Across the Pond: The Language of Healing

By Shreya Sankar

I learned at a young age that medicine transcends the borders of culture and time. Growing up, our medicine cabinet teemed with remedies: Advil for headaches, ajwain seeds for stomach pains, NyQuil for flu symptoms, and eucalyptus oil for congestion relief. A beautiful melange of Eastern traditional and Western lab-based remedies. While languages and methods of treatment may differ, the core purpose of medicine endures: healing through human connection. This vision remained central as I began my medical studies — 3700 miles away from Charlotte, North Carolina — in Dublin, Ireland.

My first few months in the Emerald Isle were a steep learning curve, as I adjusted to the pace of medical school, learning clinical skills, attending lectures, and, just as importantly, developing skill sets and vocabulary tailored to Irish healthcare. Theatre, instead of operating room. Consultant, instead of attending. General Practice, instead of primary care. 

As I started rotations on the wards, I fell in love with medicine all over again. Each lab value, each CT scan, each Kardex form filled with prescriptions, became more than data — they were puzzle pieces fitting together as I delved deep into patients’ lives and stories. In County Dublin, I bonded with a retired engineer in hospice care over hydropower: both our hometowns utilize rivers to generate electricity; the Liffey in Dublin and the Catawba in Charlotte. At the bedside of a patient from County Waterford, I learned that traditional Irish medicine recommended using the yarrow plant to staunch profuse bleeding, a practice reminiscent of ancient Ayurvedic treatments. In County Louth, I met a retired Irish rugby player with spinal degenerative disease who struck a deal with me: he would teach me the intricacies of his sport, if I set up his TV to play NFL highlights. 

These conversations reminded me that medicine is more than just lectures, procedures, and prescriptions; it is also about real human connection.  Whether it’s analyzing Aaron Rodgers’ game-winning 2015 Hail Mary alongside a rugby player with osteopathy, or swiping through photos of the Catawba River with a patient who hadn’t traveled outside Ireland, I cherished the essence of medicine: the patients themselves. Studying in Ireland as an Indian-American, I had the unique opportunity to experience healthcare across states, backgrounds, and countries. I learned to listen — finding nuance and meaning in patients’ stories, using medicine as a bridge. After all, healing isn’t solely defined by medications, histories, and exams, but by the humanity that binds us all. 

Shreya Sankar is a fourth-year medical student at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. She is the president of the Walter E. Dandy Neurosurgical Society and the Neurology and Neurosurgery Interest Group (NANSIG) in Ireland. She is actively involved in research and excited to encourage collaboration between Irish and American surgical and research groups to create real-world impacts. 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shreya-sankar-611889221/