FAQ

Accommodation: What is our address of our accommodation?
Su's Cottages JLN.Pura Bagus (Werkudara) Legian Kaja Kuta Denpasar Bali Indonesia
Electives Available: Can we book now, and Visa?
This is our first year in Bali and we have had our first batch of students approved by the hospital. We are about to start the Elective Visa process for these students and if wish to join them, you should book and we will send you information as to what you must send us for your application to move forward. We are not sure how long that visa process will take but our Rep and our electives coordinator will expedite that process at every opportunity.
Feedback: Can I get feedback from other students?
This our first year in Bali and we have a good number of students booked and accepted. They will not be able to feedback their opinions until September 2009. They only feedback we can give you is from ourselves. A number of our team know Bali very well and love it. We can go anywhere in the world but we will only send students to places we long to go back to. Bali is one of those places
Language: I only speak English. Is this a problem?
The answer is yes, there will be a problem, not so much with your medical supervisors and colleagues but more with the patients. It depends on who the patients are. If they are poor rural people then they will not have a good understanding of English. City residents are used to foreign visitors and it is a matter of pride to them to be able to speak and practice their English. It is amazing at how effectively human beings can communicate with each other across the language barrier. Facial expressions and gestures are the universal language. Socially, there are many foreign visitors and communication with them will be no problem. Anyway, there is not a lot to say when you are out in the surf or whatever.
Money: Are there ATMs?
There are ATMs throughout Bali but we never rely on them completely. Very often your bank's computers cut off your cards and leave you stranded. Make sure that you have the bank's emergency number for specifically reactivating your card (NOT the card cancellation number). Some banks' websites are now allowing you to tell them dates that you will be away. This is meant to prevent that problem. We think Barclays is one such bank. US$ Travellers' Cheques are a good standby where US$ are used interchangeably with Bali Rupiah. If you need emergency funds from your parents or friends, Western Union is a very quick but relatively expensive method of transfer cash.
Safety: Is Bali safe from terrorism?
We think that the most important part of your travelling activities is safety. I suppose that was one of the main reasons Medics Away was founded by Dr Giles Molyneux 7 years ago: to enable medical students to travel to places which they might not consider without support.

 

We have no doubts about the statistical safety of Bali but no travel is worth losing a life. We have an excellent Rep and business partners in Bali and it is a wonderful place to visit, with an excellent hospital programme but has suffered economically because of a few cases terrorism, which is prevalent almost everywhere today.

 

We have no reason to promote Bali over any of our other locations but the laws of probability and sensible precautions are a traveller's best friends. Statistically Indonesia is as safe as any location that has been the victim of terrorism and that includes many cities in the UK. We terminated our Kenya elective years before the outside world woke up to the dangers there and we still stand by our decision. From a purely cold-blooded viewpoint, a disaster to a student is a disaster to our business and we want to avoid that no matter what our loyalties we have to our locations.

 

We are all too aware of the dangers of travel, having lost our founder Dr Giles Molyneux while travelling. Giles had been everywhere, done everything and had the T-shirts to prove it. He wanted to share his knowledge and experience with other medical students and make what he had done accessible in a safe and controlled way, especially for girls.

 

Unfortunately, Dr Molyneux was tragically killed about a year ago while travelling, but not from arrows fired by Andaman Island natives (as he had experienced). No, he died 3 miles from his home, on his way to the gym, on a bright Sunday morning, in a collision with a 14 ton tractor and bailer. He had only been married to Dr Jessica for 10 months. His family thank God that he lived his life to the full and that his charity, The Medics Away Foundation will be testament to his good intentions.
Visa Process: What do I have to give Medics Away to apply for an Elective Visa?
To apply for your Indonesian Elective Visa, which is necesary to finalize your elective your booking, you must provide us with the following information and documents as soon as possible:

 

1) Choice of Specialties in order of preference

 

2) Scanned copy of your valid passport

 

3) Your Curriculum Vitae in the form of the attached document

 

4) A letter from your university giving you permission to attend an elective at our hospital