Tag: Study Abroad

Dr. Carlos Valencia, Resident Director of the Clemson in Seville Program, talked about the program highlights during his presentation on September 19 and at the Study Abroad Fair on September 20, 2017. Dr. Carlos Valencia received his doctorate in 19th-century Spanish literature from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill before teaching at Wake Forest University and the University of Richmond. Among Carlos’s professional interests are the application of new technology to Spanish language instruction and the incorporation of volunteer work into curriculua as a sociolinguistic and cultural learning tool.

The following students also participated to share their experiences in the Seville Program, Spring 2017: Carine Brown (L&IH), Fatema Bhagat (L&IH), Sarah Burton (L&IT), Kylie Cash (L&IT), Sean Cosh (Minor in Spanish), Kate Czerkawski (L&IH), Catie Silva (L&IH), Marina Velo (L&IH), and Melissa Williams (L&IH). The students talked about classes, trips, business and health internships, group projects, and how the professors abroad helped them to reach their goals in education. The International Spanish Program and Internships in Seville, Spain is a unique program designed for students in Modern Languages-Spanish, Language and International Health, Language and International Trade, and a minor in Spanish. Those who wish to embark on this journey are rewarded with the chance of a lifetime to explore Spanish culture and to experience working in a number of different business and healthcare environments. For more information, please contact Dr. Graciela Tissera, Program Director (gtisser@clemson.edu).

Language and International Health (L&IH) students studying abroad in Seville, Spain through the Centro Internacional de Estudios Culturales (CINECU) have the opportunity to do internships at the Victoria Eugenia Hospital. The three-month, 135-hour internship allows students to directly observe the structural and functional organization of the healthcare system in Andalusia. These internships were facilitated by the Institute of Health Education, a hospital partner that organizes events and courses designed to combine practical experience with theoretical knowledge.

Read the announcement in Spanish on Victoria Eugenia Hospital’s website.

Building Healthy Communities in the Dominican Republic is an undergraduate research and study abroad Creative Inquiry (CI) project led by Dr. Arelis Moore de Peralta. The project is an interdisciplinary, holistic effort dedicated to improving the health of Las Malvinas, a poverty-stricken community in the Dominican Republic (DR). Moore de Peralta holds a joint appointment with the Department of Youth, Family and Community Studies and the Department of Languages.

A trip to Las Malvinas in November 2016 allowed for planning and partnership building with the Universidad Iberoamericana, the DR’s Ministry of Public Health, and Las Malvinas community members. Joining Moore de Peralta on the trip were David Vaughn, Professor of Practice, Clemson Engineers for Developing Countries (CEDC), and two of his students who are also program coordinators (Hunter Lee and Jack McLeod); Dr. James H. Spencer, Associate Dean of Research and Graduate Education, CAAH; and Katherine Brown, a CI Project Research Team Leader.

Community members in Las Malvinas hope for an organized community health plan and local government’s involvement in sustainable improvement projects. The Clemson CI project aims to conduct a Community Health Assessment and to develop a Community Health Improvement Plan in Las Malvinas. This experience improves students’ cultural competence and critical thinking skills, and allows them to develop evidence-based learning skills to conduct research beyond the CI class.

Building Healthy Communities in the Dominican Republic will take a spring trip in March 2017.

Language and International Health (L&IH) students studying abroad in Seville had the opportunity to visit the Valme University Hospital, as part of an intensive seminar on the public health system in Spain. Accompanied by the director of the Clinical Imaging Diagnostics Management Unit, Rafael Aznar, and the healthcare director, Javier Román, the students explored different imaging technology, including ultrasounds and MRIs. They also visited the Maternal Imaging Diagnostics Unit, where radiologist Fausto Rubio, the coordinator of the unit, showed the visitors how imaging professionals work, the modern facilities, and the latest technology. The visit provided a practical complement to the students’ theoretical knowledge, especially in the area of X-ray diagnostics, and the students benefited from learning about professional healthcare opportunities.

Please see the full text of the press release in Spanish below.

NOTA DE PRENSA

Estudiantes norteamericanos de Ciencias de la Salud visitan el Hospital de Valme para conocer su organización sanitaria

 Han profundizado en los diferentes dispositivos asistenciales de la Unidad de Gestión Clínica de Diagnóstico por la Imagen

El Hospital Universitario de Valme de Sevilla ha recibido la visita de un grupo de 10 estudiantes de la Universidad de Clemson (Carolina del Sur) dentro de un seminario intensivo sobre el Sistema de Salud Pública en España impartido por el Centro Internacional de Estudios Culturales. La cita ha servido también para que estos alumnos universitarios pudieran conocer las características del Sistema Sanitario Público Andaluz.

