I am currently in my second year of nursing at Edge Hill University, and by September 2019 I hope to become a qualified paediatric nurse, having gained by BSc Hons Childrens Nursing Degree.

In our third year, we are given the opportunity to travel abroad to somewhat deprived countries, and experience health care outside of the NHS.

I have been in contact with a company called 'plan my gap year’ who tailor healthcare placements worldwide based on each individual's interests. My chosen destination is Kumasi in Ghana. I will be spending four weeks in hospital and clinical settings looking after seriously ill newborn babies and children and working with other healthcare professionals. I will be attending the mother and baby HIV clinic and will also be visiting the orphanage while I am there. Ghana is a somewhat deprived place and malaria is a huge issue in Ghana and remains the cause of many deaths and illnesses. The hospitals in Ghana are very poorly resourced and understaffed by UK standards, so this will be a very eye opening experience. I will be placed in a number of different departments to experience a broad insight into the Ghanian healthcare system.

The staff at the healthcare facilities in Ghana are appreciative of support and information sharing. I will be able to experience how illnesses are treated within a poorly resourced healthcare system and witness the challenges the staff face.

This placement area has a highly clinical focus and the company I am going with has meaning I’ll get a considerable amount of practical experience.This once in a lifetime experience would therefore provide me with a great insight into medical conditions that may be unseen or unheard of in the UK.

As a student nurse, the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) require that student nurses must complete 3000 hours unpaid work in different health care settings as part of their course. The overall cost for this experience is about £2000, which as a student is hard to fund, so any donations would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you, Karla Sambor x