Thomas Jefferson University Study Report

I practiced clinical medicine at Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia.
This five-day program was very exciting and impressive to me. In this program, I could understand the differences between Japan and the U.S..

Before I went to there, I had two main things which I would like to learn at Thomas Jefferson Hospital. The first thing was doctor’s medical interview skills, and the second thing was actual situation of medical insurance system in the U.S.. Through this program, I got the answer, so I would like to write that down.

First, at the hospital, I could meet many patients of various races. They had different cultural backgrounds, different characters, and even different native languages. Therefore, I thought that doctors there were required much more skills to get information out of patients than doctors in Japan. Through the clinical clerkships there, I fully realized the importance of medical interview skills. So, in Japan, I would like to try that by myself if possible.

Second, at the Jeff-Hope I learned actual situation of medical insurance system in the U.S.. At Thomas Jefferson Hospital, there were charity activities for poor patients called Jeff-Hope, which has been done by medical students. I was very happy to join that and overview both good and bad points of the U.S. medical system. I had to get the chance to understand there were only private insurance systems except some semi-public insurance systems such as Medicare and Medicaid. Therefore, many people who can’t pay medical bills have to give up their treatments. In addition to that, drug abuse is a problem for many years. That must be good suggestions when I consider Japan’s medical system in the future.

As a whole, I would like to recommend this program to my juniors. It was so short but very intensive. It can improved my mindset and brush up on that.
Finally, I really appreciate all kindness of people I concerned.

Thank you