Good Shepherd Hospital, Eswatini, Ellie McBain, 2022

My name is Ellie and I spent a month in Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) on my elective in July 2022. I’m a student at Newcastle University and my elective came at the end of my fourth year – I’d been looking forward to my elective from the first day of medical school! I embarked on my elective by myself and made the decision to go to Eswatini because I wanted to experience rural medicine in another culture and see what it’s like at a Christian hospital. I organised my elective with Dr Pons via email which was very straightforward as he replied promptly to my emails and (many!) questions. I’d recommend my elective to anyone who is interested in rural healthcare especially with a community focus, or ophthalmology. I found my experience eye opening, challenging and fun.

For Ellie’s report, click on the pdf.