Join Atlantis: Pre-Health Shadowing 60+ Hrs w/ Top Doctors

The Atlantis project not only allowed me and my fellows to shadow and experience a doctors/surgeons daily life was but it also gave us a sense of direction into what we all are looking for and what we are not looking for. Through out the program I was able to pinpoint where in the medical field I would like to follow up on and where I was sure not to. I learned so much and was actually able put my knowledge to use and see how much I actually know. It was overall an amazing experience and I recommend everyone who is interested in the medical field, to go do this program.

The Atlantis Project was an incredible experience that allowed me to experience my two passions: medicine and culture immersion. I lived in Cuenca, Spain for the month of July and had the privilege of shadowing physicians in Hospital Virgen de la Luz. I enjoyed the Atlantis Project especially because I was given the opportunity to experience different specialties, such as endocrinology, anesthesiology, and cardiovascular surgery. These specialties were my top choice, as given in the survey the Atlantis Project gives us prior to the trip, and I was pleasantly surprised that the Atlantis Project was able to give me my top choices. At the hospital, I was able to see the differences and similarities between the European healthcare and American healthcare. Because not all healthcare providers could speak English, I was also able to practice speaking Spanish and found that immersion in another country was truly the best way to learn the language. In addition, I also loved how my coordinator was from Spain and was like a mother figure in case I was ever in need of anything at all. Lastly, the Atlantis Project also enables the students to explore Spain and not waste any time at all. I was able to see the sights of the town I stayed in as well as go to a local winery.

I really enjoyed traveling to Toledo, Spain for this hospital shadowing and cultural immersion program. I was able to spend three weeks in different hospital departments. These included pharmacy, orthopedics, pulmonology, neurosurgery, intervention radiology and intensive care. This clinical exposure allowed me to see a larger variety of specialties than I had at home. My time in Spain gave me a glimpse at public healthcare and a holistic perspective of medicine. This collaboration for the greater good focused on highlighting the integration of unique skill sets and teamwork aspect of medicine. I enjoyed getting to learn from the different healthcare professionals and my fellow students. Overall, the experience provided me with new and diverse perspectives.

It was reassuring to be surrounded by students that all had health interests in common. I made great friends during my stay. The program leaders worked hard to accommodate us all and considered our feedback to make changes for the better!

Spain is such an incredible country full of beautiful people who are truly so kind. I had an amazing opportunity this summer (July 2015) to go to Guadalajara, Spain (1 hr from Madrid by train) to shadow and observe many different specialities. It was truly an unforgettable experience.

When I first landed in the Madrid airport, it was extremely large and overwhelming. However, I am the type of person who does not have a lot of fears when I travel. I love new experiences and visiting new countries. I knew maybe five words in Spanish and idd not know much about Spanish culture. The program did provide very specific details on how to get from the airport to the program site. It was extremely useful, but there is only so much information can do. The next part is very much up to the individual to seek out help from locals (who were extremely kind) and do the best you can. Luckily, I found a few other Atlantis fellows by overhearing some conversations spoken in English. Together, we were able to get to the correct train station in Madrid (Atocha) and get to our respective program locations. It was fine once I was in Guadalajara because my program coordinator (who I became so fond of) was waiting for me. She was waiting for me at the train station and paid for the cab ride (as they indicate) and brought me to the dormitories. Each program site will look different, but the one in Guadalajara was a college dormitory. However, because it was summer the students were on break and we were able to use the facility. It was not extremely nice (relatively speaking), but it was still a safe haven by the end of the trip. I did not encounter any bugs or anything like that but it is a bit older of a facility. They changed my sheets every week and provided breakfast Monday-Friday. The breakfast is the same every day, but you become appreciative by the end of it. If you are the high maintenance type, I recommend you also learn what it's like for other nations to live, even if they are considered an affluent, developed nation. It is important to immerse yourself in all settings and learn from any type of environment, in my opinion.

Each day we went to the hospital 8-3pm and we normally took the bus which was about a 10 min walk form the dorms. A bus card was provided for us and the walk was very easy (slight incline). The town of Guadalajara is very quaint and pretty. It is not a large town, but there are still a few things to see. There is a mall near the hospital that the students would often visit after their time at the hospital.

