Planning your elective: Brazil
BMJ 2003; 326 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/sbmj.0304117 (Published 01 April 2003) Cite this as: BMJ 2003;326:0304117
- Mark Wilson, author of Medic's Guide to Work and Electives Around the World1
- 1Royal London Hospital, London
Brazil, the largest country in South America, is famous for its rainforest, the huge Amazon river, and its coffee, gold, and diamonds. The country has 1243 miles of Atlantic coastline and has a diverse population based on the original Indians, Portuguese colonisers, and the African slaves brought to work in the sugar plantations. Over the last century many of the Indian villages have been wiped out by disease or by Western force; the total number of Indians is now only 200 000.
Medicine
For those who can afford it, private health care is good. For most of the population, however, health care is much sparser. Only 20% of the country's hospitals are state run. Infectious diseases are increasing, in particular malaria, leprosy, and parasitic skin infections. This is because of the lack of preventive medicine, for which Brazil has been strongly criticised. The prevalance of HIV is estimated to be less than 1% but varies from area to area.
Visas and work permits
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