Monday, December 30, 2013

Medical School in Paradise

We are very excited to introduce our first guest blogger! We asked our dear friend, Jill Messenger, to write a post about her life as a med school wife in the Caribbean. Here's what she had to say!


Medical School on the island of Grenada (SGU):

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly


I love St. George’s University (SGU) like I love health insurance. I need it, but I hate it. SGU is giving MY husband (who applied for years and years to get into medical school in the States) the opportunity to fulfill his dream of becoming a physician!!! But sometimes? This school DRIVES ME NUTS!!!! The Mr. just needed to catch a break when it came to applying for medical schools, and SGU was the school that finally gave him one, and we will forever be grateful for it! 

I think medical school in general is a phenomenon that is a mystery. No one really seems to know anything about it unless they’ve been through it. Medical school also seems to invoke a lot of questions, but then tack on the fact that we’re doing it in the Caribbean??? I think it stimulates even more. And although this list will not be all-encompassing, it’ll give you a pretty good idea of what medical school is like in the Caribbean. Well, in Grenada, at least.

*Disclaimer – I’ve been here two years without leaving the island, and know the ins and outs of Grenada PRETTY well (it’s not very big); however, these experiences are my own, and anyone else you talk to may have something completely different to say.


The Good
The Island

·      Hello???!!! It’s a Caribbean Island.
·      Grenada is absolutely beautiful!
·      The UNIVERSITY CLUB POOL!!! (Every Monday and Thursday).
·      The people are friendly and warm.
·      There are so many things to see and do (and the best part of it all??? Most of it is FREE!!!!)! Beaches, waterfalls, pools, forts, snorkeling, boat rides, steel drum bands, CRAB RACES!! (yes… that’s really what I wrote), hiking, tide pools, and watching leatherback sea turtles lay eggs… to name a few.
·      The weather… aaaaahhhhh…. The weather….
·      Sunsets
·      The tropical fruit truly is divine, and if you like fish? There’s nothing better.
·      I feel very safe. Most of the crime that occurs here is theft, and people are VERY respectful of mothers and children.
·      Our house is nice, and a good value for the location.
·      It provides adventure for the adventurous soul!
·      During school breaks? It’s kind of like you have a FREE Caribbean vacation! (Because you’re already here)! :D
·      Life is more relaxed and moves slower.
·      There are a TON of VOLUNTEER opportunities with local charities, orphanages, and school programs.


The Social Life

·      SGU is one of the only schools that has a “Significant Other (SO) Organization.” Anyone who is a spouse, partner, child, etc… can join the SO Organization (for a small fee), and participate in any of the socials and activities. Everyone is so nice!!!! And you all understand each other, because you’re all going through the same thing.
·      For members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, there IS a branch located on the island, with a real (tiny) church building, with a HIGH student/student family population in the branch (at least for the time being).
·      The night life is fun, but can be expensive (depending on what you want to do). I’m not a “show up at a bar or party” type of a girl, so my night life consists of eating out at resort-style restaurants. It costs more money, but it SURE IS FUN!

The School

·      The campus is beautiful, well-kept, and on one of the most gorgeous peninsulas on the island.


·      SGU has high expectations from their students (good thing for a Caribbean school reputation).
·      And last but NOT least!!! My husband is going to be a REAL DOCTOR when all is said and done!!!!! (Yes… a real doctor. It’s sad that I have to clarify, but you have no idea how many people actually think that his education won’t “count” because it was done on an island. But yes, he will still be taking the same boards every other physician has to take if he/she wants to practice in America).


The Bad

The Island

·      Even Paradise gets old when you’re here long enough. Island fever is real. A 132 square mile island. You can only go to the same beaches, pools and waterfalls so many times. It’s like being stuck on vacation. Sure… it sounds nice now, but you know you’re always excited to be “home” once the vacation is over. Most students go home during the summer and winter breaks. My family has not left since we moved here almost two years ago! (Until tomorrow! We’re vacationing to ANOTHER island)!
·      Island hopping is NOT cheap! You’d think it would be. It’s not.
·      Grenada is a third-world, developing country. In the words of my brother-in-law, “I didn’t know people really lived like this!” It wasn’t much of a culture shock for me, but I understand that many people experience quite the surprise!
·      Food is EXPENSIVE!!!! Milk is 6 U.S. dollars a gallon, a 1 lb package of strawberries is 8 U.S. dollars. Apples are priced PER APPLE, not per pound. I used to spend anywhere from 200-400 U.S. dollars a month on groceries (family of 5), and now I spend anywhere from 800-1,000 U.S.!!!
·      Meat and cheese prices are outrageous, so we eat a lot of shredded chicken (and add beans) to stretch it out a little.
·      Groceries do not go on sale, so you can kiss the couponing goodbye! BUT… every once in awhile, the yogurt will be expiring “tomorrow”… and then you can get a KILLER deal!
·      On average, the grocery store will only carry about ¾ of the ingredients I need for my recipes. I’ve learned to adapt and modify recipes VERY well, and you can kiss your menu-making goodbye!
·      Luxuries (things you wouldn’t even CLASSIFY as a luxury) are GONE! Carpet, soft toilet paper, good tasting water, a dishwasher, a dryer, variety of food, inexpensive restaurants, fast food on every corner (not that I condone eating at them all the time!), Walmart, Costco, 24 hour DRIVE-THRU pharmacies, customer service, quick service, medical care, to name a few…
·      I once went to a Taco Bell in America that ran out of meat. WHAT???!!! That’s UNHEARD of! Not here. (And no… there’s no Taco Bell)…
·      Mosquitos and bugs.
·      The weather is beautiful (in the Winter) but it provides you with an odd sense of a time warp. You never know what month it is, and Christmas doesn’t feel like Christmas.
·      The summer months are HOT and HUMID! Pretty miserable. Most homes do not have central A/C, but a wall unit in the bedrooms that will cost you about 200 U.S. dollars a month if you run it a total of 6 hours a day. YIKES!  
·      Obtaining a work permit on the island is VERY difficult, so if you are a Significant Other looking for work, this is not going to be a good place to find it. Remember, though! Lots of volunteer opportunities!  
·      The island is NOT stroller friendly, and not biking friendly. There are not soccer or baseball, etc. leagues for little kids. Elementary and Secondary schools are high priced for a mediocre education, and there are not “parks” to play in. Basically, if your child doesn’t like to swim, you’re screwed.

