Planning your elective--Peru
Mark Wilson has some useful information about going to Peru
Peru is on the west coast of South America with a great deal to offer the travelling medic, especially if you speak Spanish. The bustling city of Lima is home to seven million people, but over half of Peru's population live in rural areas. With its great Inca empire and the Andes, there is plenty to do outside hospital work. In general, Peru is warmest around Christmas time, but the temperature obviously varies from the Andes to the tropical Amazon Basin. Remember that fluent Spanish is essential if you intend to go to remote areas and highly advisable even in Lima.
Healthcare system
There is no "free" healthcare system and at least a nominal charge is made for most health care. Infectious diseases, especially tuberculosis and malaria, and more recently cholera epidemics, are a major problem, especially among poor people. The lack of iodine in the mountainous regions means that there is a high incidence of goitres.
Visas
United Kingdom and European visitors can stay for 90 days without a permit, but they must have a return ticket. Officially "volunteers" require a visa (obtainable here or in Peru) and "students" require a student visa. Contact the Peruvian Consulate General, 52 Sloane Street, London SW1X 9SP (tel 020 7235 6867; fax: 020 7823 2789) for more details.
Hospitals of specialist interest
- Tropical medicine: Instiuto de Medicina Tropical Alexander von Humboldt (Universidad Peruana Cayetao Heredia), Apartado 5045, Postal 4314, Lima 100, Peru (tel (14) 823401; fax (14) 823404). This is a very popular elective destination for those planning a career in tropical medicine. With 30 beds and a busy outpatients department you will see a huge variety of diseases. Currently there is a charge of around $300 a month for teaching but students have previously said that this is good value and understandable as the department is poorly funded.
- Paediatrics: Instituto de Salud del Niño (Children's Hospital of Lima), Av Brasil 600, Breña, Lima 5, Peru (tel 424 1996; fax: 425 1840). This 600 bedded children's hospital is the main referral centre for the whole country.
Health requirements
Current guidelines (but check with your local occupational health department) state that immunisations or prophylaxis are recommended for hepatitis A, polio, typhoid, malaria, and yellow fever. You should obviously be up to date with your hepatitis B, tetanus, bacille Calmette-Guérin, and polio. HIV prevalence is thought to be around 0.4% but varies in different areas. Universal precautions should always be used.
Relevant bursaries
In addition to the many bursaries available for general electives, ones that should be considered are:
- Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, Mansion House, 26 Portland Place, London W1N 4EY (tel 020 7580 2127; fax: 020 7436 1389). £300 for an account of work done demonstrating a contribution to knowledge or understanding of tropical diseases.
- Royal College of Surgeons of England, Preiskel Elective Prize in Surgery, Research and Audit Board, 35-43 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London WC2A 3PN. Awards between £500 and £1000 for surgical electives in developing countries.
Useful addresses
- Ministry de Salud (Ministry of Health), Av Salaverry Cuadra 8, Lima 11, Peru
- Comite Internacional de la Cruz Roja (CICR) (Red Cross International Committee), Av Juan d'Aliaga 620, Magdalena, Peru
- Organizacion Panamericana de la Salud (Pan-American Health Organisation), Los Cedros 269, Lima 27, Peru
- UNICEF, Parqe Melitón Porras 350, Lima 18, Peru
Medical schools
There are nine medical schools, three of them in Lima (use www.altavista.com’s babelfish to translate their websites).
Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, Programa Académico de Medicina Humana, Casilla 529, Avenida Grau 755, Lima. This is the oldest one founded in 1856 www.unmsm.edu.pe
Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Apartado 5045, Programa Académico de Medicina, Avenida Honorio Delgado 932, San Martin Porres, Lima. www.upch.edu.pe
Universidad Nacional Federico Villarreal, Programa Acadécico de Medicina Humana, Colmena 412, Lima.
Universidad Nacional de San Agustin, Programa Académico de Medicina, Siglo XX No. 227, Apartado 23, Arequipa.
Universidad Nacional San Antonio Abad, Programa Académico de Medicina Humana, Avenida de la Cultura s/n, Apartado 367, Cusco www.unsaac.edu.pe
Universidad “San Luis Gonzaga,” Programa Acaedémico de Medicina Humana, Jr. Dos de Mayo 187, Ica.
Universidad Nacional de la Amazonía Peruna, Programa Académco de Medicina, Apartado 496, Iquitos.
Universidad Nacional Técnica de Piura, Programa Académico de Medicina Humana, Prolongación Avenia Grau s/n, Apartado 295, Piura www.unp.edu.pe
Universidad Nacional de Trujillo, Programa Académico de Medicina Humana, Independencia 431, Of. 203, Trujillo www.unitru.edu.pe
Mark Wilson, senior house officer in intensive care medicine, University College Hospital, London and author of The Medics Guide to Work and Electives around the World
Email: mark@medicstravel.com
Further details of these and other hospitals, schools, and bursaries can be found in The Medic's Guide to Work and Electives around the World (Arnold Publishers ISBM 0-340-76098-2) and on www.medicstravel.com
studentBMJ 2001;09:443-486 December ISSN 0966-6494
