Digby Llewellyn

I am a second year Biomedical Sciences student at Bournemouth University. When I started university, I hadn't really thought or considered doing a placement overseas just because I imagined it would be too expensive and out of my reach. However in the second year, there was a talk from Work the World’s team about electives and various destinations they offer.

I was very keen on securing a placement because I knew that adding this experience to my degree would be very beneficial to my career. All I needed to do was save up some money to afford it.

Before starting my Biomedical Science elective, my main goal was to gain medical experience to enhance my career prospects and also to boost my confidence as it was going to be my first time travelling abroad alone.

However, not only did I achieve those goals - I also met amazing like minded people from all around the world and made memories that will last a lifetime.

Soon after I booked my placement, I heard about the Turing scheme, so I immediately applied, which was quite a straightforward process. Once my application was accepted I was immediately relieved as there was less of a financial burden to afford this elective, even though Vietnam is a relatively cheap country it was nice to know that I had the necessary funds to enjoy myself and take every opportunity that arose.

Before arriving, I was a little bit nervous as I was going to be in a different continent for seven-weeks, but after I arrived and got settled Vietnam felt like my second home and I felt very comfortable. In the Work the World house, there were up to 40 students living there at once.

I shared a room with a medical student from Australia, which was great to learn about the differences between healthcare and routes of study. Breakfast and dinner was served in the house but every now and then we would eat out at local restaurants.

The house was very social and I quickly made friends. We would spend our weekends travelling which was great as we would mix studies with travel so it made the experience even better. Travelling throughout Vietnam helped me experience the difference in cultures between different places and I got to practice my Vietnamese which I got taught in the house language lessons.

During the seven weeks, I was placed in three different hospitals. I spent time in many different departments which were all secured but I even left the UK: - haematology, oncology, tropical diseases and I also spent a week undertaking the Village Healthcare Week.

I was very surprised at how accommodating each hospital and department were, I was able to get hands-on in every department, all under supervision.

Some lab techniques I had learnt before but never with real patient samples and I also learnt so many new techniques and procedures to bring home. Supervisors were so accommodating, I even got invited to dinner in many departments which helped me improve my Vietnamese (even though they mostly spoke English but I liked to test myself) and understand the culture even more from people in my field which made me enjoy the placement even more as I built great connections and friendships.

I enjoyed each department for different reasons and what they had to offer, but they all gave me amazing opportunities to learn and understand the similarities and differences in healthcare.

My knowledge of different cultural perspectives have improved massively and I feel like I am so much more aware of the differences which is so fascinating and has made me want to travel the world to experience and learn about more culture. 

It also amplified my passion for Biomedical Science and healthcare as I learnt so much and realised how much I love what I study and will hopefully be my career in the future. 

My employability skills have definitely improved, as I now know how to act in a medical setting and have real practical experience to back up my results which give me a lot to talk about in interviews. 

I believe that everyone should experience working in a different culture and if someone already is going to, my advice would be to be proactive as you will get the most out of the opportunity.