Hiking the cliffs in the seaside town of Howth.

Author: Lucia Barraza | Major: Exercise Science | Semester: Summer 2023

This summer I spent three weeks in Ireland as part of the Health Care and Social Services Faculty-Led program offered by the UofA. During my time there, we visited the cities of Limerick, Galway and Dublin to learn about various health care organizations and meet with the users of these services. The trip was the highlight of my summer and I am so incredibly grateful for the opportunity to learn and grow as a person and future healthcare worker through traveling abroad.

I chose to apply to the Health Care and Social Services program because I’m planning on becoming a physical therapist after completing my undergraduate degree in exercise science. I was drawn to the program’s site visits and hands-on learning model, and I was interested in learning more about public health care systems like the one in place in Ireland. The site visits were eye opening, and I believe it allowed me to understand health care and social work in a way that would never be possible in a classroom setting. We had the privilege of talking to people from all different backgrounds, including both health care service providers and users. We visited many different organizations, ranging from a homeless center in Limerick to a wheelchair association for the elderly in Galway. The site visits and conversations I had during these visits opened my eyes to the importance of having good health care access, and showed me the various ways that I can use my skills as a physical therapist in the future.

One part of the program I enjoyed was the meetings our group would have before and after every site visit. During these meetings we would discuss the background of the place we were visiting, and we would share the questions we wanted to ask the providers and users. Our group always came prepared with great questions, and I loved hearing everyone’s takeaways and thoughts after the visits. These meetings sparked great conversations about public health care policies, accessibility to care, and the challenges of working in a health care or social work field.

I was a little nervous before going on the trip as I had never traveled outside of the United States before and didn’t know what to expect. However, I was amazed by the friendliness and warmth of the Irish people. In every city and town we visited, the locals were happy to help us with directions, and always seemed genuinely interested in hearing about life in America. As someone who loves history, I really enjoyed all of the castles we visited throughout the trip. On one of our free days, our group took the train to Cork and then hopped on a bus to visit the famous Blarney castle and stone. The history behind the castle was fascinating, and the beautiful gardens on the grounds were stunning. We also visited the famous Fagel collection library at Trinity college in Dublin, which was something that was on my bucket list to visit. The collection holds items dating back to the 1400s, and the books are displayed in a gorgeous dark wood library with a vaulted ceiling.

I would highly recommend this trip for anyone planning on working in the healthcare or social work field. It is such a great opportunity to be able to speak with healthcare providers and users and learn about the benefits and challenges of living under a public health care system. Not to mention the beautiful Irish countryside and friendly people there that make the trip worthwhile. I’m so grateful for my time abroad this summer and I can’t wait to hopefully visit Ireland again in the future!