Visitor MS0904 
| Visitor |
| Sex? |
male |
| Profession/occupation? |
Medical Student |
| Medical school year or years of
experience since graduation? |
6 |
| Home country? |
Switzerland |
| What made you want to go to
Solomon Islands? |
talking to a previous visitor |
| Did you go alone or in company? |
in company |
| Arriving in Solomon
Islands |
| When did you arrive in Solomon
Islands? |
September 2009 |
| Did you encounter any
bureaucratic difficulties? |
no |
| What was your first impression
after arrival? |
Heat, sweat, poverty, dirt |
| Living in Solomon
Islands |
| What did positively surprise
you? |
Accommodation at Kiwi-House |
| What did negatively surprise
you? |
Slowness, hygiene, hospital infrastructure |
| What took longest to get used
to? |
Laid-back way of working |
| What did you miss most in
Solomon Islands? |
Food |
| What should you have brought
along? |
- |
| What did you do to prevent
malaria? |
Malarone sponsored by GlaxoSmithKline |
| Place and province where you
spent most of your time? |
Honiara, Honiara-City |
| Other places/provinces where
you stayed? |
- |
| Where did you stay? |
Kiwi-House, Charapoana Lodge, Tetepare, Ghizo |
| How long did you stay at each
location? |
Kiwi-House for 2 months, Charapoana Lodge and Tetepare
and Ghizo for 4-7 nights |
| How much did you pay for
each? |
SBD 200 for the whole stay at Kiwi-House, about SBD 100
per stay at other accommodations |
| Where did you usually eat? |
Market, Kukum Fried Chicken, sometimes at
restaurants |
| What did you typically pay for
a normal meal? |
SBD 70 |
| What local food/beverage did
you like most? |
Fish |
| What local food/beverage did
you like least? |
Meat |
| Mobile
phone services |
| If you brought along a mobile
phone, which services did you successfully use? |
SMS |
| Comments? |
Local network is down most of the time, I used Internet
for calls. |
| Money
matters |
Used Travel Cash Card in USD
issued by a Swiss bank to get cash and to get cash at ATMs
Used a Credit Card issued by a Swiss bank to pay for goods
and services |
| Comments? |
I used a Travel Cash Card to get to money at ATMs,
cheapest option. |
| Working in Solomon
Islands |
| How did you usually go to
work? |
walk (2 minutes from Kiwi-House) |
| Where did you work? |
NRH, General Medicine |
| What was your occupation? |
Patients' care, interventions, medication |
| What were your working days and
hours? |
- |
| What was particularly difficult
in regard to your work? |
To be allowed to work independently |
| Did you feel accepted by the
locals? |
yes |
| What did you usually do in your
spare time after work? |
Explore the islands |
| Questions
for medical trainees of all levels (students to
registrars) |
| How was the supervision? |
loose |
| Comments |
- |
| How was the teaching? |
adequate |
| Comments |
- |
| Leaving Solomon Islands and
looking back |
| When did you leave Solomon
Islands? |
December 2009 |
| How long was your stay? |
2.5 months |
| How do you judge the length of
your stay? |
just about right |
| What did you learn from the
locals? |
A different way of life and how they manage all sorts of
troubles |
| Your advice to prospective
visitors? |
Go there! Explore the islands if you have time to
spare. |
| What did you miss most when
back at home again? |
The friendly people |
| What did you enjoy most when
back at home again? |
A nice dinner |
| Would you go back for another
stay? |
Anytime! |
| Estimated total cost of your
stay (including travel costs)? |
CHF 4,000 |
| Additional comments? |
- |
