My exchange is in Spain, Madrid and I am doing a practical training. I’m a nursing student from Finland and my first training was in the hospital called La Paz (which by the way means “peace”). My second practise is for five weeks in outpatient care. I’ve been able to learn Spanish, especially hospital vocabulary which I think is a bit funny. I might not know the usual things in Spanish but I can describe symptoms and understand the professional terms. Luckily scientific terms in medical field are very similar if not the same as a lot of them are based on the Latin origin.
Any tutor who would spend the shift with me was also excited to learn English from me which I was happy to help them with.
My daily life in Madrid was very different and maybe a bit limited as I only worked evening shifts. Luckily it was Monday to Friday and weekends always off! I would run errands or study during the morning and then head off to the hospital in the afternoon. I’m super grateful for doing this exchange, so I’ve been careful not to complain or be negative towards my working hours. During the weekends I would rest, see my friends and happily go to this small church every Sunday.
I could travel more around the country, but I’m not too stressed about that to be honest. I have visited few places, but for me travelling is more about the new connections and people I meet. I was so happy when a fellow student invited me to have lunch with his wife and family!
There are interesting differences when comparing the practises in Finland and in Spain. In Finland the tutors are very careful and want to be aware of every move a student makes, which is normal and makes us students feel safe I think. In Spain the tutors would trust me more in some cases, and if I wanted to be aware what was happening with the patient, I had to make sure myself I was following my tutor and paying attention. Their confidence in me actually gives me more confidence as well, I don’t make irrational decisions but actually think more myself and of course still ask questions.
Other thing I’ve noticed with the Spanish nurses is the willingness of teaching. No matter who I was with in my shift, they would really make sure they are teaching something new to me besides focusing on working with our patients.
I’m very very happy with my exchange even with these differences!
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