I am a 4th year medical student who will soon be starting my residency in family practice. Through out medical school I always wanted to work internationally as I hope to continue to reach out to countries in need of medical care. Child Family Health International (CFHI) allowed me to have this opportunity. I traveled to Quito and Puyo Ecuador for one month in February. I participated in the Amazon Community and Indigenous Health program.

The part I liked most about this program was the variety. I worked in a private clinic in Quito, a missionary hospital in Shell, government run clinics in rural communities, participated in Dengue control and even visited a jungle community. Each experience was unique and left a lasting impression. All of the physicians and nurses were wonderful to work with. Everyone was interested in teaching about the Ecuadorian health system. They were also interested in learning about health care in the US. It was fun and interesting to explain how being a 4th year medical student works in the US and how this compares to medical education in Ecuador.

I not only learned a great deal about health care in Ecuador, but was also directly immersed in the culture. CFHI allows participants to live with host families. This is vital to any international experience. I was able to eat the local food, experience culture and tradition and practice my Spanish on a daily basis. Also, during my first week in Ecuador I attended daily Spanish classes. This was a great opportunity to practice and improve conversational skills as well as medical vocabulary. CFHI structures their programs in a way that allows for opportunities to learn and explore.

My experience with CFHI is one that I will never forget. I would highly recommended this organization and program to anyone who is interested in learning about another culture as well as experiencing medical care in a different country.