St John’s Community Health Medical Spanish with Common Ground!
Use this page as your main hub on the Common Ground International website for your Medical Spanish course.
Course Introduction:
Important Contacts and Links:
- Conversation Partner Signup
- 5 Patient Profiles Strategy
- Beginning Course Instructor: Alexandra MacPhee
- Intermediate Course Instructor: Johanna Dima
- Advanced Course Instructors: Andrea Giganti Dima & Johanna Dima
- Online Course Content Director: Rory Foster
- Online Course Webmaster for login and technical difficulties: David Riveroll
Course Summary:
Beginning Medical Spanish
- Greeting your patient
- Feelings, Symptoms and Locations
- More Symptoms
- Question Words and Present Tenses
- Reflexives, Irregulars & Common Conditions
- Anatomy and Basic Bodily Functions
- Pain, Injuries & Wounds
- Formal & Informal Commands
- Vital Signs & Physical Exams
- Medication Instructions
Intermediate Medical Spanish
- Understanding Patient Symptoms
- Anatomy
- Pain & Injuries
- Patient’s Medical History
- Preterite Past Tense Verbs
- Imperfect Past Tense Verbs
- Past Tenses & History of the Problem
- Commands & Conditional Verbs
- Physical Exams & Ordering Tests and Procedures
- Discussing Diagnosis, Treatment Plan & Discharge Instructions
Advanced Medical Spanish
- Iniciando con pacientes en español
- Cultura y salud
- Historia médica e historia del problema
- Examen físico y mandatos
- Vocabulario esencial: síntomas, dolor, anatomía, heridas
- Presente del subjuntivo y sus usos
- Pasado del subjuntivo y sus usos
- Los usos de SE y SI
- Comunicando instrucciones y tratamientos
- Visitas de control y visitas de seguimiento
Summer ’25 Course Schedule:
| Date | Beginning MMS | Intermediate MMS | Advanced MMS |
| Open Now | Foundations Lesson: start with the basics Lesson 1 – work on before 7/16/25 | Foundations Lesson: review and get ready for Lesson 1 Lesson 1 – work on before 7/16/25 | Foundations Lesson: review and get ready for Lesson 1 Lesson 1 – work on before 7/16/25 |
| Wednesday, July 16 | Lesson 1 Live Practice Lesson 2 opens for self-study | Lesson 1 Live Practice Lesson 2 opens for self-study | Lesson 1 Live Practice Lesson 2 opens for self-study |
| Wednesday, July 23 | Lesson 2 Live Practice Lesson 3 opens for self-study | Lesson 2 Live Practice Lesson 3 opens for self-study | Lesson 2 Live Practice Lesson 3 opens for self-study |
| Wednesday, July 30 | Lesson 3 Live Practice Lesson 4 opens for self-study | Lesson 3 Live Practice Lesson 4 opens for self-study | Lesson 3 Live Practice Lesson 4 opens for self-study |
| Wednesday, August 6 | Lesson 4 Live Practice Lesson 5 opens for self-study | Lesson 4 Live Practice Lesson 5 opens for self-study | Lesson 4 Live Practice Lesson 5 opens for self-study |
| Wednesday, August 13 | Lesson 5 Live Practice Lesson 6 opens for self-study | Lesson 5 Live Practice Lesson 6 opens for self-study | Lesson 5 Live Practice Lesson 6 opens for self-study |
| Wednesday, August 20 | Lesson 6 Live Practice Lesson 7 opens for self-study | Lesson 6 Live Practice Lesson 7 opens for self-study | Lesson 6 Live Practice Lesson 7 opens for self-study |
| Wednesday, August 27 | Lesson 7 Live Practice Lesson 8 opens for self-study | Lesson 7 Live Practice Lesson 8 opens for self-study | Lesson 7 Live Practice Lesson 8 opens for self-study |
| Wednesday, September 3 | Lesson 8 Live Practice Lesson 9 opens for self-study | Lesson 8 Live Practice Lesson 9 opens for self-study | Lesson 8 Live Practice Lesson 9 opens for self-study |
| Wednesday, September 10 | Lesson 9 Live Practice Lesson 10 opens for self-study | Lesson 9 Live Practice Lesson 10 opens for self-study | Lesson 9 Live Practice Lesson 10 opens for self-study |
| Wednesday, September 17 | Lesson 10 Live Practice Complete all coursework and download CME/CE certificate! | Lesson 10 Live Practice Complete all coursework and download CME/CE certificate! | Lesson 10 Live Practice Complete all coursework and download CME/CE certificate! |
Find your course below (must sign in to see your registered courses)…
Online course tips:
- Check the calendar in your course syllabus and be sure to view each of the online lessons to be covered in your live class before the live class!
- Spend at least 30 minutes 3 times a week working on building your medical Spanish terminology in addition to the lessons that you view online.
- Common Ground has built Quizlet sets to help you organize and study medical terminology. Use the various games and study modes that Quizlet offers to master this vocabulary for your clinical conversations. Common Ground International’s Beginning MMS Quizlet Library
Additional Medical Spanish Resources and opportunities:
Helpful Phrases for Talking About Dental Health in Spanish
If you work in healthcare knowing some useful phrases about dental health in Spanish can…
Feeling Stuck Learning Medical Spanish? You’re Not Alone — Here’s How to Push Through
Learning medical Spanish can feel overwhelming at times. Between memorizing vocabulary, understanding grammar, and actually…
