At the Doctor

Quick Answer

In this article you'll find some useful phrases to help you out when interacting with Spanish-speaking patients. If you're looking for vocabulary for talking about the human body in Spanish, check out our article here!

Greetings

First let's take a look at how to greet your patients. The phrases below are all given using the formal usted, though you can use the informal túif speaking to a child.

Spanish	English
Buenos días.	Good morning.
Buenas tardes.	Good afternoon.
Buenas noches.	Good night./Good evening.
¿Cómo está?	How are you?
¿Cómo se siente?	How are you feeling?
¿Cómo sigue?	How are you doing?
¿En qué puedo servirle?	How can I help you?/How can I be of assistance?

Let's take a look at an example using two of these phrases.

Doctor:

Buenos días, señor Hernández. ¿Cómo está?

Good morning, Mr. Hernandez. How are you?

Patient:

No muy bien, doctor.

Not very well, doctor.

Farewells

Next, let's take a look at some common farewells.

Spanish	English
Adiós.	Goodbye.
Que le vaya bien.	Have a good day./Have a good one.
Cuídese.	Take care.
Hasta mañana.	See you tomorrow.
Hasta luego.	See you later.
Hasta entonces.	See you then.

Doctor:

Sería todo, señor Hernández. Que le vaya bien.

That's all for now, Mr. Hernandez. Have a good day.

Patient:

Muchas gracias, doctor.

Thanks very much, doctor.

Other Useful Phrases

Here are some other useful phrases you can use with your patients.

Spanish	English
Tome asiento.	Take a seat.
¿Cómo se llama?	What is your name?
¿Cuál es su apellido?	What is your last name?
¿Cuántos años tiene?	How old are you?
Lo siento.	I'm sorry.
¿Tiene seguro médico?	Do you have insurance?
¿Me presta su tarjeta de seguro médico?	May I see your insurance card?
¿Cuánto pesa?	How much do you weight?
¿Cuánto mide?	How tall are you?
¿Qué le duele?	What hurts?
¿Qué pasa?	What's wrong?
¿Tiene alguna alergia?	Do you have any allergies?
¿Tiene fiebre?	Do you have a fever?
¿Está sangrando?	Are you bleeding?
¿Tiene dolor?	Are you in pain?

Doctor:

¿Qué pasa, señor Hernández?

What's wrong, Mr. Hernandez?

Patient:

Me caí de la bicicleta.

I fell off my bike.

Doctor:

¿Tiene dolor?

Are you in pain?

Patient:

Sí, me duele el tobillo.

Yes, my ankle hurts.

Looking for more medicine-related information? Take a look at these resources!

• Body Parts in Spanish

• Spanish Flu

• Interactive vocabulary practice: Medical Vocabulary 1

• Interactive vocabulary practice: Common Illnesses and Injuries 1

• Interactive vocabulary practice: Medicine: Verbs