Tony Tran

Tony is a 4th-year pharmacy student from South Dakota State University. He recently undertook a 5-week pharmacy placement in Vietnam. 

"My interest in undertaking an overseas placement was sparked during a two-week trip to Europe in high school. As I began my college career, I set a goal to use my final year of pharmacy school to complete a clinical placement in a different country. 

When it was time to choose a location, Vietnam was an approved option through my university. Given my Vietnamese heritage, I had always wanted to visit Vietnam. This alignment of opportunities led me to arrange my placement there. Not only was I thrilled to have this opportunity, but my mother, who was born and raised in Vietnam, was also excited to live voraciously through photos and nightly video chats about my day! 

My initial impression of the hospital where I was placed was how welcoming all the staff members were during my tour. I felt nervous about starting my first day of placement on my own, however, the Work the World Team in Vietnam was there to guide me, ensuring I was in the correct location for each department I visited during my clinical placement. Overall, I never felt out of place during my time at the hospital. The staff in each department made sure to include me in various opportunities that I wouldn’t have experienced in my home country as a pharmacist. 

I have developed the skill of fine-tuning my communication of health information to patients and staff. Because of the language barrier, I could not use the typical medical jargon I am accustomed to in my home country, as it would be misunderstood by both patients and medical staff. This required me to think quickly and come up with simpler terms and examples, so the staff could accurately translate my input for the patients.  

One of the most memorable experiences I had was during my internal medicine placement week. During this time, I had the opportunity to undertake rounds with the physicians and medical residents, observing how they provided care to the patients in the hospital. I was able to witness treatments and care approaches that I would never encounter in my home country as a pharmacist. 

During these rounds, I also had the opportunity to showcase my clinical knowledge by discussing various treatment options that could be implemented once the physician or medical resident made an initial diagnosis. This sparked their interest in my clinical knowledge about different medications and treatment options for various disease states. I had a great time collaborating with the physicians and medical residents and observing different cases throughout the week. 

The healthcare system in the United States differs significantly from that of Vietnam. Since Vietnam is a developing country, I encountered several medications I hadn’t seen during pharmacy school. I was also surprised by the medication dispensing process, which relies on the physician’s method of educating the patient about their medications, and directions on how to use their medications that were all written into a simple notebook for the patient to keep. 

In contrast, the United States has a more technologically advanced system where prescriptions can be sent electronically to pharmacies from the physician’s office, where the pharmacist can serve as the safety net and ensure the prescription is written correctly and checked for any potential drug interactions based on the patient’s current medication list. 

Pharmacists in the United States often take on the responsibility of patient education for new medications, allowing patients to ask the pharmacist questions about their medications rather than the physician. This allows physicians more time to see other patients as they rely on the assistance of pharmacists for their expertise. Based on my conversations with the physicians during my placement, they are hoping to include pharmacists on their team in the future. 

In the evenings during the week, I always looked forward to our shared meals at the Work the World house. It was a time when we could all sit down, enjoy a meal prepared by the in-house chef, and talk about the experiences we had gained from our placements that day. 

It was fascinating to hear about the various cases each housemate encountered, and how they proceeded with the treatment plan. After our meal, if we were interested, we would stroll through the walking streets of Hue, visiting different shops, having drinks, or simply rating the different ice cream flavours we tried from various stores. 

If you are looking for a sign to do a placement in Vietnam, here it is. This may seem scary and intimidating at first, as you will encounter a different aspect of healthcare, but rest assured, you will not regret your choice. 

I left Vietnam with a wealth of experiences and memories that will stay with me as I transition into my professional career as a pharmacist!