I am a fifth year medical student from the University of Glasgow. I did my medical elective with Mundo Verde for five weeks and can recommend it to any medical student who wants an adventure! I went by myself which was a little scary at first, but from the moment I arrived in Cusco, to my last day there, I felt I was well looked after. Pablo and the rest of the team were so helpful and were always happy to advise on travel and tourism and as well as the elective. I lived in a nice and secure apartment in Cusco with four other medical students and a nursing student where we were able to cook our own food with a supermarket just down the road.
The hospital elective itself is interesting, you are expected to know how to examine patients clinically and asked to make management plans. My supervisor was also a professor at the university so he was keen to teach us in the clinic. I feel far more confident with my general examination skills now compared to before I left. The consultations were all in Spanish, although my supervisor could speak English. I saw a variety of general medical conditions. Unfortunately while I was there a lot of the doctors were on strike, so I could not attend two of the other clinics (the public hospital clinic and the jungle hospital clinic) however I think that was a learning experience too. Peru as a country is going through a lot of changes at this time, and it was interesting to witness them first hand.
I couldn’t speak a word of Spanish before I left Scotland, but after the Spanish lessons in Peru I can now understand Spanish a lot better and I am still working on my speaking! I think to get the full benefit you should perhaps have a basic level before coming, and try to speak it as much as possible once you are in Peru. It was very useful to learn medical vocabulary as well for hospital purposes and may come in handy in the future.
If you have any extra time at the end of your elective, I would recommend visiting other countries in South America. I had less than a week at the end to explore other parts of Peru, but I would have loved to visit some other countries as well while I was there.
The salsa lessons were great fun, especially when we would practise afterwards in the clubs in Cusco! There are loads of museums, cafes, restaurants and bars in Cusco itself, and there are so many trips you can do from Cusco. Machu Picchu is a must! With Mundo Verde you will be lucky enough to have lots of trips arranged for you including a trek to Machu Picchu and a weekend at Lake Titicaca. I think all the extras like this, plus the great people I met made this elective an unforgettable experience.
