Airlangga University
・RSUD Dr. SOETOMO Hospital・Institute of Tropical Disease
August 26 - September 21, 2013

Kobe University School of Medicine
Shunsuke Yamanishi

1. Introduction
A lot of green, such as mangroves and jangles are there besides
many cars and motorcycles are on roads. Where do you think it is?
Yes, it is Indonesia. I went to Surabaya, the second biggest city inIndonesia from August 26 to September 21, 2013.
First of all, I would like to show my all gratitude to those who
helped me in Japan, especially Dr. Hotta, Dr. Kuno, and Ms. Kiba
and in Indonesia, especially Dr. Shimizu, Dr. Utusmi, Dr. Kotaki,
Mr. Agus, and a lot of doctors and medical students of Airlangga
University.
It was my first time to visit Indonesia and even a developing
country. So, those four weeks in Indonesia were really impressive
to me and were filled with surprise to me.
I wrote this report with the wish that my juniors get interested
in this program and this program will continue for a long time.
2. Obstetrics and Gynecology in Dr. Soetomo HospitalIn first week, I studied at oncology ward. There were a lot ofpatients who had cervical cancer and almost all beds were filledwith them. What I was surprised at was that the distance
between each bed was very close. In Japan, there are at most 6
beds in a room and patients try to keep their privacy. In Dr.
Soetomo hospital, there areabout 15 beds in a section andthere was a little bit crowded ina ward. I thought that the way totreat cervical cancer is the same
in both countries, but Japanesepatients usually come to hospitalwith their cancers are in class Ⅰ
or Ⅱ while Indonesian patientscome with their cancers are inclass Ⅲ or Ⅳ . I thought that
leads to high mortality rates ofcervical cancer in Indonesia.
Oncology ward

I studied at emergency department in my second and thirdweeks. I helped delivery once there. Since it was the first time forme to help delivery, my heart moved very much. I also watched
the C-section surgery for a pregnant woman who got eclampsia.
Unfortunately, the baby had already been dead, but I was amazedto watch a female doctor did the operation very speedy. In Japan,
there are many male doctors and mainly they do operations. In
addition, the ratio of female medical students in Indonesia ishigher than that of in Japan. I think it is good for both male andfemale doctors to work equally.
I also learned about preeclampsia at emergency department andduring the lecture. There are a lot of patients with preeclampsia
and medical students knew well about preeclampsia. When asenior doctor asked the criteria of preeclampsia to the students,
they answered soon at the same time. It is not common forJapanese students to answer as soon as doctors ask themsomething because they are shy and don’t have much confidence.
Emergency room

Outpatients’ clinic

In my final week, fourth week, I studied at outpatients’ clinic ofobstetrics, gynecology, and family planning. There were many
patients at the aisle waiting for doctors and the each room wasvery hot. Though doctors were very busy, they taught me a lot ofthings such as vagina examination, infertility, insurance system,and so on. Thanks to them, my knowledge increased and I could
have an interesting time during outpatients’ clinic.
3. Institute of Tropical Disease
I studied at Institute of Tropical Disease (ITD) for two days.
There were three Japanese doctors and they taught me about
their researches about Hepatitis C virus, Influenza, Dengue fever,and HIV. They were good at teaching and thanks to them, I could
understand each viruses and the situation of them in Indonesia.
I also learned about herbal medicine study. It is a kind of fieldwork. Researchers go to the rural area, collect herbs there, andextract active component for some viruses. Unfortunately, they
have already collected herbs, I only saw how to extract componentfrom herbs. Some researchers have been to Japan and they werevery kind to me all the time. I begin to have interests in basic
research because of experience in ITD.

Upper: With Japanese doctors at ITD
Right: Laboratory of herbal medicine

4. Daily Life
Accommodation
We stayed in a guest house that Airlangga University preparedfor us. There were three rooms and a living room. It was very big
but there were many mosquitoes and shower pumped only cold
water!! There was a big mall near to our guest house, so we could
eat dinner at that mall or buy anything we wanted.

Our guest house

Food
There are many delicious foods in Indonesia. Some of them arevery spicy, but others are very sweet. We could eat each food about
10000 rupiah, or 100yen. I especially enjoyed Bakso, meatballs
soup and Pisang Goreng, fried banana. We could also enjoy
Japanese food, but it was expensive.

Bakso

Nasi Goreng

Nasi Bebek

Gado GadoAfter school and Holiday
We usually finished our school about 1 pm, so we went to many
places with students of Airlangga University. We went bowling,
Karaoke, shopping, and went to see mangroves after school.
On the weekend, we went to Yogyakarta and Mt. Bromo.
There are both Borobudur, a sacred spot for Buddhists andPlambanan, a sacred spot for Hindus in Yogyakarta. They areboth large and celestial.
Mt. Bromo is a volcano 90 km in the south of Surabaya. In order
to see sunrise, we left our guesthouse at 11 pm and arrived there
3 am. We had to wait for sunrise beneath cold skies. But it wasworth waiting. It was the most beautiful sunrise I have ever seen.
I want to share the feeling I felt there, so I recommend you toclimb up Mt. Bromo.

Bowling with medical students

BorobudurPlambanan

5. Conclusion
Again, I truly feel grateful for everyone who helped me. All
people we met in Indonesia were really kind to us and thanks tothem, we could spend unforgettable time there. I want toreciprocate their hospitality in the near future.
Lastly, I want to show you a word that a friend of mine inIndonesia said. “Indonesia has completely changed in these 10years. It will continue to change.” It was very impressive for me.
This is the developing country. I’m really looking forward to see
Indonesia 10 years later. I will visit Indonesia again. Thank you.

KaraokeMt. Bromo