Pham Thanh Phuong 　2017年4月

REPORT ON THE UNIVERSITY OF TSUKUBA HOSPITAL TRAINING

I’m going to report on my two week observation training in University of Tsukuba Hospital from 17 April to 28 April 2017. It was a big surprise and happiness to me that I got a cholarship for this training from Professor Hiramatsu Juji. Actually this was the first time I had a chance to go abroad for a training programe, so I was very excited about it. I had only about 1 month to prepare for the trip, so it was quite clumsy and nervous to me. Luckily, all the papers went very smoothly with the support of Tsukuba International Mecical Center and I got the VISA one day before the departure day.

My very first impression on Tsukuba was the nice weather and outstanding sightseeing. Sakura blossomed everywhere on the road from the airport to Tsukuba center. Tsukuba is a very peaceful and quiet city where I can see flowers blooming and hear birds singing everywhere. Indeed, the beautiful scene transcends my power of description.

For the first day of training in The University of Tsukuba Hospital, I was a little bit nervous because I’d had no experience about what’s going on outside my country.What a big and modern hospital! That was the first impression on my mind. Everything is very high- equipped and well-arranged here. And it far transcends the others in technique and intelligence.

I was so happy to have chances to practice in both Echo Room of Cardiology Department and Cardiac Surgery Department. Half of time in echo room, I had oppotunities to observe the routine echo examamination in patient, which was very clear, detailed and easy to approach. The technique in echography was very clever and skillful. The technicians showed me how to do an echo examination step by step, which seemed to be quite different from my hospital. All the doctors in Echo room were very friendly and helpful to me. They gave me explainations, clinical history and pathophysiology before starting the echo procedure. And during the examination, they explained the image on the screen and gave me a brief note to make sure I could understand the case thoroughly. Moreover, I had chances to follow many cases of transesophageal echocardiogram (TEE), which is rarely done in my hospital. That was really helpful for me to broaden my knowledge about echography.

Besides, half of the time I spent on Cardiac Surgery Department. In this department, I got chances to join the ward round in ICU and HCU in the morning. During the round, I was clearly explained the clinical points case by case, from the diagnosis to treatment plan for operation, follow up and recovery. Moreover, I had permission to follow some pediatric cases in echo room and trace every step on the cardiac operation procedure. Although language seemed to be a barrier, all the staffs kept trying to translate and repeat the key points to me in some discussions and conferences. As a result, my learning experiences were enriched much through their professional recommendations and teachings.

One of the most unforgetable highlight of my course was the wonderful farewell party with all the medical students and doctors who were doing intership in the Cardiac Surgery Department. What struck me most was their warmth, hospitality, generosity and great sense of humor. We really had a good time hanging out and talking together.

Finally, my two week training was completely accomplished with a lot of useful knowledge attained in both two departments. I would like to give sincere thanks and appreciations to all the staffs in the University of Tsukuba Hospital that gave me an incredible opportunity to widen my horizon of knowledge. One more thing that strikes a deep chord in my heart is how you showed me the truest of your beliefs and values that make Japan the greatest country. It is not just your actions that are inspiring, it is your warm-heartedness that transcends all the differences and makes us hand in hand working together toward the final goal of enhancing patient care. At last, as a young physician, I believe that all the experiences in this training programe will help me to improve my medical practice, as well as give me a better orientation for my specialty in the future. I will keep this inspiration and motivation along with me and still hold the hope that I could have another chance to come back toTsukuba someday.