Amazing Experience for Aspiring Health Care Professionals

As a high school student in the US who is interested in medicine, it was a rare and amazing opportunity to shadow doctors in the Children's Heart Center and Obstetric and Gynecology departments with the CHP program. While I was nervous at first, Barbora the program manager was so kind and helped me feel comfortable and prepared for the program. During the 2 weeks I was mentored by amazing doctors and got to be in OR almost every day. In the Children's Heart Center I worked in the catheterization lab where I saw heart biopsies, the insertion of ports for oncology patients, and an ablation. Andrea my mentor was so kind to me, and in between surgeries we would sit in the break room, drink tea, and talk. As only a high school student, my medical knowledge is limited, but Andrea always took the time to explain everything that was happening so that I understood. When she was conducting an ablation, she allowed me to place the electrodes on the patient! In Obstetrics and Gynecology, I got to see one vaginal birth and many c-sections. I even got to see a hysterectomy and laparoscopic surgery to remove an ectopic pregnancy. The accommodation was wonderful and in a super convenient part of Prague so it was super easy to explore the city after my shift! We made our own breakfast in the morning and ate lunch at the hospital, but every night we got to eat dinner at a really nice restaurant so we were fed well! I went to the program with a friend from school but while I was there I made many new friends and we explored Prague together. Overall CHP was a wonderful program where I learned so much and had so much fun.