7 Ways to Indulge Your Passion for Medicine and Travel

Still being in travel mode and having engaged in several recent email and phone conversations about ways to practice medicine that involve travel, I'm devoting this blog post to seven ideas for indulging your love of medicine AND travel.

These ideas range from volunteer work to paid entrepreneurial ventures for physicians.

1. International disaster relief work.

The recent earthquakes in Haiti and Chile have highlighted both the dire need for immediate relief services, as well as the philanthropic urge that lives in the hearts of many doctors.

Organizations such as Doctors without Borders offer the chance to get involved on a regular basis once you are in the approved "pool" of candidates.

Or The International Rescue Committee.

Or World Vision International.

Your local religious institution or Red Cross chapter may also seek volunteers at the time of a disaster, as they did in the wake of hurricane Katrina.

To keep tabs on international disaster relief needs, look no further than the Center for International Disaster Information.

2. Medical Travel.

Medical travel (or medical tourism as it is also known) focuses on helping patients get non-emergent care in parts of the world other than their home countries. Roles for physicians include setting up contracts with international hospitals and providers, making arrangements for post-treatment care, international telehealth, or even becoming a Joint Commission International surveyor of international hospitals seeking accreditation. Read more...