TAMPA, Fla. — Access to health care is crucial for many people in Tampa Bay, but for the Spanish-speaking community, it isn’t always easy to get the help they need.

What You Need To Know

  • The National Institutes of Health report barriers to access health for Hispanics to be degree of acculturation, immigration status and language

  • Joselyn Ibarra-Carlin is an occupational therapist who shares how she’s helping Hispanics receive the best care

  • Keiser University reports over the past five years approximately 36% percent of Occupational Therapy Assistant graduates are Hispanic

Hispanics face barriers like degree of acculturation, immigration status and the biggest — barrier language.

It’s why one woman is helping to bridge that language gap in Occupational Therapy.

Joselyn Ibarra-Carlin says her family has been her biggest motivation, from taking care of her grandparents to working now as a geriatric occupational therapist.

Those family ties became even stronger last year, when she lost most of her possessions to a house fire.

“After everything we went through, they’re the ones that are there to support you through thick and thin,” said Ibarra-Carlin.

She graduated at the top of her class at Keiser University as the sole bilingual student.

She says it’s important for the Spanish-speaking population to receive care in the language they know best.

“Everyone wants their own people to be able to be health literate and be able to understand what they’re going through and be able to get the best health service that they can,” said Ibarra-Carlin. “So being a part of that is really honoring, I want to help them get better and get back to the things they were able to do before.”

Language can be a barrier for some Hispanics seeking medical help. The National Library of Medicine found those challenges typically happen when communicating with doctors and advanced practice providers.

Mary Ralston is an Occupational Therapy Assistant Program instructor at Keiser University. She says there’s been a big push to attract more bilingual students.

“Our clients need to recognize and understand their services,” said Ralston. “They need to be appreciated for their cultural differences and so by having a diverse student body and a diverse profession we will serve our clients even better.”

About half of the patients Ibarra-Carlin works with today only speak Spanish and says it’s just like taking care of her grandparents.

“In our culture, especially the Hispanic culture, you have a lot of respect for the elderly,” she said. “They have the most respect, so being able to help those people in that population really means a lot to me.”

Even through the pain of losing her home, Ibarra-Carlin is working to build a place that feels like home for her community, one patient at a time.

Approximately 42% of Keiser University’s Tampa Campus student population is Hispanic.

They’re working to open the doors for more Hispanics looking to become occupational therapists.