Volunteer as a health or dental professional or final-year student on your Junior Elective and support the development of one of our remarkable partnership health care programmes, whether it’s in the Peruvian Amazon or on the Tanzanian Lake Victoria.
Bring your knowledge, skills, and passion aboard one of our programmes’ fully-equipped medical vessels, working alongside our in-country health care teams on a two-week expedition to isolated and remote communities.
You’ll have unrivalled access to the mentorship of our in-country medical professionals who will support you as you provide high-quality health care services to communities in these areas.
Our medical volunteers experience first-hand the positive impact of in-country itinerant health care programmes that seek to not only provide primary care services to isolated communities, but to also empower these communities through introducing health promotion and education services that improve medical capacity in these areas.
Not only will you find it hugely enriching to play a supporting role in this process, you’ll also share medical expertise and experience with the onboard health care team, both learning from the local professionals and imparting your own knowledge when necessary.
Join the team and help to support health systems and transform lives!
Please contact us by email (health@vinetrust.org) to confirm availability before applying.
We offer unique opportunities for medical and dental students to join our ships as part of their elective.
Spend two weeks working alongside local health professionals to provide primary healthcare services to those living in remote and isolated places.
You don’t need to have any previous experience of tropical medicine or know how to speak Spanish or Swahili to volunteer on one of these trips. That’s because our in-country teams of medics and translators will support you throughout your expedition, enabling you to make the most of your time in either Tanzania or Peru.
Volunteers from past expeditions have told us they found their experience on board immensely valuable and fulfilling, both professionally and personally. Living and working together helps those on the ship to foster uniquely strong bonds and connections with each other.
Read more about volunteer experiences here
Medical students in their final year can work alongside and learn from both local and international doctors, GPs, nurses, dentists, and midwives. This integrative and versatile workforce creates learning opportunities for volunteers at any stage in their career.
Volunteer with Vine Trust if you want to apply, adapt, and develop your clinical skills in a supporting role within an in-country programme that empowers vulnerable and rural communities in some of the most incredible natural settings on the planet.
Play a part in supporting our in-country partners as they bring primary health care to the isolated communities of Lake Victoria, Tanzania, as part of the Jubilee Hope Medical Programme.
The MV Jubilee Hope is a 155-tonne former Royal Navy Tender, refitted for purpose, that has been in operation on Lake Victoria since 2015 and has a dedicated team of local professionals onboard.
This ship will be your base as you connect and collaborate with regional, national, and international partners to support them in the provision of a range of primary health care services, from general medicine and dentistry to antenatal support and HIV testing and treatment.
You’ll also find many opportunities to engage with local people and culture, having conversations and interactions that will inform your individual perspectives in an exciting and transformative way.
Find out more about this programme in our Jubilee Hope Handbook.
Join the Amazon Hope Medical Programme to play a supporting role in its provision of primary health and dental care to rural and isolated communities in Peru.
Since 2001, our in-country partners have worked closely with the Peruvian Ministry of Health to provide a regular primary medical service to over 160 communities along the Amazon and its tributaries.
Utilise and develop your clinical skills in the heart of the spectacular Amazonian rainforest, engaging with local culture and learning about tropical medicine in a hands-on, challenging, yet highly rewarding environment as you treat vulnerable people who would otherwise have very limited access to health care.
A standard Amazon Hope trip includes 10 days of living and working aboard the ship. For those interested in spending longer with the programme, some trips have the option to be extended to 20 days. Please contact the Vine Trust office for further information about this.
Find out more information in our Amazon Hope Handbook.
Vine Trust offers opportunities to volunteer on a medical trip if you are a qualified, registered, or recently retired health professional or a final-year medical student doing your Junior Elective. Each trip will have a different makeup of volunteers, giving you the opportunity to work alongside and learn from both local and international doctors, nurses, dentists, and midwives. This integrative and versatile workforce creates learning opportunities for volunteers at any stage in their career.
You’ll be operating aboard one of our partners’ medical ships, each of which is fully equipped with a consultation room, a dental surgery, and a pharmacy.
Together with the permanent in-country clinical team, you will live and work on the ship, supporting the respective programme’s delivery of medical services and health education to each one of the rural and isolated communities in Peru and Tanzania.
You don’t need to have any previous experience of tropical medicine or know how to speak Spanish or Swahili to volunteer on one of these trips. That’s because our in-country teams of medics and translators will support you throughout your expedition, enabling you to make the most of your time in either Tanzania or Peru.
Volunteers from past expeditions have told us they found their experience on board immensely valuable and fulfilling, both professionally and personally. Living and working together helps those on the ship to foster uniquely strong bonds and connections with each other. Read more about volunteer experiences here.
During your trip, you will deal with a variety of clinical tasks depending on your profession, skills and experience. The work may include:
If a community member has a health complaint that you haven’t had experience dealing with before, don’t worry. You will only be expected to treat medical issues that are within your clinical or specialist area. Our in-country staff are an excellent resource, and will help to guide you through the experience by providing the necessary support.
14 days
14 days
23 days
Vine Trust has over twelve years of experience in connecting student volunteers with long-term health partnerships in both Peru and Tanzania.
On these expeditions, medical and dental students will engage fully in activities that are mutually beneficial to both the crucial work and support that takes place on the ships and to their own individual and professional development.
Please note, spaces for students on each medical expedition are limited to ensure adequate supervision and guidance. Before signing up for the expedition, please contact health@vinetrust.org first to check there is space available. Any applications submitted without first checking with the Vine Trust office may subsequently be cancelled if we have already reached the quota agreed with our partners.
Find answers to our most frequently answered questions below!