Graduate Student Delivers LRC Presentation
Hanan Al-Subaiai, an MA student at the Faculty of Languages and Translation (clt), delivered a presentation titled "Linguistic Hegemony of the English Language in the Medical Context of Bisha King Abdullah Hospital" at a seminar organized by the Language Research Center of King Khalid University. The seminar took place on September 12, 2018, at the King Abdullah Road Campus.
In her presentation, Hanan focused on the influence of English on patients and staff members at King Abdullah Hospital in Bisha. She began by discussing the factors that motivated her research, highlighting that although English has become a common language in Saudi hospitals, Saudis are generally more comfortable with Arabic. Her research aimed to explore the impact of English on service delivery to patients, the challenges faced by medical practitioners, the attitudes of patients toward English, the question of whether English should be eliminated in hospitals, and the influence of patients' education levels on their attitudes toward English, among other aspects.
Hanan introduced four variables that she used in her study: understanding, satisfaction level, policy and rights, and language and communication. Her data analysis revealed that a significant percentage of medical staff believed that the use of English in the medical context was not effective in delivering services.
In her concluding remarks, Hanan emphasized that policymakers and the management of King Abdullah Hospital in Bisha could utilize the empirical evidence from her study to make informed decisions. She also highlighted the need for further research in this field to successfully address the major challenges associated with the use of English.
The seminar proved to be highly interactive, engaging, and successful. It is worth mentioning that the Graiger Campus also participated in the seminar via video conferencing.
