トーマスジェファーソン大学（Thomas Jefferson University）Report

Thomas Jefferson University Study Report

 

Country

Japan

School

Osaka City University

Elective period

28th July to 4th August 2023

 

First of all, I would like to thank the staff of Thomas Jefferson University, the staff of Osaka Metropolitan University, and the students who traveled with me on this trip for their cooperation.

My goal for this short-term study abroad program was to understand how different my current medical knowledge and ability to use English is compared to that of medical students studying clinical medicine in the United States.

About English
Through this experience, I was able to clarify what I can and cannot do.
As for English, I have been working on online English conversation almost every day for three months since I decided to take part in this program. I had studied abroad in high school and at university and was somewhat confident in my English. However, I was skeptical about how well I would be able to communicate in English with native English speakers in the U.S., especially in the medical field. During my stay, I spoke with many English speakers. Sometimes they were native English speakers, sometimes immigrants. I felt that I could communicate what I wanted to say and understand the gist of what was being said, although I still had some issues with listening in the context of daily conversation and medical interviews. However, in much more clinical contexts, I found that my understanding was poor. The more words I didn't know, the harder it was to understand the word breaks in the sentence.

About Medicine
Through this experience, my approach to studying medicine has changed.
Until now, I have not put much effort into my medical studies. I thought that if I could graduate from a university and obtain a medical license, it meant that the university and the country recognized me as a doctor. Of course, this thinking has not changed. However, my goal has changed from being recognized as a doctor in Japan to being recognized as a doctor in the United States. I felt that the standard required of doctors in the U.S. is more practical than in Japan. After learning about typical cases, it is necessary to understand how to narrow down the disease by interviewing the patient, and more specifically, how to treat the patient. What I learned in particular was that my Japanese background is irrelevant in the U.S., and as a foreigner, I have to fight with my medical knowledge. I do not believe that this is an unattainable goal to aim for. This stay gave me the courage to achieve this goal.

Conclusion
Through this experience, I was able to redefine my goals and measure the distance between myself and them. 1 week may seem short, but it is up to the individual to decide how to make the most of it. I hope that many more Osaka Metropolitan University medical students will have a meaningful experience at Thomas Jefferson University.

Thank you.