Brooke Lindsay spent her winter break traveling to Chiang Mai, Thailand, as part of a three-week Healthcare in Thailand study abroad experience. The program combined cultural immersion with extensive clinical observation, giving students a firsthand look at how health care is delivered in a different country and context.
“What really interested me in the program is that it was a shadow abroad experience,” Lindsay said. “We got to shadow so many different specialties in the medical field and it gave me a real feel for what the day-to-day looked like working in a hospital.”
“ It gave me a real feel for what the day-to-day looked like working in a hospital.”
Brooke Lindsay
Throughout the program, Lindsay shadowed at several of Chiang Mai’s largest hospitals including Chiangmai Ram Hospital, Maharaj, and Rajavej, which featured a wide variety of modern medical fields including surgery, pediatrics, family medicine, labor and delivery, orthopedic, and more.
“The most memorable experience was surgery for sure. We got to watch a live surgery happen,” Lindsay said. “It was really cool to see the coordination between the surgeon and the scrub nurses. If there was a problem, it was incredible how they worked together on their feet to solve it in real time as a team.”
Lindsay also shadowed at smaller and more rural hospitals that specialized in traditional Thai medicine. This approach remains an important option for many people in Thailand and can include healthcare methods such as acupuncture, massages, herbal remedies, and more.
“It is a massive cultural difference and some people in their culture only rely on traditional medicine,” Lindsay said. “We got to make our own herbal massage balls that they use for treatment.”
Alongside her intensive shadowing schedule, Lindsay explored Chiang Mai and immersed herself in Thai culture by visiting local street markets and night bazaars, hiking to Bua Tong Sticky Waterfalls, where mineral deposits create a grippy surface that makes the rocks climbable, and touring a local elephant sanctuary that rescues injured elephants.
“The coolest thing we did was climbing the Sticky Waterfalls and getting to see the environment and all its natural beauty,” Lindsay said. “While part of me didn’t want to leave, I felt like three weeks was a perfect amount of time abroad.”
Lindsay’s shadow abroad cohort at a hospital in Chiang Mai.
Currently in her third year, Lindsay is double majoring in biology and neuroscience while pursuing a medical pathway minor, ensuring she is on the right path to apply to medical school. She also takes part in biological research with Dr. Michel Pelletier where she is working to uncover potential treatments for African sleeping sickness.
“If you told me in high school that I would be a science major, I never would have believed you,” Lindsay laughed. “I became way more interested in labs after coming to Brockport. I felt like the labs in high school were not very hands-on. Coming to Brockport and joining the pre-med program really changed my view on that.”
While Lindsay is unsure of exactly which field of medicine she wants to specialize in, she knows she wants to pursue her Doctor of Medicine (MD) close to home with plans to apply to the University of Rochester, University at Buffalo, or NYU for medical school.
“After traveling to Thailand and actually getting experience in the field, I know all my studying will be worth it in the end,” Lindsay said.