Arrival at KI
The KI student who picked us from the Arlanda airport was very kind and helpful. She directed us on how and where to buy the transport card, showed us the directions to the bus and the train and accompanied us up to the KI university accommodation centre. She gave us a map to enable us travel easily in Stockholm.
We were supposed to meet our coordinator on Monday at 1000hours. Because of the anxiety and excitement, we arrived 40 minutes before time. As we were waiting at the KI main entrance admiring the beautiful and sophisticated buildings at the campus, there came a lady towards us calling our names with a smile. We indeed received a warm welcome by all our coordinators.
The introductory briefing was very informative and we were given all that we would require during our stay at KI and in Sweden in general. We were made to feel at home because we were given all the necessary support.
When we went for the MRS screening we did not have any trouble locating the place because we were given all the clear directions. The Nurse/Counselor was very welcoming and helpful. The customer care was exceptional.
Accommodation
I applied for housing through the University accommodation centre (UAC). The bookings were made on-line and i received all the necessary information that i needed before arrival. I was impressed about the good systems used to communicate to the tenants. Receiving the first invoice for house rent payments before arrival was a surprise to me. For i did not know what i was paying for and the instructions to effect payments seemed to be very complicated. As i was trying to think about what to do, i received a message about the whereabouts of the key to my room. This puzzled me the more for the technology seemed to be a lot more complicated. Thanks to the student who picked us from the airport because she helped us to access the keys. It was amazing to be given the key without prior payments!!!!
I liked the set up of the living rooms, the kitchen and the bathrooms. However i thought i would find a warm blanket to be used on cold days because i did not carry any blanket from home since i was staying for a short period. I used to have restless nights on cold days despite the use of the heater. The centre should kindly provide warm blankets in the rooms. Nevertheless, the centre is strategically located and i could easily use the map to reach academic and clinical placement areas plus the centre of the beautiful Stockholm city. The cost for housing was somehow expensive but all in all, i appreciate the allowance that was given to me to facilitate my stay in Sweden.
Utsikten från vårt studentrum. Bortanför slummen kan du se Mulago sjukhus.
Social life in Sweden and at KI
Information about social activities was part of the package that i was given on arrival at KI. It was indeed very helpful. One time i took a boat and had an exciting tour to Skansen. The site was really beautiful. I was invited by some Swedish families and i enjoyed life in Swedish homes. I made friends with some of the people i worked with during the clinical placements. I made other friends from St. Eric's catholic church where i used to go for prayers on Sundays.
Bergsgorillor i Bwindi, Uganda.
Pre-departure
During my studies on the master's program, some teachers came from Karolinska Institute and i really admired the way they used to teach us. I also came to understand that most of the vibrant and professionally well informed lecturers about health related issues are products of Karolinska Institute. Towards the end of my studies, i learnt that the exchange program was extended to postgraduate students and i applied to be part of the exchange program. In my home university we learn a lot in theory but the clinical practice is not yet up to the required standard. I really thought that i needed to have an exposure of a clinical environment where clinical practices are done differently and in the best way that can help to improve the quality of health care delivery in my country. Being vaccinated before coming to Sweden was not a prerequisite.
2EE089 : Antenatal care including fertility control, delivery, neonatal and postnatal care, theory and clinical education
I spent 7 weeks in the clinical areas. I was allocated a supervisor whom i worked with and i participated in most of the activities that took place during the time i was there. I was very much impressed to see and learn things that i used to read in text books. For exampleproviding individualized care, pain control using non pharmacological techniques, involving male partners, etc. I learned many things that can be practiced back home using the resources that we have. I was also impressed about the services offered at the prenatal, men's and youths clinics. The health professionals working at these clinics are doing great.
Ryggmärgsavdelning på Mulago sjukhus,
Studies
My program was mainly about clinical placement in hospitals . My supervisors were very helpful and they tried their best to communicate to me in English. They would introduce me to the patients and most of them accepted me to participate in caring about them. This made me very happy because i had hands-on which enabled me gain new skills in my clinical practice. During the course of studies at my University, i read many new techniques of health care from the books but i could not imagine how some of them could be done in reality. For example i used to read about using non-pharmacological techniques such as acupuncture and sterile water to control pain during labor. I was able to appreciate the clinical application of what i had read in theory The best way to gain skills is through clinical practice because i would not get the concepts about certain procedures without seeing them physically done.
I did not have much exposure to the KI university environment but my comment is on the language. Many students especially those who come for exchange programs for a few weeks might miss a lot because very little is prepared for them in English yet there is no time for them to attend the Swedish language lessons. I remember there used to be some presentations and discussions about important topics of my interest in the areas where i was placed but i could not participate because the sessions were delivered in Swedish language. It would be very important to discuss some clinical cases and share experiences from different countries in a way of learning from each other. Otherwise i appreciate the supportive relationship that was exhibited between the supervisors and the students.