Having clinicals in Costa Rica as a nursing student was an amazing experience. Not only did I get to meet so many amazing people but I also got to practice my Spanish! The last time I took Spanish was in high school, so knowing the basics came in handy.

In Costa Rica, we took Spanish classes every morning for four days with lectures in the afternoon from different guest speakers on what the health care system looks like in Costa Rica. We also learned how to make Spanish empanadas using masa (corn flour that’s typically used to make tortillas) with beans and cheese, and we also took a Latin dance class where we learned how to do the salsa, merengue and bachata. I take Zumba classes sometimes in the States, so obviously the dance class was my favorite!

We also got to visit rural communities and assess community conditions that could affect population health. The primary focus was to identify risk factors for health disparities in these communities and how to address those issues. At the daycare, we did physical assessments on school-aged children where we communicated only in Spanish. At this point, I was very impressed with how much Spanish we knew. Some students did their clinicals at private hospitals, public hospitals and community clinics, while my group did ours on an ambulance. Each of us was assigned to an ambulance and crew and we responded to calls within the city. The most common calls were pedestrian accidents in the streets, car accidents and COVID cases. Other experiences in Costa Rica included going to the beach, visiting the rainforest and a butterfly conservatory, seeing the Poas volcano, touring the Doka Coffee plantation, visiting a research lab on cancer treatment and so much more!

Being a “beach bum” and sipping Costa Rican coffee was absolutely my favorite experience from this whole trip. Costa Rica has the best coffee, and I will never go back to cheap, bitter coffee again, even if I have to go broke. I mean it is THAT GOOD.

Overall, Costa Rica has been a humbling experience. From a health care perspective, the United States can definitely learn something from them. I’m so grateful to have had this opportunity and am so thankful to my host family, the Costa Rican Language Academy, Mary, Tim and everyone who has made this a memorable experience. Two weeks was not enough time to experience all that Costa Rica had to offer so I will definitely be back again. Adios!