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

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!

I participated in one of Atlantis Project's five week programs. I spent 3 weeks in Toledo, Spain and 2 weeks in Albacete. We spent five days per week shadowing doctors of various specialties. In addition to this we usually went on one or two cultural adventures each week. One day per weekend we would embark on group trips to nearby cities where activities would be planned for us. These trips were always a great time!! I highly encourage anyone interested in expanding their knowledge of global healthcare or anyone looking for a fun and unique opportunity to check out Atlantis Project!!!

I was lucky enough to participate in the Atlantis Project European Shadowing Program this past summer in A Coruña, Spain. I would HIGHLY encourage students to look into applying for the program. I had one of the most amazing experiences of my life and made friends that will last a lifetime. Each day was spent shadowing phenomenal doctors and teaching english to both residents and attending physicians. Over the summer I gained a better sense of what the daily life of a physician is like and what I may want to pursue a career in in the future. The doctors were wonderful and always willing to teach. Cultural Excursions are also provided each week allowing the Fellows to learn about their new home country during their time abroad. We were also able to teach English to give back to the hospital a few days a week, which was amazing. I know that going forward with my medical school applications in the next year I will be able to discuss both medical and ethical aspects of what I learned in essays and interviews as well have several great anecdotes to share.

I took part in a two-week session of the Atlantis Project last June. I always wanted to go abroad but knew that I would not be able to during the school year due to my double major and extra curricular activities. When I first heard about the Atlantis Project I knew that it was the perfect opportunity to not only go abroad to a country I have never visited before but also to get more hospital experience. The application for the program was very straightforward and easy to fill out. I was also happy to see how many options there were to choose from in terms of dates, lengths of the program, and places to travel. I chose to go to the Canary Islands in Spain (the island of Tenerife) because I have studied Spanish for a long time and knew that it would be a great opportunity to practice the language.
When I first got to Tenerife, I was happy to see that everyone in the program got their own room and bathroom at the Residencia. There were three directors which helped us figure out where everything was and how to get places such as the hospital. It was very easy to get to the hospital and it was quite close to the Residencia. One of my favorite parts of the program was that we got to give our preferences for fields that we wanted to shadow doctors in. This let me explore multiple fields and helped me confirm what fields I want to go into in the future. The doctors were also extremely nice and even though a lot of doctor-patient conversations were in Spanish, they still translated what was happening especially when they were using medical terms that I could not understand. The hospital itself was also very nice and it was so exciting to wake up every morning and go there.
After our hospital hours, some students took part in a volunteer opportunity during which they taught English to Spanish speakers. Other students went out to the town to have lunch together, explored new places, went to shops, or played sports outside the Residencia. A lot of days we were taken to have group dinners together and go on excursions. The excursions were truly amazing and included activities such as whale watching, hiking, exploring a cave, a tour of a vineyard, a flamenco show, and visiting beaches on the island.
The Atlantis Project is honestly the perfect pre-health summer program. It was one of the most fun experiences I have ever had while also learning so much about medicine. I highly encourage everyone I know to apply and am going again myself this summer!