Sydney Medical School Inbound Elective Student Guide 2017 Welcome to Sydney Medical School For prospective elective students Sydney Medical School at the University of Sydney is the first Medical School in Australasia and one of the top 20 health universities in the world. The Sydney Medical School has an outstanding reputation for excellence in teaching, learning and research ensuring that students are equipped for rewarding and successful careers as clinicians, scientists or public health leaders. The Sydney Medical Program provides a unique learning environment that nurtures communication, team work, lifelong learning and evidence based practice, essential for tomorrow’s doctors. We hope you enjoy reading about the opportunities you will have as a medical elective student if you choose to study at one of our six Clinical Schools. Studying with us will give you valuable insight and experience that will enhance your future medical career. Associate Professor Kirsty Foster Head, Office for Global Health Associate Dean (International) Sydney Medical School Contents Discover ……………………………………… About Sydney Medical School………… 3 What our elective students say………… ..4 Meet our staff………………………….. ..6 Join us ……………………………………… Elective placement opportunities ………...7 Office for Global Health ……………… ..9 Clinical School information Sydney Medical School - Central ……… ..9 Sydney Medical School - Concord …….. 10 Sydney Medical School – Nepean……... 11 Sydney Medical Schools - Northern …..... 12 Sydney Medical School - The Children’s Hospital Westmead …………………..... 12 Sydney Medical School - Westmead ….. 13 Apply ……………………………………… Scholarships…………………………….. 14 Fees…………………………………….. 14 How to apply…………………………... 14 When you are here……………………. 15 Discover About Sydney Medical School Sydney Sydney is Australia’s largest and most dynamic city as well as being one of the most multicultural cities in the world. More than a quarter of our 5 million residents speak a language other than English, and the most widely spoken languages include Mandarin, Cantonese, Arabic, Greek, Vietnamese, Hindi, Italian, Spanish, Korean and Indonesian. We enjoy a comfortable, temperate climate with warm summers and mild winters. If you decide to come here on your student elective placement, you can explore the city and its many green spaces all year round. You can visit famous icons such as the Sydney Opera House, the Harbour Bridge and Bondi Beach, as well as the World Heritage listed Blue Mountains. Why do a placement at Sydney Medical School? More than 50,000 students call the University of Sydney home. Our vibrant student body is a wonderfully diverse community, including more than 10,000 students from 145 countries. It’s a truly inclusive and welcoming environment. The Sydney Medical School itself has around 5,000 students and is internationally recognised for research and teaching in health and medicine of world class standards. With formal links to more than 50 hospitals and health care facilities across New South Wales, Sydney is Australia's longest established medical school, offering outstanding opportunities for researchers and students. Each year 600 medical students from other countries or from around Australia come to us for short term elective placements. Some of these overseas medical students are participants in our student exchange programs with partner institutions. Study at one of our Clinical Schools Inbound elective students can apply for placements at one of six Clinical Schools: Sydney Medical School - Central Sydney Medical School - Concord Sydney Medical School - Nepean Sydney Medical School - Northern Sydney Medical School - The Children’s Hospital at Westmead Sydney Medical School - Westmead Each Clinical School provides unique learning opportunities for our students, while still maintaining the curriculum that has led to the Sydney M.D. becoming one of the most respected medical programs in Asia Pacific. An overview of each Clinical School can be found http://sydney.edu.au/medicine/schools- disciplines-centres/clinical-schools/index.php You can find details of the Clinical Schools further on in the brochure, but meanwhile you can read about the experiences of some of our inbound students. 3 | P a g e Discover What our elective students say Sydney Medical School - Northern Carmen Stellar from Weill Cornell Medical College undertook a clinical placement at Royal North Shore Hospital in 2016 After having completed my Pathology rotation, I have an even stronger belief in the importance of a multidisciplinary approach to medical care. It is critical for a clinician to develop relationships with specialists and consultants in other fields in order to deliver the highest level of patient care. After having completed my rural rotation, I am better able to appreciate the ways in which a patient’s racial/ethnic background can contribute to the natural progression of disease (i.e. diabetes tends to progress to end stage renal disease much more rapidly in Aboriginal populations that in White