At the hospital, we had two rotations per week. I was in Guadalajara for 4 weeks and was assigned up to 8 specialities. However, there were certain specialities that the other fellows were more interested in and if the coordinator thought it was fit, you could re-arrange the specialities that you really desired to have, but were not assigned to. This time was so valuable to me and I will cherish this for the rest of my career. The Spanish doctors are so incredible that I do not even know where to begin in describing them. A few relationships I was able to make were with a few anesthesiologists, the chief of nephrology and an oncologist. Personally, I am not interested in a surgical specialty at all, and so when I was assigned to anesthesia, I did not think it would be one bit exciting. However, I tried to keep an open mind about it and I was able to learn so much. The anesthesiologist I was assigned to was a very young doctor. It was only her 2nd or 3rd year as an attending but she was in her 20s. She was so friendly even though her english was very limited. In the operating room, there is a lot of time with anesthesiologists that you have to wait. So it was a perfect opportunity to talk to the doctor and learn from them. She explained the healthcare system in Spain and what it entails. It is so different from the U.S. and there are aspects that the U.S. healthcare system should adopt. The doctor was always keen on showing me what the surgery was about. She did not know the specifics about each operation because she is not a surgeon, but she would share all the knowledge of the procedures she could with me. I have never felt so personally mentored by a doctor that I had just met. I was able to show my enthusiasm each morning with her that she even invited me to come on other days and to observe an on-call shift. With the approval of my coordinator, I was able to do all of these things. I can list so many different interactions I had with each doctor that I was observing, but this review would never end. I have so much to say about each doctor that I truly do not know where to begin. I still keep in touch with many of the doctors from Spain that I met. The Chief of Nephrology was so encouraging. He gave me words of wisdom and things I can do to improve as a pre-medical student. Still to this day, when he responds to my emails, he always says that he believes in me and affirms me to tell me that I will become a great doctor. It is these kinds of relationships that I was able to build, that have become invaluable experiences to me. The Chief of Nephrology told me that he would love to hear about my pre-medical journey to the end and even when I am able to earn my own degree for him to know how my practice is going. I was so encouraged by him. No doctor has ever shown me that kind of faith that I can accomplish everything I want to. Of course there were specialities that were not as exciting, but I always kept an open mind and I have been able to learn something even from the less exciting specialities.

In addition to the invaluable hospital experiences I was able to gather, there were always two cultural immersion activities a week. These were optional (but they are included in the program fee, so it is recommended to attend them) and with the entire group. My group had about 13 students, including myself and so it was a very manageable size group to go around with. These times were very fun and I learned a lot about Central Spain. We always had a tour guide. In Europe tour guides are highly acclaimed and have to have a lot of education and usually have several masters in different areas such as religion, geography, politics, etc. These highly educated tour guides would explain the history of the areas we visited and it was very informational and fun to hear from a Spanish tour guide.

The dinners we had were pretty excellent. There were 3 (maybe 4) a week and there would always be so much food that I would nearly burst. Additionally, on the weekends, a lot of people would travel by train to different parts of Spain. I went to Valencia with a few of my friends that I made in the program and it was a very fun weekend. Another weekend I spent on-call with the anesthesiologists and another weekend, I was able to visit Madrid (an incredible city). The last weekend I went to Madrid again to shadow a pediatric oncology (my dream speciality) in one of the major hospitals in the city. They did not have pediatric oncologists in Guadalajara. Even this opportunity only came through the Chief of Nephrology who was able to set me up with his friend in Madrid to go and observe. There, I was even offered a research position if ever came back to Spain in an oncology lab. I was so amazed at how eager they are to partner with global health partners. They are so passionate about making medicine globally united to overcome diseases quicker and more efficiently. These opportunities all came from efforts of getting to know the doctors I was shadowing and sharing the interests that I have.

Before this review turns into any longer of an essay, I will say that every penny was worth this program. I am thankful to the Atlantis Project for what it was able to provide for me. It is not a perfect program but it is very invaluable to partake as a fellow at the Atlantis Project. I would highly recommend this program to any pre-medical student. Experiencing European healthcare has never been so rewarding.

I spent 4 weeks on the island of Sao Miguel and can honestly say it was one of the best months of my life. I learned so much from being in the hospital and shadowed much closer to the doctors than I was expecting. You are placed directly into the operating room and the surgeons would take time during the surgery to explain to you what it is they were doing. The AP staff does an amazing job making sure you are comfortable and getting the most out of your time abroad. While learning about different specialties in the hospital, you also get to explore the island and learn about the culture of the Azores. I would join the Atlantis Project again in a heartbeat.

In 2015 I went abroad to Toledo Spain to work amongst other students from all over the United States with the Atlantis Project. During my visit I shadowed many different doctors throughout my three week stay and it was the greatest experience. I created a great rapport with the doctors as they explained procedures, medical terms, and learned why they loved what they did within each of their respective fields. I would recommend this program to anyone who is interested in the health care field!

When I shadowed in Toledo, Spain we were able to make a home of the city, as we traveled to the hospital every morning on our own, left around 2pm and had the rest of the day to explore. I think I probably walked through every street of the town, which isnt to say we didnt walk a lot, because we did, but the town was so unique that it never got old. The people were so sweet and I was also able to practice my spanish because it wasnt a major city. However, we were still able to visit bigger cities like madrid.

My experience with the Atlantis Project was one of the most enriching experiences in a hospital and clinical environment I ever had. In the shorter term that I was able to experience being alongside healthcare professionals, I was able to visit multiple departments in the hospital, witness a cesarean section, multiple realignment surgeries, pediatric care, and much more. The doctors and nurses I shadowed and spent time with were not only some of the most friendly staff I met, but they also were very knowledgeable and caring about their patients and the students that shadowed in their program. I learned some new things in the techniques I witnessed in surgery, and got to see how some of newer technologies in the cardiac and pulmonary departments were implemented. The guide we also had that helped us adjust to some of the cultural differences was so friendly and knowledgeable as well, and we felt right at home being as close to the hospital as we were. I highly recommend checking out what the Atlantis Project offers and encourage students with all levels of shadowing experience to apply!