Working in the health sector in the
developing world is a real challenge. Observe experts in your field and
learn how they work in Brazil. The experience you gain will be
invaluable to you in the future and totally different to what you're
used to in your home country.
This project will allow you to gain experience in your
chosen field within medicine, while experiencing what life is like for
some of Brazil's poorest residents in the shanty towns surrounding
beautiful Foz do
Iguaçu... No qualifications are required for this project
- if you have an interest in the area or an intent to study, that's
enough!
Concentrate on General
Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmaceuticals or Physiotherapy
.
ABOUT THE HOSPITAL AND YOUR WORK
The Poliambulatório hospital is open
to anyone in the community who needs free care, and has benefited hundreds
of people around Foz since its opening. The hospital has several
departments, and Travellers volunteers are currently helping out here in
many different ways.
For all projects, you will
concentrate mainly on your area of expertise, but may also be asked to help
out with other activities around the hospital. You’ll need to be very
flexible, and happy to help wherever needed. You will more than likely be
asked to help out with hospital admin as well as with practical activities.
The hospital does a lot of work
within the community around Foz as well as in the hospital building itself.
Professionals often visit patients at home, either to treat them or to
monitor them as part of an aftercare program. You’ll often be able to
accompany the medical professionals on these visits, and so you’ll have the
opportunity to visit families around Foz. This part of the project is pretty
special, as you’ll be able to experience what life is like in the shanty
towns around Foz, get to know the local people and really play a part in
helping them recover from illnesses.
The hospital is run by SCNSA (Sociedade
Civil Nossa Senhora Aparecida), a group of social centres who work to
improve life for the residents in Foz. The hospital has links to a project
for teenagers and a crèche, where you can also get involved with caring for
kids or teaching if you want to expand your area of work.
There are around 60 members of
staff at the hospital, who work full time. You’ll usually work around 4-6
hours per day. You’ll have the rest of your day and the weekends for
exploring and sightseeing with the other volunteers! For information on living in
Foz and your accommodation, please see here
Medical Project Your main activities on this project will
usually include: helping the doctors with basic procedures,
receiving patients, helping to clean and tidy away the office,
assisting doctors with training patients on how best to look after
themselves following treatment
Dentistry Project Your main activities on this project will
usually include: helping the dentist with basic procedures,
receiving patients, helping to clean and tidy away the office,
training patients in oral hygiene.
Pharmaceutical Project Your main activities on this project will
usually include: dispensing medication to patients, controlling
medication stocks and cleaning the medication room and medical
chest.
"I have really enjoyed living in Foz, because it is a really good place
to see everyday life in Brazil. I think it´s a better place to learn
Portuguese than Rio because there are fewer English speaking people. Both
sides of the falls are amazing and there is always clubbing in Argentina or
shopping in Paraguay to fill a weekend. The people of Foz, like all
Brazilians, are really welcoming and will always help if they can"
Volunteer Hayley Panton on what it's like to live in Foz
The most important qualifications for this placement are
that you’re self motivated, confident working both alone and in a team and
have a friendly disposition.
Ideally, you should have an interest in the area of
medicine that you’d like to work within or be studying or qualified in that
field. However, if you have no experience, we can still accept you on the
project.
However, no formal qualifications or experience are
required for this project. You may find that your assigned tasks differ
depending on your skills and experience, so if you’re not confident in every
area don’t worry.
Travellers will also go through the usual internal
acceptance procedure, for which you will need to fill in the questionnaires
found on the volunteer extranet. It is only once we hear back regarding your
final acceptance that we will be able to book your flights and confirm you
on your placement, so the speedier you can be with sending all this in, the
better!
"This placement
has been rewarding work experience fro me and it has made me determined to
get a qualification so that next time I can truly work, rather than observe.
For anybody wanting a career in medicine this is an excellent opportunity
and I would recommend it." Kate Malia, gap-year student,
Ghana Medical Project
TRAVEL AND SUPPORT
You have the option to arrange your
own flights or we can assist you with your flight arrangements. If you would
like us to do this for you, we will liaise with you regarding available flights
and dates to suit you. All arrangements for your flight bookings/payments will
be fulfilled by Murray Rogers Travel Ltd., ATOL No. 6856. (Read more about Murray Rogers Travel Ltd.)
Where possible, we arrange for two or more people to travel on the
same flight and we will let you have the names and telephone numbers of other
volunteers on your flight, so that you can chat to each other or even meet up
before leaving for your placement.
For Foz, you'll more than likely fly into
Sao Paulo, as this is the nearest international airport. From
there you can either fly to Foz do Iguaçu
or you have the option to take a comfortable bus/coach ride instead. The trip
takes about 12 - 14 hours and is an excellent way to see some of the country.
For Rio, you'll fly
into the international airport.
When you arrive, you'll be welcomed by
our local Organiser and introduced to the people you'll be living and working
with.
Where possible, all flights we arrange for you
have changeable return tickets because many of our volunteers choose to extend
their stay once they are in their destination country. Changeable return tickets
enable you to do so, within the limits of your visa and the level of your air
ticket, of course. If you choose to book your own flights, you should endeavour
to get a changeable ticket.
We meet you at the airport regardless of whether you make
your own travel arrangements or not.
VISAS:. All requirements regarding visas will
be arranged by our office and the process of obtaining a visa will be made very easy for you.
We can also arrange your flight
dates to give you additional time at the end of your project for travelling
around and sightseeing - this is a fascinating and wondrous country!
To see what support we provide in our countries,
please read Support
and Backup
PRICES
To see the Prices of this project and all
our other projects in Brazil, please
click here
Prices
include
Accommodation and
breakfast while on your project,
2 T-shirts, if required
for your project
All support and backup
during your programme
Meeting you at the
nearest airport, where appropriate, but exclude international travel.
.
+44 01903 502595
