Medical Electives in Mexico | Healthcare Placements in Latin America

Merida is a city rich in culture and you’ll have the chance to see everything from Mayan temples to mariachi bands. And when you want a break from the bustle, head to the paradise beaches stretching along the east coast. If you’re after an authentic Latin American experience, you won’t find anywhere more memorable than Mexico.

Mexico Highlights

Head to Cancun and nearby Progreso for beaches and nightlife
Visit Chichen Itza’s awe inspiring Mayan temple ruins
Dive or snorkel in beautiful underwater ‘cenote’ caves
Join in some of the many festivals taking place across the city
Visit Celestun — a stunning nature reserve populated by flamingos

The Work the World House

A big part of the Work the World experience in Merida is living in the house. The Work the World house will become like home. You’ll live with other healthcare studentsand graduates from around the world, giving the house a social feel.

You’ll find the house in one of Merida’s popular suburban districts. The building itself has an open feel, and boasts beautiful modern architecture. There’s even an outdoor pool. You’ll find you’re in close proximity to Merida’s famous city centre, which has all the usual Mexican city fare — mariachi bands playing in the plazas, museums, bars and restaurants for evenings out…. You name it.

Of course you can also hop in a taxi and ask for Progreso Beach — a tropical shoreline where you can sip cocktails and look out into the Gulf of Mexico.

In-Country Team

Management team: Based in the house, they oversee your entire Work the World experience — 24/7 — from the moment you land to the moment you leaveCatering team: Cook a variety of both local cuisine and familiar home comforts, accommodating all dietary requirementsHousekeeper: Keeps the house clean and tidy from top to bottom, making sure you're comfortableLanguage teacher: Visits the house twice per-week. During their lessons, you’ll learn everyday phrases and clinical terminology to help you get more from your placementSecurity team: Monitor the house 24/7 for your peace of mind

Support in the Hospital

Before placement starts, you’ll head out on an informal visit to your placement hospital with our team in Merida. They’ll introduce you to your supervisors and other hospital staff to help you find your feet and settle in. Our team in Merida have a strong relationship with the hospital. They’ll come and visit you during your placement just to make sure everything is running smoothly.

You’ll be assigned supervisors well before your placement starts. Make the effort to show interest and you’ll win respect, which opens up insight into conditions and practices that only a local practitioner can offer.

We offer support all the way through your clinical placement, as and when you need it.

It’s official - our programs are open!

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We know plans can change so once you’ve secured your space, you can make unlimited changes to your travel dates, absolutely free.

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Placements in Merida

Medical Electives

In Merida, you can get experience in live surgeries, from cataract removals to open-heart surgery. Our partner hospital here also has a high-tech theatre simulation room that you’ll have access to. You can spend time in nephrology and urology, oncology, haematology, high-specialty internal medicine, paediatrics, and critical care to learn how local specialists approach treatments. Tropical diseases are common on a medical elective in Mexico — this presents you with opportunities to see patients with chagas, chikungunya, and West Nile virus. If you’re looking for a medical elective in Latin America, Merida provides excellent options.

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Nursing Placements

There’s a broad range of experiences on offer for you as a nursing student in our partner hospitals in Merida. You can spend time in a modern government hospital where patients present with advanced conditions requiring treatments like neurosurgery and complex gastrointestinal procedures. In another, poorly funded hospital, you can gain experience with cases of tropical diseases like Chagas, chikungunya and dengue fever. Importantly, you’ll come to understand how local professionals cope with the limited resources they have.

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Midwifery Placements

Our partner hospital in Merida specialises in expectant mothers and infant paediatric cases. Despite a 150-bed capacity, the wards remain incredibly busy. This means a diversity of cases, so you’ll get a broad range of experience. Resources are scarce here, yet infant mortality rates have more than halved in the past 20 years. The hospital staff’s resourcefulness is largely responsible for this, and you’ll learn how they helped achieve this target. Things are still challenging, however — you’ll see all the common intrapartum complications such as breech births and how they’re dealt with in such a low-resource environment.

