The faculty-led Health Teams Abroad program in Sweden features the breathtaking views of Scandinavia and gives students a look at the advanced aspects of Sweden’s healthcare system. Sophomore Gavin Miller studied abroad through this program last summer.   

The Health Teams Abroad Program gives students an introduction to European medicine, and how it differs from the American system. The program is also a way for students to gain clinical experience and learn more about Swedish culture. 

For the semester before the program, Miller said the group met once a week to learn more about America’s system first.  

“We went and toured different clinics, just to see how things work here,” Miller said. “We learned a lot about the taxes, and the policies that make our system not universal.” 

In Sweden, the group toured clinics and learned about different healthcare systems compared to America’s. Millier said they spent the first two weeks in Jonkoping and went to Stockholm.  

“I had a great time,” Miller said. “Everybody was so nice. They were all pretty passionate about healthcare, and I hadn’t really seen that before in my classes.” 

Outside of clinical experience, the program also offers cultural education experiences. Miller said the group spent the last week touring the country’s capital and seeing the sights. 

“The downtown there is really awesome,” Miller said. “We went to a concert and saw the Weekend in Stockholm.” 

There was also time for students to explore in their own time.  

Miller said he visited Copenhagen and Denmark one weekend during his stay. Sticking with a small group, he said he had fun traveling to other areas. 

Before going on the trip, Miller said he was on the fence between pursuing public health or medicine. Even though the trip made her appreciate  

“The trip made me appreciate public health as it is, but I think I found that I want the more instant gratification of helping someone in an office or a clinic or something like that,” Miller said. “It kind of solidified my pre-med choice. It made me want to be a physician more so that we can work towards a system like theirs.”