Hospitals in developing countries are often short staffed with high patient loads, so our students find themselves involved with treatment and patient care very quickly. Under resourced wards can also mean a return to the basics of healthcare provision, diagnosing and treating conditions without the laboratory or medical equipment you might be used to.
Our medical electives also offer great opportunity to see cases that are seldom, if ever, found in the UK. Whether you are interested in tropical diseases such as malaria, leprosy or dengue fever, or wish to focus on specific areas like oncology in Africa, this is a great chance to expand your medical knowledge.
Unfortunately cost, distance and a lack of education in resource-poor countries means patients regularly present themselves with diseases or pathologies that have advanced to a critical stage. The chance to witness and treat these conditions will undoubtedly teach you new skills and enhance your understanding of disease progression.
Our medical student elective placements are designed to meet the requirements of all major British medical schools and are supported by the MPS.
Your placement
You can be quite specific about your department and area of medical specialty as each of our elective placements are tailored to individual needs and requirements. This flexibility is the big benefit of booking with a specialist company. The sheer number of contacts we have, the personal relationships with hospitals, the contracts in place and the "know how" of each destination means we can investigate your placement requests and give you an informed choice as to the most suitable placements that are available in your chosen destination.
You will be assigned an Operations Manager to guide you through this process who has personally visited each hospital and clinic we work with and will ensure you are fully prepared for all aspects of your medical elective overseas.
Frequently asked questionsMedical student Helen talks about her experience in Ghana with Work the World
Interested in Obstetrics and Gynaecology placements?
Many students know what they are interested in for their medicine elective, but have no idea which destination best suits their speciality.
To give you a taster of the scope of placements, we have put together some Obstetrics and Gynaecology options for medical electives in some of our destinations. If this area of medicine appeals to you then perhaps you will feel inspired by the chance to combine theatre in Tanzania with a chance to go on safari, or spend your weekends trekking in the mountains of Nepal as part of your placement in an Oncology Unit.
This list is not exhaustive of the options available, so if you have other interests please get in touch with your thoughts and we'll be happy to run through your options.
Interested in surgical placements?
Surgery placements for electives are always popular, but as you will know from placements at home, this is a fairly broad area of interest.
To help you get an idea of what kind of surgical placements we have on offer, download this speciality sheet. Perhaps you will feel inspired to combine general surgery in Ghana with weekends spent on beautiful beaches, or perhaps you would rather treat burns patients in Argentina and then join your team for the best steak and red wine of your life!
The list is only a selection of our placement opportunities, and with a range of popular destinations spread throughout Africa, Asia & South America, don't worry your preference isn't listed. Get in touch and tell us about it and our team will let you know the available options.
Our medical electives
Our medical electives
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I can really say that my trip with Work the World was a fantastic, once in a life time experience! I learned a lot of things that I could never have learned in Germany
Lisa Girgenrath, Heinrich Heine Universitat Dusseldorf 2013
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I chose Mendoza for a part of my eight-week medical elective, and boy am I glad I did; it has got to be one of the highlights of my life thus far.
Nigel Rozario, King's College London 2013
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I would not change a single thing. The people I met, the things I saw the experience I gained would have not been possible without Work the World and I whole-heartedly recommend them
Shalome Kanagaratnam, King's College London 2012
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