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Specialized Track · Career · Reference

Vocabulary Bank: Medicine and Health Sciences

60 words and 52 real workplace phrases for this specialization, organized by topic. Tap the speaker icon to hear the pronunciation. Use this as a reference alongside your lessons — it's not graded.

Patient Care BasicsClinical & Hospital SettingsAdvanced & Research TermsProfessional Self-PresentationWith the PatientClinical CommunicationEmergency & Urgent CareAdvanced Clinical TalkTalking About Your Career

Patient Care Basics

Everyday clinical vocabulary.

patient
a person receiving medical care
paciente
symptom
a sign that shows a person may be sick
síntoma
diagnosis
identification of what illness a patient has
diagnóstico
prescription
written instructions from a doctor for medicine
receta médica
appointment
a scheduled time to see a doctor
cita
checkup
a routine medical examination
chequeo médico
vital signs
key body measurements like pulse and blood pressure
signos vitales
allergy
a reaction to a substance that affects some people
alergia
injection
medicine given with a needle
inyección
discharge
when a patient is allowed to leave the hospital
alta médica
referral
being sent to see a specialist
remisión, derivación
medical history
a record of a patient's past health
historial médico
chronic condition
a long-lasting health condition
condición crónica
acute illness
a sudden, short-term illness
enfermedad aguda
recovery
the process of getting better after illness
recuperación
dosage
the amount of medicine to be taken
dosis
side effect
an unwanted effect of a medicine
efecto secundario
outpatient
a patient who doesn't stay overnight
paciente ambulatorio
inpatient
a patient who stays in the hospital
paciente hospitalizado
triage
sorting patients by how urgent their care is
triaje (clasificación de urgencia)

Clinical & Hospital Settings

Departments, staff, and procedures.

nurse
a person trained to care for the sick
enfermero/a
physician
a medical doctor
médico/a
surgeon
a doctor who performs operations
cirujano/a
specialist
a doctor focused on one area of medicine
especialista
emergency room
the hospital department for urgent care
sala de urgencias
intensive care unit
a unit for critically ill patients
unidad de cuidados intensivos
operating room
the room where surgery is performed
quirófano
anesthesia
medicine used to prevent pain during surgery
anestesia
biopsy
removing tissue to examine it for disease
biopsia
imaging
techniques like X-rays used to see inside the body
imagenología
lab results
the findings from medical tests
resultados de laboratorio
vital organ
an organ essential for life, like the heart
órgano vital
infection
invasion of the body by harmful microbes
infección
wound care
treatment of an injury to help it heal
cuidado de heridas
medication administration
giving medicine to a patient
administración de medicamentos
informed consent
a patient's agreement after understanding risks
consentimiento informado
comorbidity
an additional condition alongside another
comorbilidad
prognosis
the likely course or outcome of a disease
pronóstico
rehabilitation
treatment to help recovery after illness or injury
rehabilitación
palliative care
care focused on comfort rather than cure
cuidados paliativos

Advanced & Research Terms

Clinical research and specialized care.

clinical trial
a study testing a new treatment
ensayo clínico
biomarker
a measurable indicator of a biological state
biomarcador
efficacy
the ability of a treatment to produce a result
eficacia
malignant
cancerous and likely to spread
maligno/a
benign
not cancerous
benigno/a
immunotherapy
treatment that uses the immune system to fight disease
inmunoterapia
genomic profile
an individual's specific genetic information
perfil genómico
remission
a period when disease signs are reduced
remisión (de una enfermedad)
randomized controlled trial
a study comparing treatment and control groups
ensayo controlado aleatorizado
evidence-based medicine
medical practice based on the best available research
medicina basada en evidencia

Professional Self-Presentation

Vocabulary for interviews, self-presentation, and professional advocacy.

expertise
specialized knowledge and skill in a particular area
experiencia especializada, pericia
track record
a history of past achievements and performance
historial de logros
responsibilities
the duties and tasks someone is expected to handle
responsabilidades
qualifications
the skills, degrees, or experience that make someone suitable for a role
calificaciones, requisitos
strengths
the skills or qualities someone is particularly good at
fortalezas
professional growth
the ongoing development of one's skills and career
crecimiento profesional
career goals
the specific things someone wants to achieve professionally
metas profesionales
achievement
something successfully accomplished
logro
contribution
something someone adds or gives to a project or team
contribución, aporte
credentials
official qualifications or proof of expertise
credenciales

With the Patient

Everyday phrases used with patients.

