As an operations manager Lewis speaks to all the students heading to Africa before they leave, and more often than not they ask him one specific question:

“What is the best thing to wear on your placement?”

We include information in the student packs, as well as on my trip,  but working in a developing country hospital is such an unknown quantity for many people that they want to hear fresh from students that are out there right now.

Freddy from Arusha was first to reply. The students in his house said “scrubs, white coats and pairs of canvas shoes” They also thought it was worth telling students to “take gloves, pen and alcohol gel”.

The medical students in Lake Victoria came back with several responses – Charlotte thought “linen trousers, over knee skirt, daps (black), white coat and a name badge” were the best option, and Chris agreed “thin trousers, thin shirts (better the thinner they are) and a white coat. You should always carry a bottle of water too”. For those that are going into surgery, Anna thought it was worth reminding potential students to bring “pumps that cover toes”. The nurses were slightly different to the medics - Rebecca said “I’ve been wearing scrubs which are quite practical”.

This week’s question in Ghana was discussed with Thomas, Amy and Naomi.  Together they all shouted “scrubs“, even before Joe finished the question.  Aside from scrubs, Amy went on to say “ I make sure that I wear something below knee level so as not to expose my body. Also it is better to wear things that are loose and not too heavy”. The rule seems to be to dress for the weather! “It is quite casual in Ghana – doctors in Paediatrics sometimes even wear jeans and polo shirts to duty, so if we wear casual wear rather than formal dress, that is fine”. Thomas agreed – he has worn a pair of jeans and shirt once and shorts and  t-shirt to the placement. In his opinion, wearing any thing pretty light and casual is ok because of the weather. Closed shoes are important though. His advice was to “wear canvas shoes or even sandals and get changed when you get to the hospital – otherwise you get very hot feet!”.

Over in India it is less about the weather and more about the culture. Jay told us that “doctors have to wear very decent dress in the hospital. Medics, male or female,  have to wear full trousers and half sleeve shirts with buttons up to the neck. They are not allowed to wear shorts or T-shirts. Nurses must wear white overcoat at RCC. In other hospitals they are not compelled to wear any uniform, but they have to be well dressed – the same as the medics. The only time this doesn’t apply is in theatre when students have to wear scrubs – either your own or depending on the hospital, those provided”. The students confirmed this was true Paul said “you get really hot sometimes but you have to wear what the staff do – it’s important as otherwise they will not respect you”. Clare said “in the hospital we have to have our hair tied back properly and make sure we have no nail varnish on – they check things like that quite closely”.

Nepal follows a similar smart dress code, but perhaps a little less strictly. Sunil told us “the students prefer to look smart and feel comfortable, definitely smart clothes is what they would wear to the hospital. However, some people do come with jeans and t-shirts, which is acceptable. A white coat on top would just do it all”. The students agreed with this “smart and comfortable is the best – you feel as if you command more respect. That said, I have worn walking boots some days!”. Sunil said this is fine “the only thing to really avoid is sandals…… you might attract attention with the tick-tock noise!”. Ha ha Sunil!

To read more about our programmes check out our destinations page.

Next week’s question comes from one of our potential students…. “is it safe to travel alone with Work the World”. Watch this space for the answer.

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2. What do the students do at weekends?
3. What are the biggest cultural challenges…
4. Is a medical placement in your gap year of any benefit?
5. The Big Picture winners are announced!