Hello! My name is Hans Willard and I’m a 2nd year medical student from the MBBS course in Monash University Malaysia.

On the 24th of March, I attended the Cantonese Dialect Workshop organised by the MUSA representatives of the Jeffrey Cheah School of Medicine and Health Sciences. Personally, I felt that the dialect workshop would be beneficial towards me as it can help me demolish the language barrier with Cantonese speaking patients.

The workshop was very effective in a sense that I felt comfortable learning the language from experienced doctors in the field, it is definitely a plus point for the organizers to bring in doctors instead of Cantonese language teachers. Furthermore, the doctors who taught in the workshop understands how learning a new language can benefit a medical student for building rapport with the patient.

The sessions were not too formal, which was good as it enabled us to ask questions and clear any doubts freely.

We were split into 2 groups, and it was good as the class was not too big and it was easier to pay attention. I can say that this session had definitely increased my skills in my medical career in terms of communicating with patients and building rapport.

Having an extra language in my palate of languages proves it would be useful in the future. All in all, the workshop was definitely a success and I truly benefited from it. I would like to thank the organizers for organising this workshop.

Article by Hans Willard

Photos by Mahrukh Ali