Medical / Dental / Nurse / Physio Shadowing in Greece

Hi, my name is Casey, I come from Brooklyn, New York, and I am currently pre-dental so I decided to do this internship to get a look at what being in a dentist’s office feels like. I’m working with many people to see different techniques and see how different patient relationships are introduced. One of my favorites is to see the different techniques they use in Greece. Especially with the materials they use, make crowns and all the different ways that they implement their studies versus how the United States implements their way of learning their dentistry and using our patients. And I love Cerca Abroad- it was super easy- they picked me up from the airport, our accommodation was ready for us and there was always someone there at the counter to ask how you’re doing and anything that you need at the moment. Athens was gorgeous, we got a metro pass and went to see the whole city. Everything is within a 15 minute walk away or a 15’ train right away, so it was accessible and beautiful here. I would recommend this to anybody.

I’ll start with my coordinators – they were always willing to advise myself and the other girls places to visit around Athens. My airport pickup was swift and my apartment was cute and the perfect size for me. It was about a 10 minute walk from the hospital and 15 minutes from the metro station. By far the best part was meeting the two other girls in the program, we instantly clicked and are planning to meet again in the next coming months! It was crazy that they were both from the west coast as well. As far as the program at the hospital went, I spent my days either in cardiology, radiology, surgery, hepatology, internal medicine, physical therapy or neurology. It was great to get a glimpse of the physician’s day to day procedures while learning some more Greek! Most of the doctors were super caring and welcoming. My favourite specialities were surgery and neurology; I could really see myself pursuing a career in neurology! I met the BEST doctors in neurology and the machines to diagnose the disorders were fascinating. I truly learned so much the last two days of the program, and I observed a case with a brain tumor and consulting neurosurgeon. Super cool. Overall, I had a really great time on the days as physicians were willing to teach and entertain conversation, plus the other girls I met were a huge bonus.

I conducted my Medical internship in Athens, Greece, in a top private hospital with cutting-edge technology. It was one of the most impressive organizations I have ever seen in healthcare. My internship role as a medical trainee was to assist doctors during their clinical activities and to observe them during surgery and endoscopy. My favourite memory from my internship experience was the prostate biopsy that the urologist let me perform under his supervision. It was a challenging, important and new experience. I also had the chance to observe one of the best hematologists in Europe at work, they were an amazing supervisor, teaching me a lot! As a medical student, this internship supported my long term goals, as I gained a lot of new clinical and hands-on experience, while also further developing skills I already had. Everything I learned during the hospital internship placement will be useful in my future career as a clinician. It will also help me to complete my medical degree.

I learned what it is like to be a physician every day and I got to rotate in all the hospital's departments and gain a solid perspective of my medical career path. The hospital staff were very friendly and showed us many things. The coordinating team were very organized and they made us feel at home. Our apartment was in a safe area, clean and close to the city center and public transport. Athens is a very safe city with so many things to see and do. The food in Greece was amazing and our coordinators gave us a lot of information to experience Athens as locals do.