My first day at a leading children’s hospital in Cape Town marked the true beginning of my push towards a career in medicine. While I already had a bachelor’s degree under my belt and had been accepted to a Physician Assistant program back home, I lacked the experience that was necessary to succeed in the healthcare field. When I stepped into the operating theatre on my first day, the attending anesthesiologist waved me over and instructed me to assist in holding the child’s mask in order to administer the initial anesthetic. 5 minutes later, I was inserting an artificial airway. Throughout the day, I ended up doing a few more of the same, along with some attempts at endotracheal intubations. While I wasn’t immediately successful performing the procedure, the doctors had enough patience and trust in me by the end of my time at the hospital for me to complete an intubation successfully on my last day. Throughout my time there, I was able to stand immediately next to the operating table to watch procedures such as liver transplants, resection of tuberculomas from the brain, and open-heart surgeries. More importantly, I was able to complete hands-on research regarding communication between consent-givers and their providers, as well as help change hospital protocol regarding their pre-operative fasting policies. It is now one year later. In one month, I will begin my clinical year of PA school. Had I not gone to Cape Town and worked in such a phenomenal teaching hospital, I would not feel nearly as prepared for my rotations. The doctors and nurses in Cape Town helped me feel more comfortable with procedures, equipment, and seeing blood and guts day in and day out. They helped me realize the value of patients as people and not just diseases. They fostered an attitude of 'see one, do one, teach one' and truly inspired me to make the most out of my experience at their facility. With the experiences I had in Cape Town under my belt, I now have the confidence to enter my clinical rotations and to get the most out of each day that I am in a hospital or clinic here in the US. I know that I wouldn’t feel this prepared had I not worked in Cape Town, and I am excited to complete my training so I can someday go back to practice medicine where it all began.