Thankfully, unlike in many parts of the world, medical care in India is easy to find and relatively inexpensive. If you end up in a Hindi-speaking part of the country, here are some handy phrases to know when you are seeking medical assistance.

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Conversation:
Let’s listen to the following conversation between a traveler and her hired car driver.

Falling sick during a trip is any traveler’s worst nightmare. A sniffle in Agra can quickly snowball into a full-blown flu by the time you reach Kerala. And if you don’t do something about the emboldened germs, you might soon be spending your time convalescing inside your houseboat instead of enjoying the sights of the backwater or tasting locally tapped toddy.

Thankfully, unlike in many parts of the world, medical care in India is easy to find and relatively inexpensive. If you end up in a Hindi-speaking part of the country, here are some handy phrases to know when you are seeking medical assistance.

Conversation:
Let’s listen to the following conversation between a traveler and her hired car driver.

Traveler: (Cough)

Driver: आपको कहाँ जाना है?
Aapko kahaan jaana hai?
(Where would you like to go?)

Traveler: मुझे अस्पताल जाना है।  (Coughs more.)
Mujhe us-pataal jaana hai.
(I want to go to the hospital.)

Driver: आपको अस्पताल जाना है या क्लिनिक जाना है?
Aapko us-pataal jaana hai ya clinic jaana hai?
(Do you want to go to the hospital or the clinic?)

Traveler: मुझे खाँसी और बुखार है।  मुझे डॉक्टर से मिलना है।
Mujhe khaansi aur bukhaar hai. Mujhe doctor se milna hai.
(I have a cough and a fever. I want to see a doctor.)

Driver: मैं आपको डॉ प्रकाश कुमार के क्लिनिक पर ले चलता हूँ।  वह यहाँ के जाने पहचाने डॉक्टर हैं।
Main aapko Dr. Prakash Kumar ke clinic par le chalta hoon. Woh yahaan ke jaane pehchaane doctor hain.
(I will take you to Dr. Prakash Kumar’s clinic. He is a well-known doctor here.)

Vocabulary:

आप                                                       aap (you, second person with respect) the “ko” means “to”

कहाँ                                                      k-haan (where)

जाना                                                      jaana (to go)

मुझे                                                        mujhe (I/to me, indirect object)

अस्पताल                                                us-pataal (hospital)

या                                                           ya (or)

खाँसी                                                      khaan-see (cough)

और                                                         aur (and)

बुखार                                                      boo-khaar (fever)

___ से मिलना                                       say milna (to meet with ___) for e.g., Mujhe teacher say milna hai … = I want to meet the teacher/with the teacher.

डॉ प्रकाश कुमार के क्लिनिक                  Dr. Prakash Kumar ke clinic par  (to/at Dr. Prakash Kumar’s clinic)

ले चलता हूँ                                             lay chalta hoon (will take you) lay chalna = to take  someone/something along.  for e.g. Mujhe station lay chalo. = Take me to the station.

वह                                                         veh (he/she/third person personal pronoun)

यहाँ के                                                   yhaan kay (of here)

जाने-पहचाने                                          jaanay-pehchaanay (well known)

ठीक है                                                   theek hai ((OK)