there are numerous reasons as to why I wish to attend this medical institution, its emphasis on serving underserved demographic groups such as African-Americans and addressing health disparities that continuously affect the state of health in our nation were primary motivations for applying to Meharry Medical College. Following residency, I hope to practice medicine in a disadvantaged urban community, where affordable, accessible, and available healthcare options are limited. In such a community, I hope to utilize my medical education gained from Meharry for the purpose of addressing the health concerns and disparities affecting those in society who are often ignored and suffer in all

Though the American healthcare system has made big steps towards providing affordable healthcare for everyone, there remains a growing population of people who fall through the system’s cracks. These people are the medically underserved. They are typically the victims of unfortunate life circumstances that has left them without health insurance, or with insurance that provides inadequate coverage. The underserved also includes those who have trouble accessing healthcare for any reason. Anyone with illnesses or disabilities that require assistance beyond their coverage, or people who live in remote areas where healthcare services are sparse fall under this title. The term also does not exclude those who have sufficient insurance and resources, but struggle to understand and navigate our increasingly complex system of healthcare.

As an African American male who was diagnosed with end stage renal disease, I was a patient in need of financial assistance while on dialysis, a patient who needed to use Medicaid to help pay for medical expenses, and a patient that needed a healthcare provider to understand the amount of stress and anxiety I was under. My experience has given me a deeper understanding of what is needed to provide care to underserved communities. Underserved communities are in need of medical providers that are attuned to the social, emotional and economic disparities these patients encounter. For me, from a patient’s viewpoint, everyone deserves to be heard and served fairly. I will use my personal experiences to provide the underserved community in my career as a Nurse Practitioner, so that the underserved population can receive the best care

Communication is easy and mothers can talk with their children and they can connect with them. Some people who have this benefit are unaware that some families do not have this advantage in their homes. Lee Thomas and Linh Cao understand that some families have language change through each generation. Cao herself lived in house where her relatives used several different languages and learned first hand that there are many losses when a family doesn’t share a common language.

A typical childhood consists of a child having two parents; a mother and a father, or two fathers, or two mothers, whatever the situations maybe. My childhood wasn’t typical, my childhood consist of one single parent, my mother, with the occasional glimpse of my father, but that was rare. My mother played a significant role in my education and how I communicate with others. You see my mother immigrant from Cuba to America and was unable to speak a word of english but she came anyway with her Heart open and her mind ready to learn. Thanks to reruns of ‘ I Love Lucy’ and Oprah; my mother was able to learn english but it was “broken” as Amy Tan would put it. Amy Tan’s essay “ Mother Tongue” discusses the many difficulties that she and her mother have face with her mother's “broken” english; which seem all to similar to my mother and me. It was like we were one in the same. Tan points out the prejudices and culture racism that immigrants are forced to endure without showing aggression or even acknowledging the reader of it. Tan is able to criticize our culture standards and expresses how we have double standards for English speakers.

Unconsciously, we all speak different languages; we categorize the way we speak by the environment and people at which we are speaking too. Whenever a character enters an unfamiliar environment, they experiment with language to find themselves and understand reality. For immigrants, language is a means to retain one’s identity; however, as they become more assimilated in their new communities their language no longer reflects that of their identity but of their new cultural surroundings. When an immigrant, immigrates to a new country they become marginalized, they’re alienated from common cultural practices, social ritual, and scripted behavior. It’s not without intercultural communication and negotiation

Growing up with two immigrant parents, me and my siblings were and still are their go to source when needing help translating something or talking to someone in the store or on the phone. Like the author Amy Tan, when my mother has a question about why her phone bill was higher than usual or needing help with a product at a store, we are her go to source. Although my parents spoke english fluently, their thick accents made it hard for people to understand them. They would not be taken as seriously when speaking with others as if their accents made them sound as if they were less educated not knowing they spoke over three languages.

As a future physician, I want to provide the necessary health care and guidance to children of low-income families, both here in the United States and in developing nations. Current advances in technology and medicine have allowed a vast majority of diseases to be treated, prevented, and even cured; yet, it is a grave reality that many individuals still do not have these innovations available to them. Ultimately, my goal is to act as a link between