Living in a neighborhood near Can Tho University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta, Lorraine Wallace navigated daily conversations with the help of Google Translate, found connection through small acts of kindness and saw firsthand how culture, community and health education intersect.
Those everyday experiences shaped the Fulbright U.S. Specialist experience Wallace completed in February and March 2026, where she collaborated with faculty and students to strengthen medical education and build lasting international partnerships.
Hosted by CTUMP’s Medical Education and Skills Center, Wallace, an associate professor of biomedical education and anatomy in The Ohio State University College of Medicine, implement her Fulbright project “Enhance Educational Competence of Health Science Instructors,” leading faculty workshops, supporting curriculum development, advancing simulation-based learning and providing individualized teaching consultations tailored to faculty needs.
To support long-term sustainability, Wallace also implemented a train-the-trainer model and established continuing mentorship through virtual meetings, shared educational resources and ongoing collaboration between CTUMP and Ohio State.
Building collaboration through shared learning
For Wallace, the collaboration underscored how international partnerships are strongest when they are reciprocal. Although Ohio State and CTUMP operate within different educational and health care systems, she said faculty and students shared a common commitment to improving health professions education.
“Working with CTUMP faculty and students reinforced that successful international collaboration is built on mutual respect, shared expertise and a willingness to learn from one another,” Wallace said. “The strongest collaborations are reciprocal, with each partner contributing unique perspectives and strengths to achieve outcomes that neither could accomplish alone.”
Cultural exchange inside and outside the classroom
In addition to her work with faculty, Wallace delivered presentations to CTUMP undergraduate students about Ohio, U.S. higher education and global connections. One memorable presentation, “Ohio as a Lens on America 250: History, Health, and Global Connections,” sparked conversations about life in the United States, health care and education.
Wallace said students’ thoughtful questions highlighted the importance of cultural exchange as a foundation for learning. Sharing familiar American items, including Girl Scout cookies and other sweets, helped create a relaxed atmosphere and encouraged discussion.
Her experiences outside the university also shaped the Fulbright experience. Wallace visited Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Hoi An and Da Nang, each offering a different perspective on Vietnam’s history, culture and rapid development. But she said the most meaningful part of her time abroad was living near CTUMP in the Mekong Delta.
Rather than staying in a tourist district, Wallace lived just outside the city center in a local neighborhood. Because few people spoke English, she often relied on Google Translate, which led to humorous and memorable conversations. Despite the language barrier, she said she was consistently met with kindness, patience and generosity.
“These everyday interactions allowed me to experience authentic local life and develop a deeper appreciation for the warmth and hospitality of the Vietnamese people,” Wallace said. A visit to the Mekong Delta’s floating market, where she witnessed a centuries-old tradition central to the region’s culture and economy, provided additional cultural context for the communities served by CTUMP.
Bringing global perspectives back to Ohio State
The Fulbright experience will continue to shape Wallace’s teaching and research at Ohio State. She is collaborating with CTUMP faculty on scholarship focused on the development and validation of case-based learning scenarios in Vietnamese. She also plans to incorporate her deeper understanding of Vietnam’s health care system into her General Education course, Primary Care Across Countries.
Wallace said her multiple Fulbright experiences and faculty-led study abroad programs have reinforced her belief that some of the most meaningful learning occurs beyond the traditional classroom. International experiences, she said, deepen students’ understanding of global health, culture and professional practice while fostering independence, cultural humility, adaptability and confidence.
“From a research perspective, my international experiences have strengthened my commitment to collaborative, community-engaged scholarship,” Wallace said. “Living and working in different cultural settings has broadened my research questions, encouraged cross-national collaborations and reinforced the importance of understanding health within its local social, cultural and environmental context.”
Fulbright Specialist Program
The Fulbright Specialist Program is administered by World Learning and is sponsored by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the U.S. Department of State.
For more information about the Fulbright Specialist Program, contact Joanna Kukielka-Blaser.
