• You will be working with a Romanian organisation that provides medical and social home care in several counties in Romania
• Their activity began in 2008 and has been increasing ever since
• The staff includes doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, social workers and administrative personnel
• Their goal is to offer patients a wide range of services with qualified staff who can supervise the progress of the people being treated. This includes both education and support for patients
• The facility looks after about 100 patients all across Brasov county, usually within a 50km radius of the city

• The minimum age is 17
• Many participants are keen to get medical experience whilst volunteering abroad as students, gap year students or career breakers
• This is a fantastic way to prepare for university studies during your gap year or as part of summer volunteering

Medical internships in Europe require that participants have a full interest in medicine and at least a bit of experience to be able to get involved fully. Depending on your level of experience you can get involved with different tasks. It can be useful to have some childcare experience, however as long as you are comfortable with children this is not necessarily essential.

You need to be police checked, with a health screening test and either a first aid training qualification or at least one semester of study/ experience.

You should take indoor footwear and clothing to leave at the hospital – preferably cool clothing as it can get very hot! You need to be presentable, yet comfortable. On the medical unit you will be provided with gloves, a mask and a tunic.

Please be aware that work in the medical field does not always involve pleasant jobs.  Patients could smell of infection, have unclean wounds or not have been able to go the toilet.

There are four distinct seasons in Romania:

Spring: March – May. Temperatures range from 10 – 20 degrees celsius during the day time, but can get quite cold at night time. Average 30 – 80mm of precipitation each month.

Summer: June – September. Temperatures range from 20 – 30 degrees celsius. Average 80 – 100mm of rain each month.

Autumn: September – November. Temperatures range from 10 – 20 degrees celsius during the day time, but can get quite cold at night time. Average 30 – 50mm of precipitation each month.

Winter: November – March. Temperatures range from 10 – 20 degrees celsius during the day time, but can get quite cold at night time. Average 30mm of precipitation each month.

We would recommend taking £40 – £60 per week for food, drinks and treats. You should budget separately for any outings or meals out that you might like to have.

There is easy access to cash machines in Brasov so you don’t need to take all of your cash for you. You can use bank cards everywhere.

Typically you don’t need a visa to volunteer in Romania. You should make sure your passport is valid for the duration of your stay.

Most of our volunteers are independent travellers and you will become part of a group of people from around the world here. It is fine to travel with friends or as part of a small group too however- more the merrier!

You should visit your doctor or travel nurse to find out what vaccinations you will need. Your routine vaccinations will need to be up to date, it is likely that you will need Hepatitis A and Hepatitis B. Rabies is a possibility. You should follow your doctors advice.

See below for where the closest hospital to the project is – your doctor may ask to know this so that they can provide information on rabies.

For any information related to Covid-19, please see the Fit for Travel website or the UK government’s travel advice page for Romania.

Brasov has many excellent medical facilities, varying from pharmacies to local doctors to hospitals. These can all be accessed within 20 minutes and are of good quality.

Brasov is a beautiful and small medieval city, located at the foot of the Carpathian Mountains. It is a very warm and welcoming place, and has become very used to tourists. This makes it a very safe destination however it is important to always be sensible and responsible.

Brasov is a relatively safe place with very little crime, although pickpockets target tourists so take care of your belongings. If you want to walk or trek ask for information on the wild bears! Going more off the beaten track you will receive a few more stares as these areas may not be quite so used to tourists.You will be given information on buses and the local area however so you will be well prepared for this. We give you full health and safety information before departure, as well as upon arrival.

There are a few stray dogs and cats in the streets, but they are largely harmless. We would recommend avoiding them however as they have not been domesticated and are not used to humans necessarily.

Wifi is available for free in the flat, however you will need a device to connect to it.  There are also plenty of WiFi hotspots in town. Some of these are free, while others charge about £1 per hour.

There is good phone reception here.

Romania is in Eastern European Time which is 2 hours ahead of GMT (GMT +2)

Romania has European two-pin plugs.

We arrange two half day trips, covering the cost of transportation, if you stay for 2 weeks or more. If you are staying for one week, you will only be able to do one half day trip.

Which trip you do will be decided when you are in Romania. The two options are:

• A trip to Bran castle (Dracula’s castle). Entrance fee: approx £5
• Trip to Sinaia, a nearby town with the beautiful Peles castle. Entrance fee: approx £5

There are plenty of places to visit in Brasov and the surrounding area. Situated in the heart of Romania, Brasov is a charming medieval town with an ancient history and plenty of interesting monuments. It has great transport links to other wonderful cities in Romania, and even further afield.

Days will vary but generally you will have evenings free and 2 days off per week.

Supervision will be fairly intensive during the first few days, when you will receive a thorough induction and work-related training. Once you are comfortable with things, you might not always have a supervisor working alongside you, but there will always be staff and other volunteers around to help, and you will always be accompanied for any high risk activities.

Staff at Oyster’s head office and in-country will be responsible for your safety and welfare while you are at the project. This will start from the moment you are picked up from the airport until the time you are dropped back there. Before and after these times, you will be outside Oyster’s responsibility and should make sure that you act safely and avoid risk. This is also true if you choose to leave the project during your time off. We will give you plenty of guidance and advice about this.