Spanish speaking countries refer to countries whose people use Spanish as either native or second language. These countries include Spain in Europe and Latin America in South America. The types of medication for people in these countries are different from that of the United States. Most medications can be readily found at the counter. These medications include antibiotics. Citizens are not restricted on the kind of pharmacies they should visit. However, a visit to an emergency doctor would lead to a medical report which the patient would be expected to take to the GP (Moule 5). The cost of accessing medication in Spanish-speaking countries is much cheaper than the United States. These countries have good public health care services that work alongside private healthcare providers. In Spain, citizens are required by law to healthcare cover after making payments to the national social security system. With this payment, the citizens can access free healthcare services. Chemists are open every time of the day. They operate on a rota system which means rotational basis (Moule 9). Basic medical advice can be obtained from postings on the doors of the chemists.
Unlike their counterparts in Spain and Latin America, the Spanish-speaking community in the United States have problems accessing medication and general healthcare services. A report by the University of North Carolina revealed glaring disparities in healthcare access among Hispanics in the United States (Reinberg 1). This Hispanic population makes up a vulnerable component of the national population, owing to their worse access to healthcare services. The report observed that even though few Spanish-speaking adults in the U.S. suffer obesity and chronic diseases, they do not use preventive healthcare services. A greater percentage of Hispanics do not have insurance cover while a considerable size of this population cannot afford healthcare services due to the high costs involved. Studies by Peterson-lyer buttressed the above research by stating that the increasing number of Hispanics in the United States has not been met by a corresponding increase in the number of Hispanics working in the healthcare system (1). The study further observed that Latino community remains the most underrepresented in the healthcare system. This outcome implies that there are limited people with requisite cultural competence to understand the medication needs of the Hispanic population. The discrepancy in the health system has led to linguistic and cultural barriers which have limited access to medication among Hispanics.
Various trends in the culture of the Latino community also affect the types of medication. These trends include politeness (simpatia), warm interaction (personalismo), respect for authority (respeto), loyalty to family (familismo) and fatalism (fatalismo) (Peterson-lyer 1). The values described above broadly apply to the greater Hispanic community. In this regard, the types of medication for this community should take cognizance of the inherent cultural values and norms. Healthcare providers should enhance and promote cultural values. However, the cultural orientation of the Hispanic community may at times conflict with the medication procedures. For example, a doctor who wishes to check the eye of a Hispanic patient may find the patient evasive when he refuses look directly at the doctor. Yet, in the cultural setup, such evasion is a demonstration of respect (respeto) by the patient. In this regard, dispensation of medication to the Hispanic community should be done by culturally competent people. The problem with achieving cultural competency is the lack of Hispanic professionals in the healthcare system.
In light of the foregoing, it is evident that medication types for communities in Spanish-speaking countries have enhanced cultural awareness and easy access to health care system compared to the Hispanic community in the United States.
Works Cited
Moule, Jean. Cultural competence: A primer for educators. Cengage Learning, 2011.
Peterson-lyer, Karen. “Cultural Competent Care for Latino Patients.” Santa Clara University.
Web. 2016. Available at https://www.scu.edu/ethics/focus-areas/bioethics/resources/culturally-competent-care/culturally-competent-care-for-latino-patients/
Reinberg, Steven. “Speaking Spanish Limits Access to Healthcare.” U.S. News. 2008,
September 17. Available at http://health.usnews.com/health-news/managing-your-healthcare/insurance/articles/2008/09/17/speaking-spanish-limits-access-to-health-care
