Manlio, Italien
My name is Manlio and I live in Sicily( Italy). This October I finally got my medical degree and started a new chapter of my life. Throughout these long years I studied really hard but at a certain moment I realized that I needed something new…a pivotal experience. I was trying to figure out how to combine my desire of travelling with my will to do some medical practice and luckly for me, some collegues of mine informed me about the existence of IFMSA : an international organization that allows students to spend a month abroad for a clinical internship or research. I took part into my first exchange in July 2017 and as a destination I chose: Denmark! I was in a lovely , peaceful city called Odense and I did my internship in the Plastic Surgery department. I must say that I have really learnt a lot: I sutured,removed a suspected malignant melanoma,drained a sieroma,did a skin craft under the supervision of the surgeons and much more. Thanks to this experience, Plastic Surgery is right now the surgical field I am thinking the most for my residency.
Apart from the hospital, one of the greatest perks of spending a whole month abroad is that you meet people from all over the world, both locals and foreigners. This gives you the possibility to drop into the mentality of your hosting country, the privilege to understand the beauty of cultural differences between you and the other incoming students and the advantage to brush up on your english. I remember that month as a golden moment in my youth and despite passing too briely it really changed my life. I found new energy, new purposes; I acquired new skills and opened my mind; I challenged and improved my forma mentis and…most importantly, I made many international friends. It is so moving to think that we still chat on our Whatsapp group and despite being spread east,west, north and south we still continue to talk with the same confidence we had during that enchanted July of a Summer that seemed to last forever!
Christos, Grækenland
My clinical exchange (IMCC exchange ) in Denmark on July 2017 was an important station of my life . Through this experience my horizons were broadened, I had the chance to meet amazing new people from different corners of the world and work , under professional conditions, in a foreign country and a very organized health system. As a professional doctor nowadays I recall these beautiful memories , recognizing their role on my professional and personal development. I hope even more medical students ( doctors of the following years) in the future have the chance to live this precious experience.
Eunjoo, Sydkorea
Last summer was one of my best summer I ever had. Not only did IMCC give me the opportunity to see the real global health right in my eye, but also made my knowledge and vision of what happiness is more open and deeper. It also taught me that having friends on the other side of the earth is much more pleasant than I thought. Leaving the details aside, the general kindness and smiles they show to me are enough to let me realize how important it is to look around the world and participate in it
Lena, Østrig
Due to IMCC I was able to meet lovely collegues from all over the world and get to know medical practice in many different countries. This put many things for my own practice into perspective. Summer of my life!
Tom, Spanien
My name is Tom Stoelers, I am a 6th year medical student from Granada, Spain.
In July 2017, thanks to IMCC, I had the wonderful opportunity to do a clinical clerkship in Anaesthesia at the Odense Universitetshospital.
I worked at the hospital every day, so I learned a lot about the Danish healthcare system and the Danish way of life. Furthermore, every day I socialised with Danish people and medical students from other countries who had also come to Denmark for a clerkship. We became very good friends and we are still in contact to this day.
Overall, the month I spent in Denmark was the best month of my life. I liked Denmark so much that I am now trying to move to Denmark.