Pre Medical Observership Program Sri Lanka

The Pre-Medical Observership Program caters to participants who are not currently enrolled in a medical or nursing degree from a recognized university, but have some prior knowledge and/or experience in the healthcare sector.Participants who have no demonstrable experience or knowledge whatsoever in the healthcare sector cannot be enrolled in the program.

Sri Lanka is the only country in South Asia which offers free healthcare to all its citizens, which is remarkable for this region. As such, the public sector here is very well developed and much larger than the private sector. Participants working in the public sector have access to a larger and wider network of medical professionals, range and volume of patients and exposures to a comprehensive set of wards and special units that cannot come close to being matched in the private sector. There is also a greater need for future doctors and nurses to assist in the public sector as the sheer volume of patients they get is overwhelming and from lower socio-economic classes, where the need for support is greater. 

Participants can expect to gain a broad-based understanding of how these sectors work through a range of observation-based learning experiences across various wards and units in a hospital and/or clinic setting, as well as through a range of community based activities. They also get to understand how the medical system of a developing country like Sri Lanka works and learn about various tropical diseases that are prevalent in this part of the world. Additionally, participants get to interact with local doctors and nurses to enhance their knowledge and skills.

Medical Students as well as recently qualified medical students looking to gain valuable experience and skills must select the Medical Internship Program in Sri Lanka. Nursing students looking to do a nursing elective must choose our Nursing Internship Program in Sri Lanka.

Sample Placement Profile

National Hospital Galle – this is the largest public hospital in the Southern Province of Sri Lanka, and the 3rd largest hospital in all of Sri Lanka. Capacity of ~2,000 beds. It has a total of 54 wards and several other specialized units. It was previously known as “Teaching Hospital Karapitiya” but has now been renamed as “National Hospital Galle” as the Sri Lankan government has recently elevated its status from a regional hospital to a national one.

Government Ayurveda Institute – this hospital specializes in the traditional medicinal practice of Ayurveda.

Community Projects – we work with various local schools and community organizations. Our students have the option to spend some of their time at these places for a more intimate experience working with children and senior citizens.

Roles & Responsibilities

Pre-meds can get broad-based rotational exposure across various wards, units and institutions as described below. They do not get to choose their ward or unit selection prior to arrival (unlike our Medical or Nursing Internship participants).The exact availability of each ward or unit can change from time to time based on ground realities, however, in general, pre-med participants will have access to rotate across the following wards, units and institutions:

Emergency Treatment Centre (ETC) – typical tasks include bedside teaching regarding patients’ management, ward class with ward rounds, checking vital signs of patients (if the staff permits), observing live surgeries in casualty operation theatre and post casualty theatre under the direct guidance of the surgeon. Students will be given explanations by the surgeon based on the type of surgery and the ground emergency situation.

General Surgical Wards– tasks include joining the ward rounds with the consultant and medical staff, assisting the medical staff for wound dressing, checking vital signs of patients and observing live surgeries such as Cholecystectomy, Appendectomy, Hernia repair, Thyroidectomy, etc.

Physiotherapy & Rehabilitation Unit – tasks include supporting patients to carry out their daily physiotherapy and occupational therapy exercises, carrying out group activities to support the patient’s mental well-being and other similar activities. Participants will get to work closely with a physiotherapist and occupational therapist on a regular basis.

General Pediatric Wards – tasks include studying the history of the patients with the support of medical/nursing staff, joining the ward rounds, helping support mothers feed their children and performing activities to socialize with children (with parental consent).

Outdoor Patient Department – students are able to rotate between medical examining rooms, wound dressing room and vaccination rooms and observe how the outdoor patient department works in Sri Lanka.

Oncology Surgical Ward – tasks include studying the history of the patients with the support of medical/ nursing staff, joining the ward rounds, observing how local staff monitor vital signs, perform wound dressings of patients and observing pre-operative and post-operative care of the patients who go through surgeries.

