Evenings after work, Michael Cadegan would pile into a van with medical students studying in Cape Town, South Africa, and drive into the townships to help set up a mobile medical clinic.

As a volunteer with SHAWCO, he was able to shadow the med students, who were delivering primary health care treatment, and even help with some tasks.

“That was incredibly rewarding as well,” Mr. Cadegan says on the venture, one of many incredible experiences he gained as part of a six-month CIDA-funded internship in South Africa, the 2012 StFX biology and human kinetics graduate told members of StFX’s Pre-Med Society when he was back on campus in January 2013 as a guest of the society.

“It was absolutely amazing. I gained such amazing professional experiences …

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Published on Thursday January 24, 2013

Cadegan’s internship ended in December. While in South Africa, he was a research assistant for the Health Systems Trust, an organization that uses a public health perspective to conduct policy relevant health systems research. The organization also implements health system strengthening programs to improve primary health care in South Africa.

The internship was co-ordinated by Human Rights Internet, Ottawa, and funded by the Canadian International Development Agency’s Youth Internship Program. Cadegan graduated from St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish in May with a double major in biology and human kinetics. He said one of the biggest impacts of the internship was going into the townships and observing…

 

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Published on January 22, 2013