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Physiotherapy Electives, Peru (Arequipa)

Physiotherapy Placements

The hospital we’re partnered with receives a diversity of cases, from everyday strains to severe burns. Alongside a team of local professionals, you can gain experience with rehabilitation plans for patients with neurological disorders like stroke and Bell’s palsy, and work-related injuries. In another, more modern partner hospital, you could get experience with post-surgical patients and those needing respiratory therapy.

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Paramedic Science Placements

Our partner hospital in Merida was first established in 1550; the oldest in the city. This A&E department handles most of the city’s emergencies, so expect a fast-paced placement here. Many patients here are economically disadvantaged, which means you could see a lot of trauma sustained through manual labour accidents. You can also spend time in the paediatric A&E, and here you’ll see a range of cases dealt with in the stabilisation room before being sent to other departments for more specialised treatments.

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Radiography Placements

Undertake your radiography placement in the hospital we’ve partnered with in Merida, and you could get experience with advanced diagnostic technologies. You’ll discover that the majority of patients here present with conditions more severe than you’re probably used to at home. This means that detecting and diagnosing cases will be a learning experience through and through. If your interests lie in radiotherapy, there’s every opportunity to spend time getting experience with therapeutic technologies like cobalt therapy and brachytherapy.

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Dentistry Electives

In our partner hospital, you’ll see patients with a range of conditions. A large percentage of people in Mexico show signs of periodontal disease, which is considered a symptom of the lack of information and access to preventative treatments available. Typical procedures, like restorations and fillings, are carried out here but many patients present extremely late, meaning that some cases will be much further advanced than you’ll be used to.

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Pricing

Destinations						1 Week			2 Weeks			3 Weeks			4 Weeks			5 Weeks			6 Weeks			Extra Week
Mexico Merida						$2940			$3240			$3540			$3840			$4140			$4440			$700

*Prices above are in addition to a $500 registration fee.

See full inclusions list

INTENSIVE SPANISH COURSE

This week-long Spanish course is designed to help you get even more from your trip to Mexico. If you want a more immersive experience - this course is for you. You'll start the week before your placement, enjoying all the benefits of living in the Work the World house. The lessons themselves are catered to your clinical discipline, but you’ll also learn useful day-to-day phrases in both one-to-one and group sessions.

MORE ABOUT THE INTENSIVE SPANISH COURSE

"Travelling alone for the first time gave me so much more confidence and independence."

Niamh Corry, University of Liverpool 2019

"I got an in-depth look at how economic circumstances can affect the quality of surgery for patients."

Sophie Hodson, Hull York Medical School 2019

"We had so many opportunities to observe a variety of different procedures."

Claudia Leney, University of Surrey 2019

"Discussing auditory cues for a patient with mid-stage Parkinson’s disease was a highlight."

Rebecca Townsend, University of East London 2019

"Having completed the course I was a lot more aware of what was happening during ward rounds and in emergency situations, which I maximised my learning."

Holly Spence - Intensive Spanish Course, University of Edinburgh 2019

WHAT HEALTHCARE DISCIPLINES DO WORK THE WORLD CATER FOR?

Work the World organise supervised healthcare electives and placements for the following disciplines: - 1. Medical 2. Nursing 3. Midwifery 4. Physiotherapy 5. Radiography 6. Pharmacy 7. Dentistry 8. Occupational Therapy 9. Paramedic Science

WHAT OTHER COUNTRIES CAN I TRAVEL TO ON A WORK THE WORLD PLACEMENT?

Work the World provides a huge variety of flexible placement opportunities throughout Asia, Africa and Latin America. These include 1. Tanzania 2. Indonesia 3. Vietnam 4. Mexico 5. Ghana 6. The Philippines 7. Nepal 8. Sri Lanka 9. Zambia

WHAT IS THE WORK THE WORLD HOUSE LIKE IN MEXICO?

The house is located in one of the city’s most popular suburban districts. An open design, boasting beautiful modern architecture and an outdoor pool. You’ll be in close proximity to Merida’s famous city centre with all the usual fare - mariachi bands playing in the public plazas, museums, and bars and restaurants in the evenings. A short taxi ride gets you to a tropical beach upon which you can sip cocktails and look out into the Gulf of Mexico.

Placements In Mexico

Merida