Exchange Story In Lund

Staying in one of Scandinavian countries has been a dream of mine, thus having the opportunity to participate in an exchange program sure is priceless. Before I started my exchange journey in Sweden, I have heard about the amazing things it has to offer – ranging from its glorious nature and culture, and to its education. I was placed in a small city named Lund; it is located in the southernmost part of Sweden and very close to Malmo, its third biggest city, and Denmark. The city has a lot of sightseeing places for locals and tourists — parks, churches from the 16^th century, and botanical gardens. Every exchange student in Lund was given a summer card for unlimited transportation access to explore the region, so, it was very easy for me to stroll around the beautiful corners of the town after the end of my hospital shift.

Skanes Universitetssjukhus Lund (SUS Lund), Lund University’s university hospital, was where I spent my educational journey in Sweden. I was placed in their general surgery department under Karolin Isaksson as my supervisor. She is a remarkable surgeon, specializing in breasts and melanoma. Other than that, she let me assist her surgery during my first day!

One thing I also found fascinating is the robotic surgery I watched. Surprisingly, robotic surgery in SUS Lund is actually in one of the most advanced surgeries in Europe. I then had the chance to visit Practicum, a skills center in SUS Lund with modern devices for surgeries, from endoscopy to Da Vinci robot surgery. I was allowed to try operating those devices as well.

Another thing that caught my interest from this hospital is the number of health practitioner immigrants. Most of them are refugees from middle-eastern countries, and the rest are immigrants who want to seek a better living in Sweden.

During my stay in Sweden, I took my time to engage in a lot of outdoor activities, from tandem biking in an island to hiking in the national park. Thanks to IFMSA’s social program, I went to Helsinki with a cruise and met a lot of other amazing incomings from different locals, such as Umea, Linkoping, and Orebro. There had to be an arranged activity at least every two days, otherwise, we would get bored in our dormitory. Within one month, I had already traveled to three Nordic capitals, namely Copenhagen, Stockholm, and Helsinki, so another bucket list has been ticked.

There were fourteen incomings in Lund, and we grew closer to one another during our time there and surely enjoyed each other’s company. It wasn’t strange for us to have some random movie night in one of our apartments or just stroll around town after an exhausting shift in the hospital. The experience and friendship I obtained during my stay in Sweden is something I truly treasure, and my heart beats for Sweden, an amazing country I would visit again one day.

by Indira Laksmitha Mulyowahyudi