Learning How to Take Blood

Author: Isabella McGill | Major: Biomedical Engineering | Semester: Summer 2023

Over the summer, I spent six weeks studying abroad in multiple different countries through one program. The program is known as DIS, and I studied in Stockholm, Copenhagen, and Berlin. I earned six credit hours that go towards biomedical engineering elective courses. I chose this program due to the opportunity to study in multiple countries and the courses they offered. Both my classes were healthcare related and had a lot of hands-on opportunities. For my first class, Medical Diagnostics, I learned about human anatomy and the different diagnostic tools used when diagnosing diseases. This class gave me the opportunity to learn how to draw blood and visit two hospitals: a mammography center and a clinical microbiology lab. These visits gave great insight into oncology diagnostics and what happened to the hospitals in Sweden during COVID. My second class I took was Human Health and Disease: A Clinical Approach. During this class, I learned again about human anatomy as well as different diseases in all different areas of the body. This class also provided many different hands-on opportunities and a study tour of Berlin. While in Copenhagen, I participated in a clinical skills session (learning how to suture, insert IVS, and insert catheters) and an emergency medicine skills session (learning about the ABCs of emergency medicine and CPR). During my study tour in Berlin, there were four different visits. We went to a pediatrics department, a clinic for coronary and endovascular surgery, a neonatology department, and a body worlds exhibit. All of these gave insight into what it is actually like to work as a doctor in these different fields. Overall, my instructors were all very passionate and knowledgeable about what they were teaching. My Stockholm professor does research on Stem cells, and the Copenhagen professors are both working doctors. My classes were different from my classes at home due to the common use of class discussions and group work. These classes were smaller and seemed more teamwork focused.

Outside of class, I got to experience the different cultures of these countries. In both Sweden and Denmark, kids learn English as a second language in elementary school. This meant that any natives I talked to would be able to understand and hold conversations with me. I enjoyed the food in all of the countries, my favorite being the Swedish meatballs. These countries are also close to the water, so they have great accessibility to fish which means a lot of cheap sushi, which I loved. Something I became very good at using was public transportation. I never use public transport at home, but in every country I learned how to use their public transport all on my own. This made getting around the cities much easier. Something I really loved about these countries was the almost 24 hours of daylight they have during the summer. This made walking around the city acceptable at any hour. While Copenhagen and Stockholm are both big cities, I never once felt unsafe.

Before I left, I was a little nervous about being away from my family for six weeks. I am from Fayetteville and have never been away from home for that long. However, once I got there, I knew I didn’t need to be nervous. These countries are incredibly safe and very accessible to people who only speak English. I loved my time abroad and felt I gained a sense of independence while I was gone. If you go to these countries, I would recommend not only hitting tourist locations but also trying to find spots where a lot of locals spend time to become fully immersed in the culture. Be prepared for a lot of walking and limited access to air conditioning. This was a great program that I advise anyone who is even thinking about studying abroad to participate in.