Se trata de una iniciativa formativa que, a través de esta visita, completa los conocimientos teóricos adquiridos por los citados estudiantes. En el hospital sevillano han podido conocer la organización de la sanidad y el diseño de la asistencia hospitalaria, así como las respuestas clínicas ofrecidas.

Concretamente, el grupo de estudiantes norteamericanos se ha interesado por el área de Radiodiagnóstico. Acompañados por el director de la Unidad de Gestión Clínica de Diagnóstico por la Imagen, Rafael Aznar, y el responsable de Cuidados, Javier Román; los alumnos han visitado los diferentes dispositivos de esta especialidad. Inicialmente, el área de radiografías convencionales, radiología digital directa, ecografías, TAC, telemando, sala de radiología vascular intervencionista y resonancia magnética.

Posteriormente, se han desplazado a la Unidad de Diagnóstico por la Imagen de la Mama donde el coordinador de la misma (el radiólogo Fausto Rubio) les ha dado a conocer cómo trabajan los profesionales, las modernas instalaciones y la tecnología de última generación; así como les ha trasladado la experiencia en técnicas punteras para ofrecer una respuesta asistencial eficaz y de calidad. Es el caso de la mesa prona, biopsia al vacío o la mamografía digital con contraste.

A lo largo del curso académico el Hospital Universitario de Valme recibe la visita de numerosos estudiantes, especialmente de Bachillerato de la rama sanitaria, a quienes se informa sobre las posibilidades laborales del área de la salud y, de este modo, contribuir a su orientación académica y profesional.

Clemson’s unique Language and International Health major combines coursework in languages (with concentrations in Spanish and Chinese) and public health.  A highlight of the program for those concentrating in Spanish is the healthcare internship experience in Seville, Spain. Students have the opportunity to complete internships at both public and private hospitals and medical centers. The program also provides an overview of the health system in Spain, specifically in Andalusia, through visits to several local hospitals, a guided tour of the Andalusian School of Public Health in Granada, and the opportunity to interact and converse with local healthcare politicians from Dos Hermanas, a town near Seville.

During the semester-long program, organized through the Centro Internacional de Estudios Culturales (CINECU), students complete five courses for a total of 45 contact hours at Estudios Universitarios y Superiores de Andalucía (EUSA), a private school which has been affiliated with the University of Seville since 1996. Courses focus on improving Spanish linguistic competence and expanding cultural knowledge of Spain, including its medical structure and institutions. Students stay with families in Seville, thereby allowing them to experience the local culture firsthand.

Thanks to Clemson’s agreement with the CINECU, L&IH students studying in Seville can do their internships at the Victoria Eugenia Hospital, a private hospital which belongs to Spain’s Red Cross. It is a 140-hour program in which the students rotate among the different sections of the hospital observing admissions, emergency, intensive care, outpatient, rehabilitation, pharmacy, and surgery.

The internship in health administration allows students to learn about the organization of the healthcare system through direct observations and experiences in hospitals and clinics.  Using their observational and experiential data, as well as information from coursework, students produce a final report, which summarizes and analyzes the differences and/or similarities found between the health systems in the United States and in Spain.

Chardrevius (Dre) Martin, a senior Language and International Health-Spanish major, spent the spring semester of 2015 in Seville. He plans to pursue a degree in medicine and noted “the knowledge that I learned in these courses will give me a much better understanding of how all types of healthcare systems work.” Dre describes his internship, “I worked in the Department of Preventative Medicine at a hospital outside of the city. I was able to participate in [a] point prevalence study of hospital-associated infections called EPINE/EPPS. This study is done throughout Europe to determine what infections are most prominent and their risk factors. I learned a wealth of knowledge through this study and by following physicians around during consults with patients infected with various infectious diseases.”

Dre and other students who participate in the internship program not only gain practical experience in the healthcare field but also learn about another culture by living with families, taking courses and making new friends. Dre sums up his experience, “Studying abroad changed me in many ways, but the most important thing it gave me was respect for others and their lifestyles, which goes far beyond just tolerance for those things. If I had the chance, I would do it all over in a heartbeat because […] the wonderful people I met, food I [ate], [and] music I heard all worked together to make Sevilla a place I will always call home.”