By Anotidaishe
Sitting at the boarding gate waiting for my flight, I was incredibly nervous. The travel itself didn’t make me nervous. Going to a country where almost everyone spoke a language that I only knew the very basics of was both exciting and nerve-wracking. My Portuguese vocabulary was essentially limited to bom dia and ordering coffee at a café (all thanks to my 14-day Duolingo streak).
I was about to embark on a two-week journey of medical shadowing with Atlantis, and I had so many expectations. I was excited about what I would learn through the shadowing experience, discovering the Portuguese healthcare system, Portuguese culture and the local people. Little did I know that those expectations were only a small glimpse of the experience that awaited me.
I remember meeting the rest of my cohort for the first time. There was something comforting about seeing the seven other students I would be sharing this experience with. We all seemed to be feeling a similar mixture of nervousness and excitement. In that moment, I realised that I would not be going through this journey alone.
Over the next two weeks, I would not only learn alongside them but also get to know them, share experiences, and build meaningful connections. We would explore the Portuguese healthcare system, experience the local culture, and navigate this entirely new environment (with the help of Google Maps, of course).
My shadowing experience was, without a doubt, one of the highlights of my time in Portugal. Before we even began shadowing at the hospital, we were introduced to the Portuguese healthcare system. I remember being particularly fascinated by the way healthcare is prioritised and made accessible to the population. This was through a well-resourced public healthcare system that is available at little to no cost for many people. This immediately stood out to me. Looking back at my home country, Zimbabwe, this is something that we have not yet fully achieved. For a long time, I had almost viewed the idea of providing accessible and low-cost healthcare to an entire population as something nearly impossible. However, seeing a system where this was actively being implemented and working gave me a different perspective. It made me realise that perhaps it is not impossible after all. It strengthened one of the visions I have for the future of healthcare in Africa: improving access to quality public healthcare.
Over the course of two weeks, I shadowed for eight days, spending a minimum of five hours at the hospital each day. During that time, I had the opportunity to rotate through several different departments. This included nuclear medicine, dermatology, cardiology, orthopaedics ER, cardiothoracic surgery, gynaecology, neuromedicine, and ENT (ear, nose, and throat).
One of the things I appreciated most about my medical shadowing experience was that it went beyond simply observing surgeries. Yes, watching procedures in the operating room was amazing; however, I also found great value in observing doctor-patient consultations.
Watching how doctors interacted with their patients and seeing the level of trust that existed between them gave me a completely new perspective on the medical profession. Patients were able to confide in their doctors and be vulnerable with them. It made me realise that working in healthcare is not simply about providing medical care. You also become someone whom people trust. You become someone people turn to during some of the most vulnerable moments of their lives. That responsibility goes far beyond medical knowledge or clinical practice, and it was something I had never fully considered before.
Of course, my experience in Portugal was not limited to the hospital. We had group dinners with our cohort, which quickly became some of my favourite moments of the programme. They allowed us to bond, get to know one another, and simply enjoy each other’s company. We would also reflect on and debrief our shadowing experiences, sharing what we had learned and what had stood out to us.
I also loved learning more about Portuguese culture. From learning about fado and listening to this beautiful and deeply rooted form of Portuguese music, to experiencing the local lifestyle. Every day felt like an opportunity to discover something new.
One of my favourite parts of the entire experience was the food. Through food, I discovered flavours and dishes that I had never experienced before, and I gained another appreciation for Portuguese culture. Sometimes, one of the best ways to understand a place is simply to be open enough to experience what it has to offer, even if that means stepping outside your comfort zone and ordering something you cannot pronounce.
Looking back, my two weeks in Portugal were an opportunity to learn, grow, challenge myself, experience a new culture, and build meaningful friendships. Most importantly, the experience gave me a fresh perspective on my long-term vision for the future. My desire to contribute to improving healthcare in Africa has only grown stronger.
As I look ahead to the rest of my gap year, I am excited for the experiences still to come. If these two weeks taught me anything, it is that sometimes the journeys we are most nervous to begin end up exceeding every expectation we could have possibly had.