How are you feeling today?
"How are you feeling today?"
¿Cómo se siente hoy?
Where does it hurt?
"Can you tell me where it hurts?"
¿Dónde le duele?
Take a deep breath
"Take a deep breath for me, please."
Respire profundo
On a scale of one to ten
"On a scale of one to ten, how bad is the pain?"
En una escala del uno al diez
Have you taken any medication?
"Have you taken any medication today?"
¿Ha tomado algún medicamento?
You should follow up in
"You should follow up in two weeks."
Debería regresar a control en
Get plenty of rest
"Get plenty of rest and drink fluids."
Descanse bastante
This might feel a little cold
"This might feel a little cold — try to relax."
Esto puede sentirse un poco frío
I'm going to check your vitals
"I'm going to check your vitals now."
Voy a revisar sus signos vitales
Let me know if anything feels wrong
"Let me know if anything feels wrong."
Avíseme si algo se siente mal

Clinical Communication

Talking with colleagues about patients.

present with symptoms
"The patient presented with symptoms of dehydration."
presentar síntomas
rule out a diagnosis
"We ran tests to rule out a serious diagnosis."
descartar un diagnóstico
stabilize a patient
"The team worked quickly to stabilize the patient."
estabilizar a un paciente
monitor closely
"We're monitoring her vital signs closely tonight."
monitorear de cerca
respond well to treatment
"He's responding well to the new treatment."
responder bien al tratamiento
refer a patient
"We referred the patient to a cardiologist."
remitir a un paciente
administer medication
"The nurse administered the medication on schedule."
administrar un medicamento
review the chart
"Let's review the chart before rounds."
revisar el expediente
order a test
"The doctor ordered a full blood panel."
ordenar un examen
update the family
"Someone needs to update the family on her condition."
informar a la familia

Emergency & Urgent Care

Phrases used in urgent situations.

call a code
"The team had to call a code immediately."
activar un código de emergencia
stat
"We need those results stat."
de inmediato, urgente
prep for surgery
"Please prep the patient for surgery."
preparar para cirugía
get vitals immediately
"Get vitals immediately and report back."
tomar signos vitales de inmediato
apply pressure
"Apply pressure to the wound right away."
aplicar presión
clear the airway
"First, clear the airway."
despejar la vía aérea
start an IV
"We need to start an IV as soon as possible."
iniciar una vía intravenosa
assess the damage
"The team assessed the damage before moving him."
evaluar el daño
bring the crash cart
"Bring the crash cart to room three."
traer el carro de paro
keep them stable
"Our priority is to keep them stable during transport."
mantenerlo estable

Advanced Clinical Talk

Expressions used in specialized and research settings.

weigh the risks and benefits
"We weighed the risks and benefits before surgery."
sopesar riesgos y beneficios
tailor treatment
"We tailor treatment based on the patient's genomic profile."
personalizar el tratamiento
achieve remission
"The patient achieved remission after six months."
lograr la remisión
assess candidacy
"We assessed her candidacy for the clinical trial."
evaluar la elegibilidad
early detection
"Early detection greatly improves the prognosis."
detección temprana
statistically significant
"The results were statistically significant."
estadísticamente significativo
obtain informed consent
"The team obtained informed consent before the trial."
obtener consentimiento informado
rule out malignancy
"Further imaging was needed to rule out malignancy."
descartar malignidad
review the biomarkers
"We reviewed her biomarkers before deciding."
revisar los biomarcadores
adjust the protocol
"We adjusted the protocol based on her response."
ajustar el protocolo

Talking About Your Career

Common expressions to describe your role, strengths, and goals.

I'm responsible for
"I'm responsible for patient care across the medicine department."
soy responsable de
My main strength is
"My main strength is problem-solving under pressure."
mi mayor fortaleza es
I specialize in
"I specialize in medicine."
me especializo en
What I bring to the table is
"What I bring to the table is years of hands-on experience."
lo que aporto es
I've had a lot of success with
"I've had a lot of success with cross-team projects."
he tenido mucho éxito con
One of my proudest achievements was
"One of my proudest achievements was leading that project to completion."
uno de mis logros más importantes fue
I'm passionate about
"I'm passionate about medicine."
me apasiona
I'd like to grow into
"I'd like to grow into a leadership role."
me gustaría crecer hacia
I stay up to date by
"I stay up to date by reading industry publications."
me mantengo actualizado/a
In my experience,
"In my experience, clear communication solves most problems."
en mi experiencia,
I work well under pressure
"I work well under pressure and tight deadlines."
trabajo bien bajo presión
I'm a quick learner
"I'm a quick learner and adapt easily to new systems."
aprendo rápido