Payment Schedule: The application fee is charged upon application to the program. Within 2-3 weeks, applicants will be accepted or rejected for participation in the program. Upon acceptance, a transferable, but non-refundable deposit of $350 is due within 30 days. The final balance of the program fees is due 6 weeks prior to your program date.

* For equivalent costs in other currencies please click here for currency converter.
Please note that all bank check or money order payments must be made in U.S dollars only. Credit card payments are converted to U.S dollars automatically.

Fundraising

Scholarships may be available depending on budget allocation each year. Please visit the scholarships page for the latest information/availability for CFHI scholarships.

Once accepted, students may also do their own fundraising through Firstgiving.org.  Please click here to view a sample fundraising page. Please note that some important restrictions apply to funds raised through Firstgiving.  To review the terms of use, click here.


What’s Included?

• Pre-departure and on-site orientation materials and guidance
  
• Accommodation on a shared basis with three meals a day for the program’s duration (Saturday – Saturday). The local coordinators will charge you for additional nights outside the program dates.
  
• International Emergency Medical and Medical Evacuation Insurance
  
• Airport pick up on arrival
  
• All Local Program-Related Transportation
  
• All preceptor, hospital, and coordinator fees
  
• Registration with the University of Cape Town, which includes access to library system, computer lab and official UCT student ID card
  
• Weekly meetings with coordinators
  
• A limited number of extra activities such as lectures on the healthcare system in South Africa and related topics
  
• Mobile Phone for emergency and incoming calls
  

Cost does not include:

• Airfare to Cape Town, South Africa
  
• Passport or visa fees
  
• Other expenses of a personal nature like weekend and after-hour activities. This includes but is not limited to local transportation, tourist trips in and around Cape Town and any personal expenses incurred.
  

CFHI's South Africa program is conducted in Cape Town; a beautiful city flanked by the magnificent Table Mountain on one side and the Atlantic Ocean on the other. Visitors can get a fairly accurate view of Cape Town within the first twenty minutes of their drive from the airport. As with most South African cities, Cape Town is structured according to class, the richer being closer to the city center and the poorest furthest away. The outskirts of Cape Town is called Cape Flats. You will be staying in the Cape Flats during the program as well. The Eerste River Community Health program is also located here.

Cape Town has some of the worlds most beautiful and interesting sights. It is home to such famous places as Table Mountain, Robben Island, and Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens and also boasts fascinating museums, lots of culture and art, and some of the country's best beaches.

The major languages in the Western Cape include Afrikaans, English, Xhosa, and Sotho. Language should not be a problem as English is spoken by everyone, even if it is their second or third language.

• Photos
• Practical Information
• Recommended Vaccinations

• Recommended books
• Wikipedia South Africa
• Wikipedia Cape Town
• Cape Town Tourism Board
• South Africa: A country study

• English

• Medical Residents, MD & DO
• Medical Students, MD & DO 3-4
• Medical Students, 5-6 (UK)
• Senior level Pre-Medical Students
• Final Year Physicians Assistants Students

• Medical Residents, MD & DO
• Medical Students, MD & DO 1-2
• Senior level Pre-Medical Students
• Post-bacc pre-medical students
• Gap year pre-medical students
• Graduate nursing students
• Nursing Students
• MPH Students
• Physicians Assistants Students

• Nursing students
• Registered Nurses
• Certified Nurse Midwifery students
• Certified Nurse Midwives

• Medical Residents, MD & DO
• Medical Students, MD & DO 1-2
• Medical Students, MD & DO 3-4
• Senior level Pre-Medical Students
• Post-bacc pre-medical students
• Gap year pre-medical students
• Graduate nursing students
• Nursing Students
• MPH Students
• Physicians Assistants Students
• Naturopathic students

Victoria Hospital (Medical Residents, MD & DO Medical Students, MD & DO 3-4 (UK, 5-6), Final Year Physicians Assistants Students)

Victoria hospital is a secondary hospital and falls under the Provincial Health Department and the University of Cape Town. The hospital has 158 inpatient beds and serves a population of approximately 47,000 per year. 50% of their patients are uninsured, and are served at low cost, and they also see patients with private insurance. Victoria Hospital has departments in the following specialties: pediatrics, general surgery, general internal medicine, trauma and emergency, urology, plastic surgery and HIV clinics. The HIV clinics are run in the surrounding community health centres and follow up treatment or continued care happens at the regional hospital level. They also have services such as occupational and physical therapy for their patients.

