Dominican Republic Medical Mission
The week of June 27th-July 1st Amber Adams and myself participated in a medical mission trip along with the medical students from the Spartanburg, SC campus of the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine. Each day we met took a bus to a different location outside of the Punta Cana area. These were rural areas stricken with poverty, little access to medical care, and people in need of help. We would treat anywhere from 100-150 in about a 5 hour period. The days were very busy and very HOT! There were three stations that the patients would go through: triage, examinations, and the pharmacy. Obviously Amber and I worked in the pharmacy and had the job of dispensing medications, dosing for infants and children, and discussing with the VCOM students if we agreed or disagreed on their course of treatment for each patient. It was really great to be able to work hand in hand with the VCOM students and help them make choices on what medications to give their patients. We also got to work with some awesome pharmacists and a pharmacy student from Presbyterian College of Pharmacy who were so knowledgable and very helpful if we had questions.
It was very interesting to see what different disease states are prevalent in the Dominican Republic. We had to give a lot of anti-parasitics to children and adults, as well as a lot of antibiotics. STDs and HIV are very prevalent here, so it was very important to counsel patients on safe sex. Surprisingly we dealt with very few diabetes patients, which is completely opposite from the United States. It was also interesting to see how different medicine is practiced in the Dominican Republic compared to the United States. Everything is much more relaxed and their practices are less strict compared to the U.S.
I will have to say the best part of the whole experience was to see how happy we were making the patients. We gave out fruit gummies and goody bags to the children and they would grin from ear to ear. When patients received reading glasses for the first time, their face would light up because they were finally able to see clearly. It was so rewarding to see their smiling faces and to see how much we really helped them.
The trip hasn't been all work either. We have been able to enjoy the beach at Playa Blanca, go to the fresh water lagoons, eat some amazing local food, and meet lots of amazing Dominicans. If you are a P2 and are thinking of doing a rotation in the Dominican Republic I HIGHLY recommend it. It has been so rewarding and so fun!
Below is a video that one the VCOM students made of their trip. You can see Amber and I in some of the frames. I highly suggest watching it. It shows what it was like at the mission each day, videos of the local towns we visited, and our trip to the lagoons and snorkeling!
