Lithuania provides students with exposure to international healthcare system

Four GCU Masters students have had the chance to gain an insight into the Lithuanian healthcare system thanks to a placement opportunity.

Gloria Idiong, Valentine Conlan, Fiyinfoluwa Oloyede and Taiwo Oladiran spent two weeks at LSMU Kaunas Hospital in January, allowing them to expand their horizons as MSc Nursing Studies Adult (Pre-registration) students.

We sat down with the four students to hear about everything from the icy weather to the super-sized hospital they found themselves working in:

How did you first hear about this placement and why did you want to get involved?

Gloria: “Our Programme Leader, Ingrid Rutherford, told us about the opportunity to go to Lithuania and encouraged us to apply. There are about 20 of us in the class so I didn’t think there was much chance of me being selected, but my family told me I didn’t have anything to lose by applying.

“My application spoke about why I was interested in learning about a new healthcare system and also why I wanted to experience a new culture as well. I didn’t get picked initially but two other spaces then became available and I was selected.”

Valentine: “I never studied abroad during my Undergraduate degree because Erasmus got cancelled and the pandemic happened. I really liked the idea of going to Lithuania and I also wanted to see the healthcare system in another country. We also got offered quite a bit of funding for it, so I knew I had to go for it.”

Fiyinfoluwa: “I have experience of the Nigerian and Scottish healthcare system, and I wanted to see how everything worked in Lithuania. It was also a cultural experience for me as I wanted to see another part of the world. I never expected to be going to Lithuania, but I actually have a friend there so knew a little bit about the country.

“The fact we went as a group definitely motivated me because I’m an introvert and sometimes don’t like to go outside. The others in the group were really outgoing and wanted to see the city, so that really helped push me to get the most from the experience.”

Taiwo: “I had heard a little bit about the opportunity to get involved through our lecturers and I just decided to go for it.”

What were you involved in during your time in Lithuania?

Valentine: “We spent two days on a ward and then got the chance to move on to another part of the hospital. My first two days were on the Gastroenterology Ward, which was really interesting because all the rooms were quite small with four or five patients to a room. There wasn’t a lot of space and I found that interesting in comparison to here where we always talk about the importance of privacy and dignity. We were also told that they couldn’t put bed rails up because of the added infection risk, so they were just doing procedures in front of everyone.

“It was interesting to see endoscopies and colonoscopies being carried out. It was definitely one of my highlights because my previous experience on placement had just being seeing people recovering from them. Being able to actually experience the procedure and get involved in the process was really beneficial – especially given the fact my next placement back in Scotland will be surgical, where I will get to see that sort of thing.”

“The hospital in Kaunas was far bigger than anything I’ve seen here. There were about 15 different buildings and everything was connected via this tunnel system, which was really good because you didn’t have to go outside in the snow with patients. Everyone throughout our time in Kaunas was amazing with us and they always made sure they explained whatever it was that they were doing.”

Fiyinfoluwa: “It was an eye-opener because their techniques were different to what we use here. It actually reminded me of the way we do things in Nigeria. Most of the nurses don’t speak English so they had to tailor our experience and really made an effort to have nurses that could communicate with us.

“An important part of the trip for me was actually getting to see procedures that I had read about. You have a picture of what it might look like in your mind but actually getting to witness it is very different. It meant that this whole experience was basically another placement for us, which was beneficial.

“One of the other things that will always stay with me was the fact the staff could pick the colour of scrubs they want. They could match it with their earrings or their nails – I definitely liked that!”

Taiwo: “I definitely noticed there were certain aspects that are relevant to the UK but also certain parts that are very different to the UK healthcare system.

“It was the first time I have come into contact with patients that have suffered a stroke. One of the things that also impressed me was the fact the nursing department was right on the grounds of the hospital. There were so many different buildings with different teams, and it was very impressive. I also found it particularly interesting to hear about the history of their medicine and how it has developed over time – they have made a huge amount of progress in recent times.”

Gloria: “I felt like I gained a lot of confidence from the experience overall. There was a language barrier which made it slightly difficult, but there was always someone that could speak English. I definitely found it to be valuable both personally and professionally because we got to see the similarities to the UK, like the importance of person-centred practice and being culturally sensitive.

“There were also differences but these were not negatives, it was more just a different way of doing things.  For example, myself and Taiwo got to do an ECG but they used suction cups rather than the stickers we use here. I think what we have in Scotland is more modern but the way they do it there was great to see, and also very easy to do.”

What was Kaunas like as a city?

Gloria: “It was very cold, but very beautiful! We had snow above our ankles but we knew that might happened and we were definitely prepared so that we could still explore Kaunas. There were so many different museums and I really enjoyed getting to visit one about the history of Lithuanian medicine. I loved being in the hospital but the cultural aspect of the trip was definitely my favourite part.”

Valentine: “Kaunas is such a great city. It was very walkable and the public transport was also very cheap. There was a lot of snow and it got to -15 degrees on some days, but it was actually a enjoyable cold because it was really crisp and fresh. I was lucky because I actually arrived four days before the others, so I was able to find all the good cafes and restaurants. I found a vegan restaurant that had traditional Lithuanian food, which was really good!  We got a lot of free time and also had the weekends off, which allowed us to go to a few different museums and Kaunas Castle.”

Overall, how much has your time in Lithuania benefitted you?

Fiyinfoluwa: “I’m very grateful because you don’t get much time to go abroad during a Masters. I also wouldn’t have got an opportunity to do this if I wasn’t studying at GCU because there are so many Visa challenges.

“I would say to other students that if an opportunity arises then they should definitely go for it. There is nothing to be nervous about and I think it is important to believe in yourself. I wasn’t going to apply but my experience shows that there is no harm in putting yourself forward for opportunities like this.”

Gloria: “The trip has developed my knowledge and confidence, while also broadening my overall perspective on my career. I now know that if I want to work in another country in future that it wouldn’t be starting completely fresh because there are so many similarities. It’s given me a chance to see healthcare and nursing from a broader perspective.

“I would like to initially work in the UK once I graduate but I would also love the opportunity to work abroad, in somewhere like Canada or Ireland. I like exploring new places and this trip has helped helped me feel like I am capable of working in a different country in the future.”

Valentine: “The trip has definitely expanded my horizons. I’ve always been someone who likes to be at home and moving up to Scotland from Newcastle definitely seemed far enough, but I wouldn’t rule out working abroad in future because my time in Lithuania was great.

“I would definitely encourage other students to consider studying abroad. We were lucky that we got to do it outside of teaching, so we didn’t come back to lots of missed work. There are so many benefits to doing it, especially the fact that it allows you to go to places you might not have otherwise had the chance to visit.”

Taiwo: “This is the first time I have had an experience like this. It was really good for me to experience another country and get an insight into a different healthcare system.”

Find out more about the MSc Nursing Studies Adult (Pre-registration)