Accra College of Medicine poised to break language barriers - President

To remove language barrier and help doctors provide better healthcare service to their patients, the Accra College of Medicine has brought up an addition called the Summer Selectives.

This period allows the students to learn an additional local language aside their mother tongue, in addition to acquiring other skills.

The President of the College, Professor Afua Hesse explained that, this addition was to give the students the opportunity to learn something new that would help them in providing better health care service to their patients aside their main course of study.

To her, “knowing and speaking a different language adds up to you and your knowledge and also helps you to reach out more to others in a better way”. Just like Nelson Mandela said, “If you speak to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head; but if you talk to a man in his own language that goes to his heart”.

The Accra College of Medicine, a leading private and independent Medical College here in Ghana is the only one breaking the barriers. The language barrier that prevents free flow of communication which turns to affect how people get access to health care and other things they may need.

Knowledge of languages is the doorway to wisdom. However, many are not opportune to learn a different language other than their mother tongue.

Students with the dream of becoming medical practitioners at the Accra College of Medicine are an exception because they have been given the opportunity to learn another local language of their choice.

Some students expressed their love for the new languages they studied. Languages they hither to had perceptions about, have become ones that they now love since they got the opportunity to learn them. This takes place over the Selective period with an emphasis on the medical aspects of the language which is what they will most be using.

According to them, "we are grateful for this initiative as it has helped us to appreciate and understand these new languages better”. They believe it will help them reach out better to people at the clinical stages and in their practice.

With the local languages being dominant and used by most in many gatherings, it is a great thing that doctors at Accra College of Medicine are learning it so that no one is left behind.

This is a big hope for both the literate and illiterate as regardless of the language, there will always be a doctor who will be able to speak to you in your own language thus provide you better care.

French is an international language that is offered during this period and this is very apt as Ghana is surroundered by francophone countries and the language of Medical French will go a long way to promote medical tourism.

You live a new life for every new language you speak; if you know only one language, you live only once. ACM students are living new lives and so should you. Learn a new language and help break the barrier of communication.