About Wenzhou - China

Name: Tamer Abdelfattah

City: Cairo

Country: Egypt

Degree of Study: Dental student - 4th year

E-Mail: dentist_tamer@hotmail.com

Medical Training; Pros, Cons & Advices:

August 2009: I spent 2 weeks at the maxillofacial surgery department and another 2 weeks at the outpatient clinic of Wenzhou University - China. The hospital was excellent and advanced and I learned a lot during my course. I even had a chance to do some procedures myself at the outpatient clinic. The medical staff was all very friendly, professional and eager to teach us. The main problem was the language; not all doctors speak good English, so you have to speak slowly and stress on each word, but it was ok and we got used to it.

Board, Lodging and Outings; Pros, Cons & Advices:

We stayed in double rooms at a hotel just at the back of the hospital which was handy, and the hotel was really luxurious for a 3 star hotel and the staff was very helpful and friendly, but none of them spoke English! so we had to translate a lot through our contact person. Our hotel offered breakfast and we had the other meals at the hospital cafeteria which was ok. Wenzhou is a beautiful city with a lot of places to go, and there are other cities with very beautiful monuments and natural sceneries like Hangzhou and Beijing.

Hosting Team; Pros, Cons & Advices:

The hosting team and contact persons were all very helpful and friendly and tried their best to help with whatever problems we had. Our contact person Mr. Roger was exceptionally friendly and helpful and easy to reach all day long.

Overall Evaluation:

This has been one of the greatest experiences of my life, I learned a lot on the professional level, and had a chance to discover a very rich culture and civilization. The next time I have a chance to travel abroad I'll choose China for sure.

 About Cologne - Germany

Name: Mona Magdy

City: Cairo

Country: Egypt

Degree of Study: Medical student - 4th year

E-Mail: mona-magdy@hotmail.com

Medical Training; Pros, Cons & Advices:

August 2009: our training at the General surgery department was accepted, so we spent the first week there. We attended some operations, then we split; two of us -including me- went to the Cardiothorasic surgery department, and the other two went to the Neurosurgery department. We spent there the rest of the period.

>>> Pros:
1. Attending operations with some of the major surgeons in the world.
2. Interacting with German interns and doctors.
3. Watching the inside of a major hospital and an OR, the preparations for surgeries and the medical instruments.
4. Some of us -including me- had the chance to assist and scrub in at some MAJOR operations \"open heart\".
>>> Cons:
1. Most of the surgeons don't explain anything, starting from the case going to the procedure of the operation, so we spent most of the time ONLY watching at the OR and we surfed online when needed to find some explanations. That was MOSTLY faced in the general surgery then the cardiothorasic surgery departments, not the neurosurgery where our friends enjoyed VERY much as the doctors and surgeons were really co-operative and helpful.
2. We felt very much NOT welcomed at the general surgery department, we had to go asking for some operations to attend, as they gave us NO schedule and they would send us home as soon as they could. That's why we left that department.
3. Some doctors refuse sharply to explain in any language but German, some of them actually wondered for the reason why we went training in Germany without learning German.
4. A TERRIBLE organizing mistake occurred that we figured out two days before leaving, that, after spending THREE weeks at the cardiothorasic surgery department we realized that they were NOT officially informed of our presence; so we actually spent 3 weeks with them at the OR without knowing who we are and why we are here.
>>>  Advices:
1. I'd advice the new outgoings to Germany to learn German. It will GREATLY help you even in the streets and shops, because German people love to speak nothing but German.
2. You have to depend on YOURSELF. as I mentioned the mistake above, we could have avoided it if we went from the first day to introduce ourselves to the Head of the department, and not by depending on the international affair office.

Board, Lodging and Outings; Pros, Cons & Advices:

We stayed at the students hostel at Mungersdorf.
>>> Pros:
1. It is a HUGE hostel, full of students, many of them were Arabs.
2. It lies in a very quiet spot facing a LARGE park.
3. Each room has its internet connection.
4. The hostel lies in front of the Tram station.
5. We went Paris for weekend as it is close to Cologne, and it was  BEAUTIFUL.
6. We also went to Bonn for one day as it is VERY close to Cologne "about 45 mins by train", and we loved it because it is full of sight seeing and has a special European atmosphere.
>>> Cons:
1. We arrived on a saturday which was a weekend, so we had to reserve two nights at another hotel because no one would wait for us to give us the keys.
2. The reception man is present about 3 hours only per week, mostly at our training time, so it was very difficult for us to ask for help "like checking the damaged lamps and electricity...etc"
3. The hostel is SO far from EVERYTHING, starting from the hospital "45 mins by tram", and so are all the outings and places. To go to supermarkets we had to take the Tram for 10 mins approximately.
4. We figured out there that our rooms are NOT together, each apartment is formed of two rooms, a shared bathroom and kitchen. each of us was put in a different apartment in a different floor with a different room mate, which was TERRIBLE, putting in consideration that we had no inner connection to each other so we had to communicate through mobiles which cost so much.
5. The room was deprived of many things, including pillows, bed sheets and the most difficult is curtains as it was VERY hot and sunny there, so we suffered from the sun.
>>> Advices:
1. Old people in the streets will behave strangely with you, specially if you are a female with Hijab; simply because they didn't get used to it, so don't panic and just smile to them, they'll smile back.
2. Younger people are nicer to strangers, they can easily help you in the streets, take you pictures, and so on.
3. As I mentioned before, learning German is a great privilege, as it will help you everywhere as Language Barrier was the greatest difficulty we faced.
4. Contact the hostel before traveling is a must, to make sure how long is the distance between it and the hospital, as well as the rest of the town, and to make sure you are together in the room with your friends.
5. Plan for your weekends before traveling, so you can enjoy all the time you spend there.

