Category Archives: Europe

Furthering US-Hungarian Cooperation

August 31, 2021 ajlee

Thanks to Prof. Joe Petersberger for his work to continue our international cooperation this summer! It was fantastic to meet with him and plan for post-COVID cooperation including our virtual guest lecturing appearances. Great to visit with an old friend and chart a course for future projects.

Education, Europe

Fantastic collaborative summer!

July 31, 2021 ajlee

Thanks to Prof. Marija Heffer and colleagues at the University of Osijek (Croatia) Medical Faculty for the stimulating, engaging, and productive summer. Fruitful exchange of ideas, curriculum development, meetings with students, and casual chats about lab work provided a fruitful way to navigate the end of COVID-19. Hvala vam!

Education, Europe, Health, Medical Education

Extending a warm welcome to a guest lecturer from Hungary!

February 22, 2021 ajlee

I’m honored to welcome an old friend, Prof. Joe Petersburger, from the University of Pécs Medical School in Pécs, Hungary as a guest lecturer this semester. He will be joining us periodically for insight on the COVID-19 pandemic in Central Europe.

Prof. Petersburger embodies the ideals of a Renaissance scholar; he is not only a biologist, but also a photographer, former business executive, and medical communications expert. Prof. Petersburger earned his doctorate in biology from the University of Debrecen in Hungary and also was an exchange student at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh. He went on to become the first Hungarian photographer to have his work featured in National Geographic magazine. After a stint working in the pharmaceutical industry, he directed his immense talents to teaching medical students and encouraging interdisciplinary studies (through ITD, the only trans-disciplinary studies institute at a Hungarian medical school).

https://itdweb.hu/en/

Please send along any questions you may have about how COVID has impacted Europe as well as any you may have regarding opportunities to study at the University of Pécs. It is Hungary’s oldest university offering courses of study in more than 300 disciplines (including the country’s oldest English language medical degree program).

Europe, Health

Welcome to 2020: Year of the Nurse

January 14, 2020 ajlee

The World Health Organization (W.H.O.) has designated 2020 as the “Year of the Nurse”. In celebration of the professionals who provide 90% of a patient’s contact with a health worker, a few facts about one of the world’s most famous nurses. British nurse Florence Nightingale (who lived in the late 1800s) accomplished the following:
• She wrote around 200 (!) books and papers during her nursing career.
• In 1860 she drew a revolutionary version of the pie-chart (called the Coxcomb diagram) showing infection rates of British soldiers and made the case for hospital disinfection, making her a pioneer in infographic presentation.
• She spoke 4 languages very well (English, French, German, and Italian) and knew the classical languages Latin and Greek.
• Campaigned the British government for laws to improve hospital sanitation (specifically running water), which dramatically decreased death rates due to infection.
• Her birthday, May 12, is celebrated as International Nurses Day.
• Her parents disapproved of her career choice.
(Sources: The Economist and Mental Floss magazines)

Education, Europe, Medical Education

attend Polish medical school via U.S. non-profit

October 16, 2018 ajlee

Thrilled to attend ceremonies for Hope Medical Institute (HMI) as they celebrated the medical students graduating from 3 of Poland’s leading medical schools. Working with HMI, U.S. students may apply to study medicine in Poland (with all classes conducted in English) and then complete clinical rotations back in the United States. Of course, for U.S. medical residency purposes, students are classified as foreign medical grads. However, the structure of Polish medical education (in line with European standards) allows application to Polish medical schools right out of high school, or after completing some college-level coursework. A little known option for bright students willing to study in central Europe!