Erasmus+ is a European Union program supporting education, training, youth, and sport across Europe. The Key Action 107 (KA107) grant was created to encourage and support transportation between partner countries. Students, faculty and staff will travel from Italy to the United States and vice versa as part of the program.
“Everything is changing on our planet and most of the activities are becoming global,” said Ignazio R. Marino, MD, ScD, professor of surgery at SKMC, senior vice president at Jefferson, and executive director for the Jefferson Italy Center. “Scientific knowledge does not have borders, but borders should also disappear for physicians. A young doctor educated on both sides of the Atlantic will have many more tools to accept and win the challenges of our time. However, at the present time, even the most celebrated thoracic surgeon of Europe cannot touch a patient in the U.S., and vice versa. Exchange programs like the ones supported by the Erasmus+ grant that we just won can help create new education models and break borders. This is what Jefferson and Catholic University are doing together.”