CFHI participants will rotate in general surgery, pediatrics, casualty, general medicine and in the HIV clinics. Each of these departments has a department head physician who will act as preceptors for the CFHI program. Because students will be rotating at one facility, students have an excellent opportunity to develop a familiarity and rapport with Victoria Hospital's patients and staff. This allows participants to get a more in-depth understanding of the complexity of South Africa's healthcare system in the context of this secondary hospital.

Eerste River Community Health Rotation (Pre-med, preclinical PA students, etc)

This rotation will allow pre-clincal students the opportunity to understand the primary healthcare system in Cape Town's Cape Flats communities, which were created when many non-white citizens were forcibly removed from the city center during the Apartheid era. Students will be exposed to the healthcare system in these communities where 80% of patients rely solely on the State's health insurance and will be able to observe and participate in the response to common health challenges such as hypertension, diabetes, heart disease and HIV/AIDS.

Eerste River Hospital is located in the Eastern Subdistrict of Cape Town in the Cape Flats area of Cape Town. The area is served by a number of community clinics, through which students will rotate in this program. Each of these clinics, including Delft, Mfuleni, Kleinvlei, Russels Rest and Reed Street Clinics, has a strong emergency, general medical, surgical and pediatric department as well as specialist ophthalmology and ARV departments. In addition there are a number of specialist clinics run by consultants, including urology, gynecology, ENT and (occasional) orthopedics. Students with an interest in maternal and child health or neonatal care may also rotate through the Kangaroo Unit. CFHI participants will be exposed to a variety of these clinics, focusing mostly on emergency, general medical and general surgery. Each of these departments has a department head physician who will act as preceptors for the CFHI program.

Mowbray Maternity Hospital Rotation (Nursing students, RNs and nurse midwife students and CNMs)

Mowbray Maternity Hospital, as its name indicates, is situated in Mowbray, a southern suburb of the City of Cape Town. It serves as the main referral hospital in the area for complicated or high-risk deliveries and intensive neonatal care. With a capacity of 175 beds, MMH can accommodate 106 adult and 69 neonatal patients, including 9 Kangaroo Mother Care beds. It also has 8 beds in the labor and delivery ward and a fully functional NICU with 13 beds of which 6 are equipped for full ventilation. MMH is a very busy hospital which in 2006 saw 1203 new bookings and 7888 deliveries in 2006.

Nursing and midwifery students with an interest in maternal and child health, prenatal and neonatal care, obstetrical nursing and labor and delivery will have the opportunity to rotate through all aspects of care at MMH. Participants may also be able to visit some of the surrounding Midwife Operated Units (MOUs) which offer prenatal care and delivery services for uncomplicated and low-risk births, and which are the referral source of nearly all MMH patients. In comparison with healthcare systems which are more doctor-oriented, the rotation at Mowbray offers participants the unique experience of working in a hospital which is predominantly staffed and operated by nurses and midwives.

GF Jooste Hospital (Pre-meds, MS1-IV, residents, nursing students, PA students, MPH students, Natropathic students, etc)

GF Jooste Hospital is located in Mannenberg, a working-class suburb of Cape Town. It has a huge drainage area, serving at least 1.3 million people living in the Cape Flats area. Students rotating through GF Jooste Hospital will be exposed to the full spectrum of clinical settings and specialties available at this secondary hospital. GF Jooste has provided quality healthcare to residents since 1976, and is the only public hospital in the area. It currently has 176 emergency beds; 8 high care beds; and 70 Family Medicine beds.

Students will have the opportunity to observe and assist in several medical and surgical wards, as well as the high care units. In addition, there are many outpatient clinics including orthopedics, reproductive health, pediatrics, gynecology and infectious disease. This hospital is in many ways a microcosm of the healthcare challenges in South Africa today, serving a diverse patient population with a complex combination of chronic and infectious diseases. It has excelled against all odds and remains a public hospital of choice to many thousands of people.

All rotations are subject to change depending on local availability and general South African holidays. Local coordinators will try and make alternate arrangements if a particular activity is not available during the program month.

CFHI is a nonprofit organization committed to providing students a unique opportunity to experience another culture and healthcare system in a responsible way. Though we work closely with our global partners to provide you the best possible trip, the nature of international travel means that we cannot anticipate all challenges that may occur. It is important that participants realize they must remain flexible in the face of situations that may be difficult to understand. Participating in a CFHI program means that you are an informal ambassador to the community you visit and your professional behavior is of the utmost importance.