Ayurvedic Medicine – A special introductory session on the traditional eastern medicinal practice of Ayurveda, which is based on a natural and holistic approach to physical and mental health. Ayurvedic medicine is one of the world’s oldest medical systems and remains one of Sri Lanka’s most popular and respected traditional health care systems.

Community Based Activities – this involves working at local schools, villages and community groups.

• Disability Care: Premedical students are encouraged to engage with differently-abled people that need extra affection and care. They are able to help them with activities that enhance their motor and cognitive skills.

• Children: Educate and train the local children on first aid and basic hygiene practices in schools, kindergartens and community groups under the guidance of the coordinators.

• Elderly Care: Support and cheer up elderly people at elderly homes while improving their gross motor skills and cognitive skills engaging in crafting, mobility exercises and other fun activities.

• General Public: attend medical campaigns and health awareness programs under the guidance of medical professionals where they can assist with health checkups and educate people on different health conditions and issues.

Students generally need to be assigned for a minimum of one week in the units/wards in the main hospital .

In addition to the above wards/ units, premedical students can participate in Community Weeks as which provides a more hands on experience dealing with various members of the local public (as described above) through community-based activities. This also includes a special one-day session on Ayurvedic medicine so a typical community week will comprise of #7-8 mentioned above. The number of community weeks for students vary depending on the program duration and the ground availability.

It is important to emphasize that the experience in the hospital is observation-based as the participants lack the experience and skill to perform any invasive procedures on patients. Certain areas like physiotherapy and community based activities tend to be more hands-on work than others.

All students are supported by our medical project coordinator who provides regular guidance and support to further enhance their learning and knowledge development.

Requirements & eligibility

Pre-medical students must show prior demonstrable knowledge and experience in the healthcare sector. Examples of such include: 

• Degree or Diploma in Premedical Science/ Biomedical science/ Health science/ Paramedic science/ Microbiology/ Physiotherapy or Occupational Therapy/ Health Management

• Nutritionist/ Anesthesiologist/ Radiologist 

• Vocational training in the medical or nursing field 

•  Healthcare Assistants – Medical assistant/ Physician assistant/ Nursing assistant/ Lab assistant/ Surgical Technical assistant 

• Geriatric nurse or elderly care nurse 

• Nursing apprenticeship for 1-2 months 

• First Aid or ambulance service experience for 1-2 months 

• Prior medical or nursing or healthcare internship experiences in hospitals 

Above qualifications or experiences of the premedical students in the healthcare sector should be confirmed by a reference letter or certificate issued. Hospital management has the right to reject any premedical application if the reference does not satisfy the requirements of the hospital. Students should have a sufficient level of conversational / verbal knowledge of English.

Additionally, participants must understand and appreciate the different cultures when working in a country like Sri Lanka where the medical standards differ greatly from what they might have experienced in their home country. Our experience has shown that the participants who get the most out of this experience tend to be open-minded, flexible, respectful to local staff and eager to learn.

Students must be 18 years or older at the time of joining the project and must be flexible and open-minded towards working in a new and challenging environment. The following documents are needed to apply for the Pre-Medical placement:

• Current CV or Resume

• Motivation Letter (or Intent Letter) describing personal background and rationale for pursuing this placement

• Police background check

• Copy of passport

• Duly completed Clinical Observership Trainee Assessment form provided by the hospital

• Reference letter/ document and/or a certificate which proves prior knowledge and experience in the healthcare sector

• Clinical or university documents that need to be attested by the hospital to certify the program completion.

All the premedical students should submit the above required documents five weeks prior to their start date. 

If a premedical student needs the certification for a certain number of days, they have to complete the below number of weeks minimum in the hospital.  

• 30 days certification – 5 weeks  

• 60 days certificate – 9 weeks  

• 90 days certificate – 13 weeks 

The regular start day at the hospital is a Monday which will be recorded as the start date in all the documents that are certified by the hospital. The end date can be the last Saturday of the project period. Weekly intervals taken by the students during their program period will be mentioned in their documents.