Submitted by Mason Willey on the 2018 winter session program in Italy sponsored by the College of Health Sciences and the College of Arts and Sciences…
My first week in Italy was cut short by travel complications due to weather conditions; however, I managed to arrive in Trieste in one piece! As I shadowed in the Italian hospitals during my first week, I compared many aspects of the Italian healthcare system to the healthcare system at home. Some primary differences revolved around the personalization of care that some Italian physicians implement into their work (so that patients can directly see them in their offices for 20-30 minutes versus seeing them in a clinic), as well as a lower priority placed around sanitary conditions (as some physicians will reuse their gloves and not use hand sanitizer).
Other than my clinical experience, we traveled to Ljubljana, Slovenia, where we visited the famous Dragon Bridge and the market along the River Ljubljanica. Soon after, we visited the Church of St. Nicholas near the market stalls and grabbed an authentic Slovenian lunch, comprised of various meats and cheeses, followed by a mushroom soup bread bowl. To end the day, we hiked through the streets of the city and up a large hill to Ljubljana Castle which was constructed in the 11th Century and has a view of the entire city and Austrian mountains on the horizon. Despite the initial delay to my program, I have still seen quite a few amazing places, shadowed several fantastic physicians, and eaten various delicious meals with 2 weeks still left to go!
