Barcelona Study Abroad Experience

24 hour Emergency Contact On-Site

Students will be given a 24-hour emergency phone number upon arrival and constantly repeated throughout orientation until students know the number by heart. All calls to the emergency phone are taken very seriously.  Barcelona SAE staff keep this phone on them at all times along with the students’ emergency medical information and the addresses of all emergency rooms and hospitals and 24-hour pharmacies in Barcelona, as well as any excursion destinations.

If Medical Care is Needed

Barcelona SAE has contacts with a thorough and vetted list of English-speaking doctors available to attend our participants. In addition, this list includes American doctors who have worked with students over the many years they have been based in Barcelona.

In emergency situations, students will be accompanied to the doctors or hospitals.  We have both male and female doctors in case students feel more comfortable with one or the other.

Mental Health Services

We have developed relationships with mental health services that have vast experience with American students abroad.  They are prepared to handle all types of cases in their field. Examples of specific conditions they have attended are: all types of anxiety, slight or severe depression, eating disorders, and learning disabilities.

Medical and Accident Insurance

All Barcelona SAE students are covered by health and travel insurance through a U.S. based provider specializing in overseas students’ medical insurance needs.   Barcelona SAE attempts to decrease the inherent health and safety risk for students abroad, but of course, there are always unforeseen circumstances.  Therefore,  to mitigate the risk that does exist, students are covered through Barcelona SAE’s $5 million dollar general liability policy.

Staff Support

24 hour emergency assistance is available to students in Barcelona by English-speaking staff.  In cases of emergency, Barcelona SAE students will have help nearby to respond appropriately.

Staff support assists when immediate reactions are needed to alleviate problems in emergencies, but the proactive help of staff should not be underestimated.  Students will receive detailed recommendations on how to avoid problems during their time abroad including: areas of the city to avoid, taking care not to be the victim of would-be pickpockets, “blending in,” and heightened awareness skills which is a major factor in accident and incident prevention and culture shock.

Behavioral and Safety Rules of Conduct

Barcelona SAE has a health and safety code of conduct in accordance with specific laws and site specific dangers inherent to Spain and Catalonia. These rules are disseminated in  pre-departure information and discussed at length and agreed-up with students upon arrival.

Health Onsite

Thorough health and safety preparations are the key to a successful term abroad. For that reason, Barcelona SAE begins with extensive pre-departure materials, a carefully designed on-site orientation, and continues with regular staff and student check-ins.

Nevertheless, the existence of threats to safety is inherent to the very nature of overseas travel. Students need to accept these risks, and understand them, in order to facilitate prevention.  Barcelona SAE takes great precaution to  help students reduce these risks.

Throughout each program, Barcelona SAE relies on many resources to assess and respond to the specific health and safety needs of each student including:

• On-site Program Directors, in-country staff, and cooperating institutions
• Local health care professionals and facilities
• Health background and needs of individual students
• US and Spanish government advisories
• Centers for Disease Control
• Close relationships with the U.S. Consulate General

Availability of Staff

Students and families can call the US-based emergency phone line 24 hours a day. The Barcelona based Program Director as well as all program staff carry cell phones and are reachable in case of emergency.  A qualified on-site emergency contact person is also available 24 hours a day. This person lives in Barcelona city-center.

Further Health and Safety Information

Both the pre-departure information and the orientation sessions focus on providing students with the important information about staying safe while abroad including:

• Safety in Barcelona – where to take the most care in the city
• Avoiding pickpockets
• What to do in case of an emergency
• Avoiding dangerous situations
• Cultural differences that could lead to problems
• Risk aversion
• US consulate travelers’ advisories sent to students as they come out
• Students’ personal travel itineraries sent to staff before they go away so we can contact them in case of emergency
• Constant communication with local universities with reports on students’ attendance
• Detailed incident reports filled out for every incident
• Required health forms for all students carried at all times by staff

We know that it is human nature to become comfortable and complacent after a certain amount of time in any one place so Barcelona SAE holds a brief Health and Safety session six weeks after the program begins because in our experience this is when we see a spike in pick pocketing, stolen items and other incidents.

Communication

The students themselves play a major role in avoiding health and safety hazards.  Constant communication with onsite staff is key to preventing little incidents from turning into larger problems.

We strongly encourage students to discuss all health issues with us as quickly as they can so that we may take them to be assessed at the local clinic and begin addressing the problem immediately.

Since all students will get to know the staff, we know they will feel comfortable approaching us with any issues.

This close relationship between staff and students has been a key element in minimizing major issues.

Medical Attention

In the event that a student requires urgent medical attention, the Barcelona SAE Director or Student Services Coordinator will accompany the participant to the nearest clinic. All incidents, big or small, are recorded and kept on file.