10 Reliable Online Medical Dictionaries in Spanish
Having a medical dictionary handy is critical to a medical professional’s working life. And imagine how useful a bilingual medical dictionary is for a doctor treating a patient who only speaks Spanish!
Doctors often encounter Spanish speakers on medical missions. A language barrier is detrimental to the quality of attention that the patients receive.
Sometimes, interpreters aren’t available. Other times, they aren’t trained in medical Spanish and key terms will go over their heads. That’s why if you ever need to communicate with a patient in Spanish, having a high-quality Spanish-English medical dictionary is of utmost importance.
Collect some effective tools of the trade with this list of 10 reliable online medical dictionaries in Spanish!
1. Cosnautas
Cosnautas is one of the most ample and comprehensive English-Spanish medical dictionaries out there. Their rates range from €5 to €55.
This medical dictionary offers different specialization categories such as acronyms, allergies, immunology, and a general medical dictionary. The name cosnautas comes from Cos, the island where Hippocrates, the father of western medicine, was born.
The “nautas” prefix refers to the internet and the many people that explore it on a daily basis.
This medical dictionary is a one-stop shop for medical terms if you are working in the field and in constant teed of translation. If you’re looking for quick reference material, or if you need a medical dictionary for a month long trip, however, you might want to look at other alternatives.
2. Medical Spanish
This is one of the best free medical Spanish resources you’ll come across. When I wrote Your Ultimate Guide to Illnesses and Conditions in Spanish, I used this site as a reference to make sure my information was accurate.
Medical Spanish’s medical dictionary has hundreds of words, free lessons, example dialogues, you name it! Unfortunately, the translations are dry and offer no explanations, so this will only work as a translator and not necessarily as deep reference material.
3. Medibabble
Medibabble is a free medical translation tool that fits on the palm of your hand. But this app is more than just a medical dictionary. You will have access to common phrases spoken during medical consultations, with the option to play them as audio clips.
The app offers multiple languages, and it doesn’t require an internet connection to work. This app will be a lifesaver if you ever receive a foreign patient in your clinic, or if you choose to go abroad to offer medical services to the less fortunate.
4. Canopy Speak
Canopy Speak is similar to Medibabble. This app contains over 5,000 medical phrases in many languages. The developers of this app are driven by more than just passion. Their service is “freemium”—free to use—although certain premium features are behind a paywall.
Why use this app over Medibabble? The choice is ultimately yours, but I’d recommend looking into buying this service if you plan on using it often based on your work. Otherwise, you might want to stick with the freebie.
5. Universal Doctor
The Universal Doctor app is designed as a consultation tool more than a medical dictionary. However, its English-to-Spanish medical translations are indispensable for doctors and patients in a bilingual setting.
The app provides relevant questions based on the topics you want to cover, such as patient history, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment. Each category shows you relevant phrases based on your needs. This app also has a desktop version (which other apps don’t), so it can save you in a pinch if you unexpectedly need some translations.
6. Genetic Counseling Glossary
This medical dictionary PDF contains a huge genetic counseling glossary that will be useful to any healthcare practitioner.
Genetic counseling tells us how genetic conditions may affect us and our families. Genetics play a major role in our health and development, so much so that nutritionists, doctors, and psychologists alike include genetic counseling terminology in their patient interviews in order to know more about what conditions might be affecting them or to better know the risk factors involved in their treatment.
7. Base Terminológica de Oncología
What can I say about this medical dictionary except that it looks like a website straight from the 90s. It’s a white wall of text with boxy graphics and a huge sidebar. However, there’s a reason it made this list, and it’s because it’s surprisingly thorough.
You’ll find hundreds of terms related to oncology, all squished together in the left sidebar. When you click on a term you want to learn more about, you’ll get reference material and a Spanish translation.
It even has a table of “conceptual structures” with terms related to the word you’re currently reading. This medical dictionary is one you shouldn’t judge by its appearance.
8. COVID-19 Glossary of Terms in Spanish
This list is quite short. However, if you’re ever going to memorize any of the terms in these medical dictionaries, they should be these.
The COVID-19 Glossary of Terms in Spanish gives you tools to educate and inform your patients about some of the characteristics of this virus, so be sure to check it out!
9. Multilingual Cancer Glossary
If you’re doing your best to help a Spanish speaking patient fight through cancer, this medical dictionary PDF is a huge help. The Multilingual Cancer Glossary contains an extensive and exhaustive list of cancer-related terminology you’ll find useful in your practice.
Each term comes with an easy-to-understand definition so that you can refresh your memory and give your patients simple explanations if they need them.
10. Health Translations Website
The Health Translations website is a place dedicated to giving medical information in as many languages as possible. Since Spanish is such a populous language, their resources on medical Spanish are vast!
They have medical dictionaries, books, and articles on various topics from chronic conditions to medical dictionaries for teenage developmental education. If there is any topic you’d like to learn more about in a bilingual setting, chances are you’ll find something useful in this site. Make sure to give it a look!
Let’s Work Together on our Well-being!
Medical missions are a great way to travel, interact with people from different cultures, and practice some Spanish in the process. But they’re much more than that, too. People in developing countries often get little to no medical attention, let alone medical education. Traveling doctors and translators help close that gap, and if a person pays that knowledge forward, then the world will be a healthier place. Having medical dictionaries and apps is an extremely useful way to further close both language and educational gaps.
Is there another medical dictionary or resource you’d like to share with us? Which ones do you regularly use? Let me know in a comment!
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