Australian populations). I am also increasingly sensitive to cultural and geographic barriers which can influence a patient’s ability to access medical care. I was impressed by Australia’s approach to providing healthcare to rural populations via outreach clinics, telemedicine, and the Royal Flying Doctors Service. The only logistical challenges I faced were with the rural placement, which was originally meant to be at Broken Hill, and then fluctuated between Lismore, Orange, and Dubbo. I had a wonderful time in Dubbo, but I think it might be easier to coordinator directly with consultants who are interested in supervising international students. Dr. Fiore Chapman was absolutely wonderful, and I would absolutely recommend working with her to other students interested in a rural rotation. Sydney Medical School - Nepean Chanthy Srun from University of Health Sciences Cambodia undertook a clinical placement at Nepean Hospital in 2016 I was both excited and nervous at the same time after knowing that I was selected for a four-week clinical placement at the University of Sydney. To be honest, I was afraid that I was not able to cope with the hospital and my living there because it was the first time for me to travel abroad. However, my nervousness was suddenly gone after I arrived in Sydney because of a friendly welcome and help at the airport from Veronica, a project administrator of this program. After the flight, I spent one night in Sydney and went sightseeing the city. The day after, I took a train to Nepean Hospital where I had to spend four weeks working there. On the third night upon my arrival, I spent time with other electives from other countries. By spending my four weeks in Paediatrics department at Nepean Hospital, University of Sydney, I can gain many precious experiences. I have had a great opportunity to stay in a foreign hospital and travel such a long trip by myself. Moreover, I am very delighted to learn more about the medical care system in Australia, especially, participating in different sections of Clinic outpatient, such as behavioural paediatric clinic, general paediatric clinic, growth and developmental paediatric clinic with registrars and professors who provide me a chance to do practice more about medical terms. Besides, I also joined tutorial classes and journal clubs, which help improve my medical knowledge. I really have a great time there because of their genuinely warm welcome and helpful for me to have such enriching experiences. Even I was an oversea medical student, I still have a chance to join all activities in the hospital the same as Australian students. We took turn with each other to work in various parts of Paediatric department: outpatient, postnatal, emergency department, and paediatric ward. With such provision, I was able to get involved as much as other students, which meant a lot to me. In addition, living in the provided accommodation was both safe and convenient. I 4 | P a g e could meet other elective international students, particular my lovely suite mate who always helped me when I was in need. For my first weekend, I was extremely excited to visit Blue Mountain with Cathy and Brian. They took me around the mountain to see the whole view of it. The second weekend, I was invited to their house to celebrate the Easter day together. It was so much fun because we were able to have lunch together, played game, and shared the happy moment together. I also spent my free time to explore around the city. I went to Opera House, Zoo, Harbour Bridge, Life Sea, Sydney tower, Sydney wildlife, Manly Beach, and other wonderful places. I got many great experiences according to this travel. I have never taken a train and ferry cross the sea before. However, after experiencing these in Sydney, it was fantastic for me. Additionally, I was able eat the Australia, China, and Thai food. During Good Friday, I went to Fish market with my friends. I was very joyful because I was able to eat fresh food, particularly, some of kind of seafood I have never tried in my country. Finally, I would like to give thanks to program coordinators, generous sponsors, and other related individuals, who provide such great opportunity for me to experience working in Nepean Hospital in this highly developed country, Australia. This is invaluable for me and it has become a path for me to develop myself to be a good doctor in the future. Sydney Medical School - Northern Huda Amilina from Universitas Gadjah Mada, Indonesia, undertook a 4 week exchange placement at the Royal North Shore Hospital in July 2016. Having a chance to be an exchange student in Sydney University is like a dream comes true for me. I still remember how I spend my night to write motivation letter and fill the application form from my university’s international office to apply in this exchange program. After knowing that I would come to Sydney, I counted down the days to come to Sydney, I was so excited! When I finally arrived at Sydney, I already knew that I will enjoy my 4 weeks here.