Where to go?

Planning an overseas elective is a daunting prospect, starting with the decision of where to go?

Having spent the summer in Mongolia overseeing our projects I came across many students embarking on their elective placements. When asked why they decided on Mongolia the response was fairly similar, “After staring at a map, Mongolia was the country we knew least about”.  So, in Mongolia’s case it seemed to be the great unknown that attracts so many students each year.

I have been working for Projects Abroad for the past five years in many different destinations around the world, and it never ceases to amaze me the amount of medical exposure volunteers can get. I tend to be the kind of person that switches Casualty over during the surgical scenes, so imagine how I felt when visiting an elective volunteer to be asked if I would like to attend a gall bladder extraction!

The point I am trying to make is that there are so many options available to you, and doing it within a developing country is not only a great way to gain valuable experience but the perfect opportunity to experience a different culture first hand.

Whilst in Mongolia I met Michael Rowe, an elective volunteer from Peninsula College of Medicine.  He was on his 2^nd placement with Projects Abroad and had the following to say.

“Your elective is one of the only times in your medical career when you are given free time and are encouraged to see the world. I used this opportunity to travel to a country I might never have visited otherwise. Mongolia gave me a unique insight into a radically different healthcare system and the opportunity to understand a different culture and way of life. It allowed me to encounter diseases no longer seen in the Western world and come to terms with the realities of global health. On top of the frequent personal and professional development opportunities, I got to explore a truly magnificent country and met other students and professionals from a range of other professions. I could not recommend going abroad for your elective more; it is a potentially career changing opportunity!”

Projects Abroad run elective programmes in fourteen countries around the world in all fields of medicine, and if you are unsure of where to go you can always speak to past elective volunteers like Michael and get a real insight of what to expect from your time away.

 For more information on where you can go, please check out "Projects Abroad.":http://www.projects-abroad.co.uk/volunteer-projects/medicine-and-healthcare/electives/