‘An entirely new perspective on medicine’: St Peter’s Medicine Students in Egypt

In summer 2025, three third-year Medicine students at St Peter’s received travel funding from the College to travel to Egypt for clinical shadowing and rotations. In this report, Ali Elmoselhy, Eden Powell and Sashank Uday share highlights from their three weeks in Cairo rotating between clinics in Giza and Sheikh Zayed.  

Eden shares how the language barrier taught him a valuable lesson about medical observation:

‘An important thing to note is that the consultation was almost exclusively in Arabic, with the occasional interjection from the doctor to explain the current complaint, observations, and key findings. I found myself developing an eye for non-verbal cues regarding emotion, especially when it came to describing symptoms and pain - this is a skill which no doubt will work dividends when I start interacting with patients next year.’

Sashank says that the experience helped him develop a creative and caring perspective:

‘This trip gave me an entirely new perspective on medicine, showing me what it means to practise with compassion and creativity when technology isn’t always available. It made me reflect on the importance of building strong clinical foundations early in my training and the value of resourcefulness in patient care. It reinforced why I chose to study medicine and inspired me to seek out more experiences in underserved communities. The lessons I learned in Egypt will stay with me throughout my training and shape the kind of doctor I hope to become.’

Alumni-supported travel experiences enhance the student experience, developing a global perspective and promoting knowledge exchange.

Ali reflects gratefully:

‘Thank you very much for this phenomenal opportunity! Your contributions add to our experience and personal growth and give us an opportunity to see experiences far outside what we consider "the norm". Seeing medical facilities with different levels of access to technology and resources was interesting, as well as seeing the ways in which medical staff were able to overcome challenges.’