L to R: Hannah Stone (Med-Peds), Lauren Rosati, Kelly Muterspaw, Kelsey Thetford, and Abby Davidson.Chile is a country of contrasts. Situated in a long, narrow stretch of land between vast mountain ranges and the Pacific Ocean, Chile is home to the temperate rainforests of Patagonia and the arid deserts of the Atacama to the north. Near the center of the country is its capital, Santiago, where we lived and worked last month. Going into the rotation, we expected to learn about all of the contrasts between healthcare in Chile and the United States. However, we ended up learning that the two countries are more similar than we initially suspected.
During our month in Chile, we divided our time between two hospitals - Clinica Alemana, a private hospital within the heart of Santiago, and Hospital Padre Hurtado, a publicly-funded hospital about an hour's bus ride outside of the city. The benefit of being able to work at these two hospitals was being able to learn how the healthcare system of Chile meets the needs of patients at all ends of the socioeconomic spectrum. One highlight of working at Padre Hurtado was being able to accompany one of the complex care doctors on weekly home visits - where the doctor, nurse, and psychologist would visit patients with complex needs and limited transportation. During these visits, both the medical needs of the patients and the emotional needs of the families would be addressed. Encounters like these made us curious on how we could work to better meet the needs of our own patients in Alabama.
The attendings, residents, and medical students in Chile welcomed us with open arms. They walked us through cases, answered our endless questions about medical training in Chile, and even drove us to work most mornings. We were so lucky to have the opportunity to learn from them, and we are excited to welcome Chilean residents Carmen, Dani, and Martina, who are in Birmingham this month to continue that exchange of knowledge.
Our sincere gratitude to Dr. Sergio Stagno for making this trip possible. Our lives and medical practices are changed for the better from our month in Chile.
Abby Davidson (Pediatrics PGY-2), Hannah Stone (Medicine-Pediatrics PGY-3), Kelly Muterspaw (Pediatrics PGY-2), Kelsey Thetford (Pediatrics PGY-3), and Lauren Rosati (Pediatrics PGY-2)