UT students translate COVID-19 handbook into Spanish

Two University of Texas at Austin nursing students couldn’t stand by and not help during the coronavirus pandemic. 

Daniel Suarez-Baquero was watching as the health crisis unfolded in the United States and in his home country of Colombia. He learned there weren’t enough resources available to health care providers to keep them informed.

A handbook compiled by the Zhejiang University’s first affiliated hospital “Handbook of COVID-19 Prevention and Treatment” gave firsthand experience to help diagnose and prevent the coronavirus was only available in two languages, Mandarin and English. Suarez-Baquero thought by translating the handbook, he can help Spanish-speaking communities.

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“You can teach information in your own language about what are the characteristics of this disease and how treatments are carried out,” Suarez-Baquero said. “I believe this handbook will help provide information.”

Suarez-Baquero recruited volunteers to help translate and Oscar Rocha, an undergraduate student at UT, was happy to lend a hand. 

“This translation has even helped and encouraged associations of nurses in Colombia to educate people and workers on how to treat the virus,” the native Colombian said.

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It took the group less than three days to translate, edit and send copies out with the support of UT’s school of nursing. Suarez-Baquero said he’s received a number of requests, empowered by frontline workers and the role nurses play in saving lives.

Copies can be found on UT's School of Nursing website.  

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