Child Family Health International (CFHI) offers service-learning programs around the world. CFHI would like to stress to prospective applicants and institutional partners, that service-learning is not an episodic volunteer experience, and our student programs are not designed to provide service to those who would otherwise not have healthcare. The main objectives are to broaden your public health knowledge, experience a different culture, and develop creativity in problem-solving. CFHI has assembled a global family of outstanding local healthcare professionals who are at the forefront of healthcare delivery in their countries. You will have the rare opportunity to shadow these unique women and men observing and learning to work in a clinical and public health environment with limited diagnostic and therapeutic resources.

1. What problem do we address?

2. How do we address the problem?

3. How does the community benefit?

4. How do participants help in the clinic?

5. What kind of educational experience is the CFHI global health elective?

6. What are the objectives of the program?

7. Where do CFHI students come from (past participants' universities/colleges)?

8. What role can domestic Institutional Partners (universities, collaboratives, et. al.) play?

9. What is Service-Learning?

1. What problem do we address?

In today’s world we often see the uneven distribution of healthcare that leaves many impoverished communities underserved. Economic, political, and social factors all contribute to people’s access to healthcare, both internationally and at home. Increasingly, we need culturally and linguistically competent healthcare providers around the world to address these inequities.

2. How do we address the problem?

Child Family Health International’s (CFHI) Global Health Service-Learning Programs combine instruction, experience, service, and reflection to create a model that supports physicians and clinical sites abroad, addresses the healthcare needs of the underserved, and adds an unforgettable experiential element to each program participant’s education.

CFHI programs bring service-learning to hospitals and clinics around the world, allowing participants to gain insight on the contextual constructs of illness and healing in foreign settings. Program Alumni return from the host country with new perspectives on healthcare systems and delivery in places where resources and supplies are extremely limited. To read further on the potential benefits of international experiences for health students, we recommend the paper “The Effect of a Global Multiculturalism Track on Cultural Competence of Preclinical Medical Students” by Godkin and Savageau (2001).

Since 1992, CFHI has arranged for nearly 4,000 pre-medical, medical and other students of the health professions, from over 400 top universities in the and the world, to work and study in Bolivia, Ecuador, India, Mexico, and South Africa

3. How does the community benefit?

While a student’s ability to practice medicine may be limited by clinical knowledge or language skills, the participant’s contribution to the community is not an illusion. For example, we provide each participant with a box of donated medical supplies to carry with them for distribution among partner facilities. In addition, our partner physicians at each program site are compensated for their willingness to mentor CFHI students. This supplementary income promotes job retention in countries where physicians are paid small salaries, often by financially strapped governments. Furthermore, the exchange of information between students and their preceptors provides an invaluable experience for participants, the patients, and the physicians.

4. How do participants help in the clinic?

Each of our program sites has many locally qualified and experienced healthcare providers, so the participant’s primary motivation for participation should not focus on a concept of humanitarian aid, in which one expects to provide medical care to people that would otherwise not receive it. The participant’s main objective should be to actively observe, according to current language abilities, level of training, and local laws, in order to develop a high level of community health awareness. While abroad, this happens in the social and cultural context of the program site.  Child Family Health International (CFHI) would like to stress to prospective applicants and institutional partners, that service-learning is not an episodic volunteer experience, and our student programs are not designed to provide service to those who would otherwise not have healthcare.

5. What kind of educational experience is the CFHI global health elective?

CFHI's rotations are designed to offer you hands-on  or observational clinical experience (depending on your clinical and language skills as well as local laws), much like what you would experience during a rotation in the . The program includes the following educational aspects:

• Pre-trip orientation materials & web conference opportunities
• Orientation upon arrival, including cultural adjustment exercises
• Weekly meetings with Medical Director and Local Coordinator
• Clinical rotations Monday-Friday, excepting holidays or work stoppages, working with a local physician who has opted to participate in CFHI as a teaching preceptor.
• Information sessions that highlight the health care system in that country, common cases you will encounter and other site-specific information.
• Post-trip debrief materials & other on-going alumni activities/services

If you are attending a program in a Spanish-speaking country, we recommend you study as much Spanish as possible before you go, as it will greatly decrease your personal frustration during the CFHI experience. Most activities listed above will be conducted in Spanish, except for the orientations and alumni services.

MD Consult and FIRST Consult bring the leading medical resources together into one integrated online service to help physicians efficiently find answers to clinical questions, make better treatment decisions, and stay abreast of recent developments. MD Consult has been adopted by over 90% of North American medical schools and by over 1,700 health care organizations in 46 countries worldwide. FIRST Consult offers an evidence-based resource for the Point of Care, peer-reviewed content and a differential diagnosis tool.

