Hannah Kelly

Hannah is a second-year physiotherapy student from the University of Liverpool and she recently spent 4 weeks undertaking a physiotherapy placement at our Kathmandu programme in Nepal. 

I have been interested in the differences in healthcare systems and techniques since having a lecture on global health. I thought that my elective placement would be a perfect opportunity to investigate this further. I also found the idea of travelling and learning about different cultures in my free time quite appealing. 

Work the World were fantastic. The step-by-step timeline and deadlines on the MyTrip website make it so easy to be organised. As it is also a quite well-known company, I have seen and heard feedback online and from previous students’ experiences.

Living in the Work the World house was so much fun. It can be really sociable but there is also enough space if you want some quiet time. There are two social rooms and lots of little quiet balconies and areas to have a little bit of privacy. 

It also feels very safe and there is always a member of staff around if you have any queries and they are always willing to help. There are always drinks and snacks and the catering team were always willing to provide me with anything I fancied.

Every Thursday was barbecue night. This is spent with all members of staff and all my housemates. It was very wholesome, and the food was brilliant. It's definitely a memory that I will cherish from this whole experience. The team were amazing at pointing us in the right direction in terms of organising trips, this made these experiences a lot easier and most definitely less stressful! I will always appreciate the help that they provided.

As a physiotherapist, there are many differences between local healthcare and healthcare systems at home. The use of modalities such as electric shock therapy, TENS and passive movements are used on every patient, in conjunction with exercise prescriptions. Multiple patients are treated at once and they may all not have the same condition or diagnosis. Consent and hygiene are different to how they are in the UK. 

Overall my hospital placement was eye-opening and I am so glad I gained this experience. 

During the week I would partake in language lessons, teaching sessions and movie evenings. We spent time in Thamel, at temples such as Buddha Stupa, Pashupatinath and the Monkey Temple and visiting the Durbar Squares. At weekends I went further afield and did some trekking, paragliding, went on a safari to Chitwan National Park and we also went to Pokhara together. Nepal is a fantastic country and there is always something to do. 

One experience that will stick in my mind forever was seeing the rhinos up close as part of the Chitwan safari. This is an unforgettable experience and I felt lucky to have experienced this. 

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