Among the ruins of St. Augustine’s Abbey in Canterbury

Author: Grant Shelnut | Major: Biology | Semester: January Intersession 2023

I now have the pleasure of saying that I “went up” to university on Central London’s Russell Square in 2023. Well, kind of. For context’s sake, a tour guide at Cambridge informed us American students that the date student’s begin college in England is termed as the date students “go up” to their respective universities. Usually, though, one has to graduate from English university to be able to claim the year/class he or she went up to college. My three-week escapade in and around London was simply so exceptional that I feel it necessary to claim having gone up to university in England, albeit for a short amount of time.

Britain’s publicly funded National Health Service (NHS) was the focus of my studies whilst up at university. As an aspiring physician, I recognize the many shortcomings of the healthcare system in the U.S. There are large disparities in healthcare delivery for different groups throughout the country and within our state of Arkansas. Therefore, while searching for an abroad program to attend, I knew that I wanted to directly observe and possibly interact within a foreign healthcare system much different than that of the U.S.’s. My objective of direct observation was fulfilled in my program of choice, as in addition to the class I completed, the NHS was among the top headlines on the BBC and other British news outlets for the entirety of my time in England. The healthcare system, which is beloved by nearly all of Britain, is currently in major crisis mode following a decade of underfunding leading up to the infamous year of 2020. Already weakened by then, the NHS was then delivered a brutal blow by the COVID-19 pandemic and still hasn’t even gotten close to recovering from its effects. Some patients are in Emergency Department waiting rooms for more than 40 hours before receiving care, ambulance workers are urging citizens not to call for help unless they feel like they’re dying, and healthcare workers continue to quit or retire early due to the stressful conditions. The current situation has led many to believe that the NHS is doomed.

I believe the dire state of the NHS provides a warning of the negative consequences of a healthcare system being so intimately tied with governmental policy. The fact that a mere decade of underfunding under Conservative and Coalition governments led to such drastic weakening of the NHS reveals that the system is inherently unstable. While our healthcare system in the U.S. is obviously still dealing with the effects stemming from the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, it has seemingly rebounded much better than the NHS has. My comparisons between U.S. and U.K. healthcare provisions have led me to a particular idea: we can appreciate the systems we have in the U.S. while also working to continually improve them. Appreciation and a want to improve seem mutually exclusive in today’s polarized society, but they don’t have to be. Really, they shouldn’t be. While I know our healthcare system in the U.S. needs extensive reformation, I would be disheartened to see us attempt to replicate the NHS based on my experiences.

My time outside of the classroom was outstanding. The buildings in London and its surrounding areas were particularly impressive to me. I recall emerging from the London Underground and standing in front of the Tower of London, a dynamic castle/fortress/prison/house of the crown jewels built by William the Conqueror in the 1070s. Directly across the Thames, in the background of this grand piece of history emerges The Shard, which opened in 2013 and is the seventh-tallest building in all of Europe. This juxtaposition between modern and ancient is awe-inspiring and present all around the city.

As a lifelong history buff, I mainly sought out sites that illustrated England’s rich past. I sat in Henry VIII’s Grand Hall at Hampton Court Palace and explored the palace’s beautiful gardens. At Westminster Abbey, I walked among the graves of Darwin, Newton, and Elizabeth I. Unexpectedly, I stumbled upon the laboratory where J.J. Thomson discovered the electron at Cambridge. I could undoubtedly put forth an entire essay on the historic places I observed, but I’ll spare everyone from my rambling and save that for another time.

Overall, I’d recommend CIEE’s January in London program to those interested in healthcare and the policies that impact healthcare systems. If we want to make positive changes to our healthcare system in the U.S., it is important for doctors, nurses, politicians, and all involved with healthcare to be aware with what is working and, just as importantly, what is not working within the healthcare systems of other countries. A downside of the program is that I was unable to interact within the NHS as the syllabus and program website promised, but I somewhat give CIEE a pass on this since the NHS is experiencing such enormous challenges. Workers surely don’t have time to speak to students from abroad given the current circumstances, and I would have felt terrible to have diverted the attention of these workers away from patients. On a different note, for those going on shorter, intersession study abroad trips, I would recommend truly grounding yourself in the culture of the primary country you are visiting. I did not travel outside of the United Kingdom during my time abroad, and I thus feel like I fully experienced London. Although everyone has his or her own preferences, I view this as more enriching than seeing only the extremely popular landmarks in several areas. I am grateful to have “gone up” during my January in London although I am glad to see the sun again on a more regular basis. It rained in England 19 out of the 21 days of my visit, so be sure to pack an umbrella.