(Please view the FAQs on the right had panel for more information)

6. What are the objectives of the CFHI Service-Learning program?

CFHI’s International Health Service-Learning Programs help participants:

• Develop a larger sense of cultural competency
• Observe and develop existing clinical skills
• Broaden public health knowledge
• Develop creativity in problem-solving
• Deepen their commitment to service
• Promote medical supply conservation

Prospective participants may apply online. Our participants are 21 years of age and over, come from around the globe, and are dedicated to a diverse array of professions in health.

7. Where do your students come from (past participants' colleges/universities)?

CFHI has provided global health education programs to nearly 4,000 health science students since 1992.  Our participants come from over 35 countries and 400+ of the most prestigious universities in the world, and represent a huge variety of the medical profession’s student population.

8. What role do domestic institutional partners (i.e. universities, collaboratives) play?

In addition to providing quality programs for individual students, CFHI is dedicated to building relationships with institutions of higher learning for relevant international programs. Creating and sustaining international programs is a long-term and labor-intensive process. Our international partnerships with physicians and clinic sites are established and reliable, and CFHI can offer the expertise needed to administer an international program to match institutional needs. Some of our current partnerships include:

• Princeton University—Health Professions Advising Office and the Pace Center for Service-Learning: CFHI developed a domestic and international health service-learning program that combined 5 weeks of international work in Quito, Ecuador with 40 hours of service in Spanish-speaking health centers in urban New Jersey.

• Oregon University System—IE3 Global Internship program: CFHI designed 11-week clinical internships in and that focus on cultural competency and valuable clinical experience within the structure of an internship. The internship promotes planning and goal-setting for students in the clinic setting.

• College Corps—CFHI currently working with College Corps, a project started several years ago by Harvard University undergraduate students, to offer 8-week programs in Bolivia, Ecuador, India, Mexico or South Africa, for pre-med students.

• University of California Davis—has teamed up with CFHI to offer a quarter-long study abroad program in Oaxaca, that highlights Latino/a Health Internship Program for undergraduate students. This course is certified by the university as a 20-unit course entitled "Bi-National Health".

If you are an administrator and would like to discuss partnership possibilities we would be excited to hear from you! Please contact Program Staff at CFHI at students@cfhi.org or by phone at (415) 957-9000 and ask for Nick or Amanda.

9. What is service-learning?

Child Family Health International (CFHI) would like to stress to prospective applicants and institutional partners, that service-learning is not an episodic volunteer experience, and our student programs are not designed to provide service to those who would otherwise not have healthcare.

The following is an excerpt from the Campus Community Partnerships in Health (CCPH) website (http://depts.washington.edu/ccph/):

Service-learning is a structured learning experience that combines community service with preparation and reflection. Students engaged in service-learning provide community service in response to community-identified concerns and learn about the context in which service is provided, the connection between their service and their academic coursework, and their roles as citizens.

Service-learning differs from traditional clinical education in the health professions in that:

• Service-learning strives to achieve a balance between service and learning objectives - in service-learning, partners must negotiate the differences in their needs and expectations.

• Service-learning places an emphasis on addressing community concerns and broad determinants of health .

• In service-learning, there is the integral involvement of community partners - service-learning involves a principle-centered partnership between communities and health professions schools.

• Service-learning emphasizes reciprocal learning - In service-learning, traditional definitions of "faculty," "teacher" and "learner" are intentionally blurred. We all learn from each other.

• Service-learning emphasizes reflective practice - In service-learning, reflection facilitates the connection between practice and theory and fosters critical thinking.

• Service-learning places an emphasis on developing citizenship skills and achieving social change- many factors influence health and quality of life. The provision of health services is not often the most important factor. In service-learning, students place their roles as health professionals and citizens in a larger societal context.
  
  

Citation: Seifer SD. (1998). Service-learning: Community-campus partnerships for health professions education. Academic Medicine, 73(3):273-277.  

Medical Director
The medical director for the Cape Town program is Ms. Avril Whate, RN NP. Ms. Whate has an extensive background in trauma nursing, midwifery, and nursing management. She will be responsible for your weekly medical education and working with Victoria Hospital to arrange your clinical rotations according to your level and interests.

Local Coordinator
CFHI's local coordinator is Ms. Marion Williams. Ms. Williams has an extensive network of wonderful host families and coordinators that will make your stay in Cape Town unforgettable. She has a great deal of experience hosting visitors from other countries in Cape Town for various conferences, tours, and educational programs and will ensure a smooth cultural adjustment in South Africa.