At a glance
- Observe doctors on their rounds, rotating through different departments.
- Complete medical outreach, providing check-ups and treatment to underserved communities.
- Attend workshops and training at a local hospital to gain insight into a developing country’s medical practices.
- A fun, interesting, and practical way to add experience to your CV and benefit your future career.
- Join organised social activities, including a weekend trip to Angkor Wat!
- Clinical Shadowing Hours: 30
- Volunteer Service Hours: 15
- Download a sample itinerary for this project.
Is a Medicine Internship in Cambodia for teenagers right for me?
Our medical placements in Cambodia for high school students are perfect for you if you want to add medical work experience to your CV. It may also help you decide if medicine is the right career path for you.
Medical work experience for teenagers in Cambodia will also give you interesting points to talk about in applications and interviews. You’ll be able to talk about different medical specialties, as well as the insight you got into healthcare practices in a developing country.
You don’t need previous experience to join, as this internship is strictly observational. The focus is on learning.
We’ll teach you how to diagnose and treat the diseases you see, and you’ll be able to ask questions and take notes. You’ll also have the opportunity to attend lectures at the hospital.
This High School Special runs over fixed dates, and you can choose the trip that best fits your schedule. Each trip runs for two, three, or four weeks at a time.
You’ll get to observe medical practices and learn about Cambodian culture while travelling around Phnom Penh and Siem Reap.
What will I be doing during this Medicine Internship for high school students?
You’ll rotate through various departments at the largest hospital in Cambodia. There is a wide scope for you to observe and learn while you are in Cambodia. Here are a few of the tasks you’ll be involved in:
- Observe the work of professional medical staff as you rotate across different hospital departments.
- Attend lectures and workshops from medical professionals that will help you improve your basic medical skills.
- Support medical outreach events to raise awareness about health issues and provide medical checks to those who cannot access healthcare.
- Experience life in Cambodia while learning more about the country’s history and culture.
- Form lifelong friendships with other high school interns with similar interests.
Observe the work of professional medical staff
Since this internship is mainly observational, you’ll have the opportunity to shadow medical staff in many different departments. By doing so, you’ll be exposed to many different fields of medicine, which may even influence the direction you’ll take with a specialisation someday.
A few of the medical fields you’ll learn about include:
- Physiotherapy
- Family planning
- Eye health
- Cancer treatments
There is much to be learnt from observing medical professionals as they work. Keep your pen and notebook close as you shadow medical staff around the hospital. You’ll see how the staff engage with patients, and which instruments they use when examining patients.
You’ll also see the state of medical facilities in a developing country, and observe illnesses or diseases you don’t see in your home country. Doctors will teach you how to diagnose and treat these illnesses.
We encourage you to ask questions and learn as much as you can. At the end of each day the group will have a reflection session to review what they observed and have further opportunities to ask medical staff about what they have seen.
Attend lectures and workshops from medical professionals
To help you prepare for a future in medicine, you’ll sit in on lectures at a teaching hospital. You’ll join local medical students to see what it will be like once you start studying. These lessons will build your practical medical knowledge and teach you basic medical skills.
You will have more than one opportunity to take part in workshops aimed at expanding your medical knowledge. Workshops will give you hands-on training for skills like suturing, taking blood pressure and vital signs.
Some of these skills will be used during the medical outreaches.
The group will also join lectures to learn about the medical system, tropical diseases, and typical ailments or cases found in Cambodia.
Support medical outreach events
Part of our Medical Internship for high school students in Cambodia includes giving you a chance to gain practical experience.
To ensure that disadvantaged communities receive basic healthcare services, we organise medical outreaches. You will help healthcare professionals here.
On a medical outreach, you will:
- Check people’s temperature
- Assist with weight checks
- Take blood pressure readings
- Help distribute medicine
All work is supervised and we have medical professionals on hand to assist with any questions.
You’ll also support preventative medicine activities by running workshops and lessons about health issues.
Experience life in Cambodia and form lifelong friendships
Evenings and weekends in Cambodia are jam-packed with social activities and sightseeing. With a group of teenagers your age, you’ll travel and explore under the supervision of our staff.
You'll do things like:
- Take part in a Buddhist water blessing
- Visit Angkor Wat, Ta Prohm and Bayon Temple in Siem Reap
- Watch traditional Apsara dance
- Watch a Khmer boxing match
- Explore night markets
- Meditate with monks at a pagoda
Where will I be working in Cambodia?
Phnom Penh
You’ll live and work in the beautiful capital city of Phnom Penh. Even with Cambodia’s history of war, the city is rapidly developing to keep up with an expanding population and growing tourism industry. There is much to see and do in Phnom Penh, and we’ll show you as much as possible when you’re there.
You’ll shadow medical staff at a hospital in the center of the city and provide medical outreaches on the outskirts of the city.
What are the aims and impacts of this Medicine Internship in Cambodia?
The aim of this project is to provide you with an insight into the medical field. By doing so, we hope it will give you a deeper understanding of medical practices in a developing country. You can also use your work experience to help you decide whether this is the right career path for you.
Along with other high school students, you’ll observe the work of qualified doctors as they treat patients in a hospital setting. You’ll get a first hand glimpse at what work you could do in the future if you study medicine. Rotating through various hospital departments will help build your medical knowledge. This could range from general medicine and maternity wards, ICUs and viewing operations.
Join our Medical Internship for teenagers in Cambodia to help you prepare for a future career in medicine.
Management plans
We set out the aims and objectives of our projects in documents called Management Plans. We use them to properly plan the work you’ll do. They also help us measure and evaluate our achievements and impact each year.
Ultimately, our Management Plans help us make our projects better. This in turn means you get to be part of something that makes a real impact where it’s needed. Read more about our Management Plans.
Measuring our impact
Our projects work towards clear long-term goals, with specific annual objectives. Every volunteer and intern we send to these projects helps us work towards these goals, no matter how long they spend on our projects.
Every year we take a step back and look at how much progress we've made towards these goals. We put together a Global Impact Report, which documents our achievements. Find out more about the impact our global community of volunteers, interns and staff make, and read the latest report.
Food and accommodation
You'll share accommodation with other Projects Abroad volunteers and interns during your stay in Phnom Penh. This is a great way to get to know your fellow volunteers and interns, share experiences, and explore your surroundings in your time together.
On our High School Specials, we will always try to have you share a room with at least one volunteer or intern of the same gender and approximate age. Your room will be modest, but comfortable, clean, and safe.
Your programme fees include three meals a day.
Find out more about our accommodation.
Safety and staff support
Your safety and security is our prime concern. We have many procedures and systems to ensure you have the support you need to enjoy your trip with peace of mind. Our Projects Abroad staff are available 24 hours a day to help, and will be on hand to make sure you settle in well at your accommodation and placement. If you encounter any problems, they will be available to help at any time.
Find out more about safety and backup.
This placement is fully researched, safety audited, and risk assessed in accordance with the British Standard BS8848 for the Adventure Travel Sector.
Our accreditations
