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​Today was our last day working in the hospital.
Yesterday and today I was assisting the nurse in the Outpatients surgical clinic.  Throughout my experience here I have seen how different sterile pieces of equipment are used for different procedures.  I have learnt so much from Anna (the nurse).                    
 She is a great nurse and teacher and she has taught me so much about what it means to be a nursing assistant and gave me many wonderful opportunity to assist her in patients dressings. Thank you.

After clinic, my manager (Navise) brought me around the different departments of the hospital. She showed me the  x-ray department, CT Scan room, Physiotherapy department and the sterilisation room.  It was a great experience and very much appreciated.

As we have been doing infection control in our studies in GTI, it was good to see the sterilisation room and for Navise to explain to me what happens to the equipment from when it is brought in used and soiled, to the department and the whole process of decontamination, sterilisation and preparation of the equipment to be used again in the different departments and for the surgical team.  Navise is a wonderful teacher and mentor and the experience, knowledge and skills I have learnt are brilliant. 

The doctors and the consultants have taught me so much about different medical conditions and took great time explaining these to me and also gave me many opportunities to assist them in dressings and procedures especially in the plastic surgery clinic.

I would like to say thank you to the secretary's for making me so welcome.  You are a great team.​​

I would like to thank the wonderful people in the Blood Bank specially to Ewa and Feli for giving me so many opportunities whilst working in the Blood bank and the centre of blood checking. A few days I was working with two lovely nurses in the office beside the kitchen. They were explaining to me and showing how to make a special diets for patients with allergies etc. I was visiting a different wards every day with them and I was watching all the process. It was very interesting for me.  All people here were very helpful and nice to me. I will be miss them. 

We have been in Alcala de Henares 3 weeks and the time has just flown by. Both myself and Ewelina cannot thank the Erasmus team enough for giving us the opportunity to work in this beautiful hospital with such lovely people.  We return to Ireland tomorrow with a wealth of new knowledge, skills and experiences. which we have learnt here. This has been a great opportunity, and one which we will be help us progress in the workplace, in our studies and will help us in the future careers.
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A big  thank you to Maria in Spain for being a wonderful host and for everyone in the hospital.
un gran gracias.

​Riuns of Madrid's Muslim wall, built in the 9th century
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Plaza Mayor, dates from 1619

Today started with working in the pharmaceutical department for Ewelina and working in the vascular outpatients department for Christina. My supervisor/host at hospital Ewa is a manager of pharmacy sector. Yesterdy she was showing me all the places around and common with pharmaceutical sector. It was a great opportunity to have seen at the first time how drugs are made. I was watching and observing a nurses working in a special lab. We had to wear a special aprons, mask and gloves.  I was very intrested about this new experience and I was asking them a lot of questions during the work. I found out that this work is very responsible. People must do everything very carefully and with  highest standards. This experience has brought my understanding of the huge amount of work which goes into making pharmaceutical work as I currently work at Galway hospital. This is was great experience for me. 


Whilst working in the vascular outpatients clinic I was given an opportunity to observe and assist the nurse in attending to patients dressings who had undergone surgery to address ulcers on their legs. Seeing the open wound was  very challenging as they were very raw and sore looking. The nurse very supportive and talked me through  what it was I was looking at and when she put it into medical terms it gave me a different vision on what I was looking at.  This was very good and from then on when I looked at an open wound I was able to see and recognise the wound for what it was and to be more mindful of the importance of not showing how I felt (shocked) in front of the patient.  I had to remember that my sight saw the pain/soreness of the wound but they were feeling it and this was a very important lesson to learn and one that will help me in my future.