australia

a year ago i bumped into an australian physician in the upenn hospital cafeteria...he was doing some research in neurology...bright, friendly person...personally, i have never met an australian i did not like...he told me that two more medical schools - in addition to flinders - were setting up graduate medical programs, which would, it was being planned, admit americans...he also told me that australia and canada are the only countries whose medical education credits are taken on a "full faith and credit basis" by the u.s. dept of educaction...if that is true or not, or what it means, i don't know, but it sounds impressive...another time i ran into a recent australian med school graduate who seemed to me to be one of the most well-trained and interested-in-medicine people i have ever met...a real credit to his country...he did however, tell me that australia is no paradise, that there is crime and a drug problem of major proportions, particularly in sydney....adelaide, where flinders is located, has a reasonable climate, but is no part of the tropics...it seems that the tropical areas - the habitat of crocidile dundee and his wrestling partners - are in the extreme northeast of australia...good luck on the odyssey!....regards....avi

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avi newman