Hosting Team; Pros, Cons & Advices:

>>> Pros:
1. Ms. Kanthack was really nice and welcoming, she sent 2 students with us to help us get the Tram monthly ticket, then to move from the hotel to the hostel and she invited us to lunch that day.
2. She gave us her number so we could contact her at any problem.
>>> Cons:
1. She was not available all the time, so if you are planning to meet her you have to contact her previously and to see if she'll be available.
2. The MAJOR problem was the mistake in the organization between her office and the head of the cardiothorasic surgery department that I previously mentioned.

Overall Evaluation:

It was a lifetime trip. We had SO much fun discovering new culture and new places. We enjoyed the hospital training despite the cons I mentioned because it was like a new world for us, with new facilities and new style.

 About Hamilton - Canada

Name: Ashraf Younan

City: Cairo

Country: Egypt

Degree of Study: Medical student - 5th year

E-Mail: ashrafhemaya@yahoo.com

Medical Training; Pros, Cons & Advices:

November 2006: My training was at McMaster university - Canada. It was my first time to manage a patient by taking history and then make the possibility of the disease then ask for the investigation till give the patient the medication. I have learned how to be a member in the team.

Board, Lodging and Outings; Pros, Cons & Advices:

It was excellent & amazing. We organized it through McMaster University housing website: www.macocho.com 

Hosting Team; Pros, Cons & Advices:

Very friendly, helpful & easy to reach.

Overall Evaluation:

This training let me know how to evaluate myself & let me know where is the defect in my medical personality and how to improve it.

 About  Gdansk - Poland

Name: Hadeer kheder

City: Cairo

Country: Egypt

Degree of Study: Medical student - 3rd year

E-Mail: hadeermm@hotmail.com

Medical Training; Pros, Cons & Advices:

August 2006: My training was in Department of Surgical Oncology, Medical Faculty of Gdansk-Poland during August 2006. It was one of the best experiences I had in life. The medical training was very beneficial, the main cause of which was the great department staff which were great, professional, friendly and very helpful doctors. I learnt all aspects of surgical oncology, I did also assist to over 35 operations as a first or second assistant. The doctors were really eager to give information and help around as much as they could. By the end of the course they gave me the opportunity to perform small surgical procedures myself. I was also invited to the chemotherapy and radiotherapy department where I observed and learnt the schedules of cancer treatment. In addition to that they took me to a visit to the Regional Center for Palliative Treatment of terminally ill patients. I really encourage every medical student to travel in similar programs. They are more beneficial than I have ever imagined.

Board, Lodging and Outings; Pros, Cons & Advices:

Poland is a beautiful, civilized country with great weather although it rains a lot, so make sure you get your umbrella!!! The people are really nice and helpful. It has great sightseeing; tens of places to visit and you really can't take enough. There is only the very little problem of language difference since many of the people working in public places don’t speak fluent English, but other than that I didn’t have any troubles. In case anyone is wondering the country is very safe too till pretty late at night.

Hosting Team; Pros, Cons & Advices:

The hostel was located about 7 minutes walking from the hospital. I got a private room which was equipped with a bed, desk, many cabinets, a fridge, a tap, and two LAN connections. There are 10 rooms in each floor. Each floor has three shower rooms, toilets, and a room equipped with washing machines and a kitchen (but if anyone is planning to cook he/she will have to get their own kitchen utensils). We were allowed in or out the hostel any time we like. Overall it was quite good.

Overall Evaluation:

I am really pleased I went to the exchange program and I am even more pleased I got to go to POLAND. Overall I went to a very good hospital where I got to learn a lot of stuff, in a great country where I had a wonderful time! If any student got the chance to go to the same program, please feel free to send to me via email and ask about any information.

 About Iasi - Romania

Name: Shaimaa Fathy

City: Cairo

Country: Egypt

Degree of Study: Medical student - 5th year

E-Mail: eaims.exug2006@yahoo.com

Medical Training; Pros, Cons & Advices:

August 2006: My training was in Department of General Surgery, Medical Faculty of Iasi, Romania. I was one of the students who went to Romania...It was Sondus, Reem and me there. In the hospital we learned and had the chance to attend operations and participate in the clinical examination of the patients.

Board, Lodging and Outings; Pros, Cons & Advices:

Actually I want to thank EAIMS a lot for the amazing time we had there. It was one of our best summer vacations. The country is so so beautiful. There’s a lot to see there because Romania is very big. We met also the students from different organizations and so we were a big group of foreign students and together with the Romanian students we did a lot of trips in the weekends. We had the chance to go do hiking in the mountains, visited the famous Dracula castle in Brasov, went to Bucharest and also went to the beach (black sea). The only problem we had there was that our room in the hostel wasn't clean so we suffered a bit in the beginning but then we got used to it.   

Hosting Team; Pros, Cons & Advices:

The Romanian people are extremely warm people and very very friendly and they liked us a lot...and Lavinia our contact person was amazing and very responsible.

Overall Evaluation:

In general, Romania was an amazing experience for all of us...I remember we felt a bit down when we got it for exchange in the beginning, but after being there I could see how much we could have missed if we didn't go. So, for all those who will get Romania in the future for exchange, don’t ever miss the chance to see a country that has a western as well as an eastern European culture...you'll enjoy the beautiful nature, learn, have fun and make a lot of friends. Thanks EAIMS again:)