Internship in Santander, Spain
Luca-Tara
Medicine, TUD
My experiences with… finding an internship placement and applying
I initially applied to the hospital in Spain on my own initiative, contacting the ward management of the unit where I wanted to work directly by email. The hospital in Spain is very modern, efficient, and straightforwardly organized. I quickly received a response, including information about the period during which capacity was available for Erasmus students.
My experiences with… finding accommodation and the journey
Finding an apartment was somewhat difficult at first, since shortly before the semester began, many Spanish students were also looking for a room in a shared flat. However, my supervisor at the hospital supported me in my search, and after a week in a hostel, I was able to move into a holiday apartment for 15 euros per day.
For the apartment search in Spain, I would recommend Idealista – it is essentially the Spanish equivalent of WG-Gesucht. It’s best to call directly about the listings and ask about available rooms, as these are taken very quickly and responses to messages are often rare.
What I'm taking away from this:
I have realized how similar people all around the world actually are.
My experiences with the… internship
Compared to Germany, Spain does not have such a pronounced shortage of doctors. However, the public hospital where I was stationed was also one of the best in the country, so the situation at other locations may be different. I found it very pleasant and satisfying that more time could be taken with patients. The experienced doctors were also very open and were happy to take the time to explain and demonstrate various things in detail to me as a student and to the resident physicians.
Accompanied by trainee specialists, I was allowed to carry out many patient histories and examinations. Unfortunately, tasks that are also performed by medical interns here – such as suturing, wound care, inserting tubes, or drawing blood – are mainly part of the nursing staff’s responsibilities in Spain. Therefore, if you wanted to learn something in these areas, you had to take the initiative yourself and approach the nursing staff directly.
The hierarchies in Spain were also noticeably flatter. Senior physicians, resident doctors, students, and nursing staff worked together more closely. As a result, there was a much stronger sense of being jointly responsible as a team for the care of the patients. From my perspective, I can highly recommend doing a clinical internship (Famulatur) in Spain!
My experiences with… everyday life and leisure on site
Santander is located on the northern coast of Spain and is truly beautiful scenery-wise. I spent most of my free time surfing. In late summer, and especially in autumn, the swell in Somo is particularly good for surfing enthusiasts. In addition, the Camino de Santiago (Way of St. James) leads directly through the city, and the hiking trails along the coast are gorgeous!
I have to say that my stay even exceeded my expectations, and I am very glad that I took on the effort of organizing an internship abroad!
My conclusion
The next time I do an internship abroad, I will make a small plan for my free time in advance for the first two days, for example picking out a café, a beach, or a museum. I hadn’t done that this time, which is why I felt a bit overwhelmed during the first few days.
Nevertheless, it was an incredibly good experience. You somehow grow beyond yourself, and what I became especially aware of is how similar people all around the world actually are and how wonderful it is to be welcomed with open arms. That has really inspired me to pay more attention, even here at home, to supporting one another and approaching each other with openness.
Otherwise, I would recommend asking the local students for recommendations for restaurants and bars. Those were really much better than the places you typically discover first as a tourist!!!
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