The 40 Spanish Phrases That Get You Through a Colombian Clinic

How to use these

Colombia's health system ranked #1 in the Western Hemisphere and #22 globally in the WHO's 2000 World Health Report, and its top private hospitals are where most of this takes place. Colombian Spanish is clear, relatively slow, and polite to a degree that surprises visitors — people will call you señor or señora, use usted rather than tú, and appreciate the same in return. You don't need good pronunciation; you need the right nouns. Say the phrase, point if it helps, and let the other person's reply carry the conversation. A translation app covers the rest, but apps fail at 3 a.m. with 4% battery, and the phrases below are the ones that matter at 3 a.m.

Two housekeeping notes. Numbers matter more than grammar: know 1–10 for pain scales and doses, and know how to say the time. And the pain-scale question you will be asked constantly is ¿Del uno al diez, cuánto le duele? — from one to ten, how much does it hurt.

Arrival and check-in

You'll hear: Siga (go ahead / come in), espere aquí (wait here), firme aquí (sign here), ¿tiene alergias? (do you have allergies?), ¿desde cuándo no come? (since when haven't you eaten?).

Describing how you feel

The last four are the ones that get action. Chest pain is dolor en el pecho; if you say it, people move.

With the nurse

You'll hear: ¿cómo amaneció? (how did you wake up / how are you this morning), le voy a tomar la presión (I'm going to take your blood pressure), respire profundo (breathe deeply), ya viene (coming soon — which can mean anything from two minutes to an hour).

At the pharmacy (droguería)

The pharmacy is where brand names bite. Colombian brand names differ from U.S. ones, so carry the generic name: acetaminofén (Tylenol), ibuprofeno, omeprazol, amoxicilina, tramadol. The full pharmacy walkthrough is in filling prescriptions in Colombia.

The discharge sheet

Words you'll see on the epicrisis and the instruction sheet:

Note curación: it means a dressing change, not a cure, and it appears on nearly every post-op sheet.

Getting help fast

Colombia's emergency number is 123. In a taxi, a urgencias de [hospital name] is enough. Keep your surgeon's WhatsApp on paper as well as in your phone, and the hospital's name written the way a driver would recognize it.

Money and the taxi

The invoice line matters more than it looks: factura con NIT is the document your insurer, HSA custodian, or accountant will want, and the phrase gets it without a negotiation. The taxi line is worth memorizing verbatim. Medellín drivers are quick on hills, and me operaron — they operated on me — changes how they drive.

Food, water, and the small stuff

Post-op diets generate their own vocabulary. Sin sal is without salt; sin azúcar without sugar; líquidos claros clear liquids; dieta blanda soft diet; agua sin gas still water (ask for it that way, or you'll get sparkling). ¿Me trae ___? — can you bring me ___ — works for water, a blanket (una cobija), another pillow (otra almohada), or the nurse (a la enfermera). Gracias, muy amable — thank you, very kind — is the phrase that ends every exchange in Colombia, and using it will get you better care than any amount of grammar.

Numbers and time

You'll need uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco, seis, siete, ocho, nueve, diez for pain scales and doses, and a las seis / a las ocho / a las diez (at six / eight / ten) for appointment times. De la mañana is a.m., de la tarde is afternoon, de la noche is night. Colombians often use the 24-hour clock in writing and the 12-hour clock in speech, so a discharge sheet that says controles: 14:00 means a 2 p.m. follow-up. Days: hoy (today), mañana (tomorrow), pasado mañana (the day after). Ahora means now; ahorita, confusingly, means soon-ish, and in a hospital corridor can mean twenty minutes.

Finally, two words that aren't medical but will come up every day: parce is Medellín slang for friend and you'll hear it from drivers; a la orden — at your service — is what every shopkeeper and pharmacist says as you walk in, and it's a greeting, not a question.

The five you'll use most

If you learn nothing else: ¿Hay alguien que hable inglés?, me duele aquí, del uno al diez es un ___, ¿cuándo fue la última dosis?, and necesito surtir esta fórmula. Those five, said slowly with a pointing finger, cover most of a Colombian medical trip. Everything else, the coordinator handles — that's what the front desk is for.