The Social Life

·      If you think it’s hard to get away from people you don’t like now, try to avoid them when you live on a little island. It ain’t easy.
·      Want to throw a party? Better make sure you invite EVERYONE or someone’s gonna get hurt.
·      If you are a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, be prepared to serve A LOT! The local members are the sweetest and most humble members I’ve ever met, but they still do not understand what it means to hold a calling, and they live on West Indian time. They will most likely be late (if they show up at all) and unprepared. Hence, the majority of the responsibility will fall on your shoulders to get classes started, to teach, etc… (whether it’s your job or not). Both my husband and I hold pretty time-consuming callings.

The School

·      Just because it’s a Caribbean school, doesn’t make it a party school.  In fact, it’s quite the opposite. Caribbean schools have something to prove, a stigma against them, and in the attempt to rid themselves of such, they must put their students through the “Ring of Fire” AND the “Gauntlet,” all while the American Gladiators are chucking things at you, too. Did I paint that picture well enough for you? J (But don’t get me wrong, medical school is hard EVERYWHERE, not just here).
·      It is advised that the Caribbean Medical School student scores an average of 10 points higher on their board exams than any US Med School student in order to look competitive. Sounds kinda unfair to me.


AND… THE UGLY....

The Island

·      I finally know what it means to be a minority. It sucks. It sounds so cliché, but I really do get treated differently because of the color of my skin, and I HATE it! I get looked at like I don’t belong, I get charged higher prices, I get whistled and hissed at, the list goes on. I HATE RACISM! * But learn their names, and they’ll start to remember you. ;)

The Social Life

·      If there’s REAL drama (which there shouldn’t be because we’re all adults), but if there is… It is NOT a pretty sight. Too close of quarters, and a lot of people stuck in the middle.

The School

·      SGU’s class sizes are just getting bigger and bigger. The Mr. started in a class size of around 600. In just two years, the entering class jumped up to 800!!!!
·      RUMOR has it that there are only 500 or so clinical spots available to 3rd year SGU students. RUMOR has it that the school PURPOSELY fails out the necessary amount of students in order to get the class down to the right number by the end of the first two years; thus, robbing the “failing” students of hundreds of thousands of dollars by the time they get “dismissed.”
o   I cannot emphasize RUMOR enough.
o   I have heard from a reliable source that this is false, and that the school has plenty of clinical spots available. (But really? Who would admit to this unethical practice?)
o   I’m just saying it’s pretty ironic that the number just so “happens” to be around 500 students every single time the last semester begins.
·      The cheating at this school is RAMPANT!
o   Old exams are passed around like they’re candy. My husband refuses to participate because it’s CHEATING!
o   About 80% of the current exam questions come from old exams. That’s a FREE 80%, from no work of your own!
o   And then, there’s my husband who continues to keep his eyes on his own paper and do his own work, and yet, his 70% will be compared to the 85% the other students are “earning.” It doesn’t seem fair to me.
o   Some people may call him stupid. I call him a man who has integrity.


The Conclusion:

Alright, if you were to look at this list alone, you would think that I hated the island and the school! THAT IS NOT THE CASE AT ALL! I love it here! I tear up thinking about the day that I have to leave. I don’t witness the things on the negative list more than 3 or 4 times a week, but I do witness most everything on the positive list almost every minute of every day.

Sure, things drive me nuts, and sure, I’m going a little stir crazy, but the fact is… Grenada helped shape the person I have become (as well as our family). My children now leap for joy when we have fresh milk in the fridge. Their Santa wish lists consisted of 4 or 5 things… LITTLE things. They scream with excitement for a bag of popcorn. I’m so proud to say they are mine.

I’m so grateful we have had the opportunity to live in Grenada. A place where supply is limited, but gratitude is high. A place where children are not spoiled from their world that is full of plenty. A place that puts life into perspective, and helps you remember the more important things in life.

Even amongst all of the “bad and uglies,” and knowing what I know now, I can honestly say, I would do it all over again in a heartbeat.


<3… Signing off

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