Submitted by Jessica Bursler on the 2017 winter session program in Spain sponsored by the College of Arts and Sciences…
Socialism. Universal healthcare. Lack of insurance. These are just a few of the differences that jump out when discussing Spanish versus American healthcare. This week, I was introduced to the facility that I would be spending most of my time at for the next three weeks: Hospital Universitario Miguel Servet. Living in the shoes of a Spanish medical student, I shadowed in the nationally-renown Obstetrics department of this hospital all week. I not only learned the ins and outs of an ultrasound, but how to ask, “¿Cómo te sientes hoy? (How are you feeling today?)” in a language the patients understand.
I explored the complexity of third trimester high risk pregnancies, including micro-cephalic fetuses to gestational diabetes. My Spanish preceptors helped make sense of how to read an ultrasound and what it tells us. The real excitement hit on Wednesday, though, when my preceptor motioned to me, saying, “Parto, parto!” I came to learn this word meant “delivery,” so I followed her with excitement in my step. I entered the delivery room and experienced the “miracle of life,” finding the phrase to be far from a cliché – it truly is a miracle. I watched anxiously as the mother delivered, tearing up as she held the newborn in her arms for the first time.
Although reading the above does not exaggerate the Spanish culture throughout my day, it was certainly present. Every single Spanish citizen has access to the exact same healthcare for free. Every mother is able to deliver her newborn in a sterile, safe environment, without it costing an arm and a leg. Because of the access, though, patients have fewer choices in their treatments. For example, no mother is able to choose to deliver by C-section; they are performed only when necessary; very different from the United States. While there are downsides to this socialized system, the good seemed to outweigh the bad by far, allowing every Spanish citizen, regardless of status, access to healthcare, opening my eyes to the world of possibilities beyond the United States’ healthcare system. I am thrilled to see what the rest of my time in the hospital and in Zaragoza, Spain will bring!
