Register: health, hospitals and clinics
By Michael Ukwuma
Words and phrases for doctors, clinics, pharmacies and staying well.
Health comes up in advice tasks, difficult situations and many reading passages. Canada has family doctors, walk in clinics, emergency departments and pharmacies, and each has its own vocabulary.
Key words
- family doctor, walk in clinic, emergency department, specialist, referral
- appointment, waiting list, check up, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment
- prescription, pharmacist, dosage, side effects, refill
- health card, coverage, insurance, out of pocket
- recover, heal, rest, physiotherapy, follow up
Useful phrases
- book an appointment with
- get a referral to a specialist
- fill a prescription at the pharmacy
- the symptoms are getting worse
- take it easy for a few days
- keep an eye on it
Use it in a sentence
Model sentencesIf the cough lasts more than a week, you should book an appointment with your family doctor.
The pharmacist can tell you about any side effects before you fill the prescription.
Waiting times at the walk in clinic can be long, so it is worth calling ahead.
Where it shows up on the test
Speaking Task 1 (giving advice to a sick friend), Task 6 (a difficult situation at work while unwell), writing emails to a clinic, and reading passages about community health services.
Key points
- Skim the words, then say three of the model sentences aloud.
- Pick five words and use them in your next practice task.
- Come back in two days and recall the list from memory.