Global Medicine Rotations & Sites

For Internal Medicine residents

Residents have a range of locations, from a small community hospital to primary care clinics in underserved areas in the capitol's suburbs. Residents can participate in primary care clinic rotations in general medicine and primary care. A combined clinical rotation-Medical Spanish Course is offered through an agreement with a Medical Spanish Institution. It is highly recommended for those interested in improving their medical communication skills with Spanish-speaking patients. There is active research ongoing at UCIME in Tropical Medicine. Costa Rica's health system is socialized and universal and fairly advanced. There are multiple problems as in any other socialized medical system, but the health indexes are at the level of developed countries.

Site Director

Dr. Hernando Gonzalez
hernando.gonzalez@hcmed.org

Full bio

For Internal Medicine, MedPeds, and MedDerm residents

Residents will work at Adama Hospital Medical College, doing clinical rotations in the Department of Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, collaborating on QI and research projects, and helping with the future plans for palliative care. Residents will gain a detailed understanding of medical care challenges and ways local doctors use to improve care in resource limited settings. 

Site Director

Dr. Anteneh Zewde
zewde004@umn.edu 

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For Internal Medicine and Pediatric residents

Residents visit 2 hospitals (Arusha Lutheran Medical Center and Selian Lutheran Hospital), where they participate in clinical work. Both hospitals are completely Tanzanian run. Visiting UMN residents will be part of a team that will include trainees of varying levels and practicing physicians in Tanzania. UMN residents are never expected to be providing patient care independently. We believe fully in collaborative learning, and the UMN resident will be expected to participate in discussion on rounds to learn how Tanzanians treat common tropical and non-tropical diseases.

Site Director

Dr. Adriana Dhawan
dhawa027@umn.edu

Full bio here

For Internal Medicine residents

Residents visit Ilula Lutheran Hospital participating clinically in inpatient wards (maternal child health, outpatient department, and HIV clinic), and participate in outreach to remote villages (maternal child health and HIV clinics). Residents will also participate in an annual medical conference in Ilula. There will be Minnesota faculty onsite at all times.

Site Director

Dr. Randy Hurley
randy.w.hurley@healthpartners.com

Full bio

For Internal Medicine and Pediatric residents

SocMed and St. Mary's Hospital Lacor offer a 4 wk course in Gulu, Uganda exploring the connection between clinic medicine and social medicine. The structure includes field visits, discussions, presentations, theater, and bedside teaching in hospital wards. This course helps to foster critical analysis of interventions, build a health advocacy skill set, and facilitate development of a clinical perspective that considers the influence of social and cultural factors on experience of an illness. In the past, field trips have included a Ugandan NGO dedicated to the HIV/AIDS epidemic, USAID-funded initiative focused on ID, rural community health center, and a prison. A resident participates in all activities of this course, as teaching staff.

Read about the course on the SocMed website

Site Director

Dr. Mike Westerhaus
west0591@umn.edu

Full bio 

Research Rotation in Kampala (For Internal Medicine residents) 
Adjunctive Sertraline for the Treatment of HIV-Associated Cryptococcal Meningitis (ASTRO-CM) (For Internal Medicine residents)

Cryptococcus is the leading cause of meningitis in Sub-Saharan Africa, causing 20-25% of AIDs-related mortality. This rotation involves clinical research regarding HIV-related meningitis (cryptococcal, TB, viral) and whether sertraline has antifungal efficacy for treatment of cryptococcal meningitis. Residents work at the Infectious Disease Institute, an urban outpatient HIV clinic, as well as the urban Mulago National Tertiary Referral Hospital in Kampala, Uganda. Residents will be integrated into the clinical research team, taking care of patients with HIV and meningitis on the ID ward.  

Site Director

Dr. Dave Boulware
boulw001@umn.edu

Full bio

For Internal Medicine residents

Residents visit St. John’s National Academy of Health Sciences (rural and urban). This is a full-fledged health sciences center, with highly specialized experiences available in all fields. There will be faculty oversight by very good local attendants. Residents may experience a great transcultural experience in a resource-limited setting with a high volume of patients.

Site Director

Dr. Kumar Belani
belan001@umn.edu

Full bio

For Internal Medicine residents

Residents visit Chiang Mai University (CMU), the largest medical school in northern Thailand and the most comprehensive hospital in the region. This hospital serves a diverse population, including Thai, Burmese, Thai Yai, Chinese, English, and Hill tribe patients. The Department of Internal Medicine has 11 subspecialties (divisions): cardiology, dermatology, endocrinology, gastroenterology, hematology, infectious disease, nephrology, neurology, oncology, pulmonology, and rheumatology. There are 244 beds in the wards, with 50 full-time staff, 25 fellows, and 73 residents. At CMU, residents can participate in inpatient rounds, ICU/CCU, outpatient clinic, lab rounds, morning report, and journal club. Residents may also visit the Vector Borne Disease Center, MacKean Rehabilitation Center, and refugee camps along the Myanmar border.

Site Director

Dr. Brett Hendel-Paterson
bhendel@umn.edu

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For Internal Medicine and Pediatric residents

Residents work with HealthFrontiers Residency Program in 3 hospitals in Vientiane, participating in clinical work and with a focus on education. Residents would have the opportunity to improve personal teaching skills working with trainees in the HealthFrontiers established IM residency programs while being introduced to tropical diseases. The medical system is a classic system, with central, provincial, district, and village-level services. Facilities are typical for a low-resource country, with fair availability of meds and imaging in Vientiane (although all expenses are out-of-pocket).

Site Director

Dr. Kristina Krohn
kroh0040@umn.edu

Full bio