Wednesday, March 9, 2016
Wed, 09 Mar 2016 | Shelley Andrews :: LUCOM Marketing and PR
One day Jessica Deitrick was providing health care to hundreds of people in Central America, the next – she was walking the grounds of Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello in Charlottesville with her parents who had come to visit.
“We went to Monticello for a day trip. While there, we were looking at the different rooms and came upon the Cook’s Quarters,” said Deitrick, class of 2018.
In late July 2015, the Liberty University College of Osteopathic Medicine (LUCOM) student-doctor had just returned from a medical outreach trip to Guatemala.
“The sign in one of the rooms said the whole family would have lived there – parents and several children. I turned, looked at my dad and said, ‘The sad part is this is how people lived in the United States in the 1800s yet people are living like this or worse in Guatemala in 2015,’” said Deitrick. “From the look on his face, I could tell that hit him harder than any photo I could ever show him.”
Deitrick not only impacted her father with what she experienced in Guatemala last year, her medical education has changed because of her time spent in the country. She did not hesitate to sign up to return to Guatemala, this time for her Spring Break.
“I saw people who lived in huts. If they were lucky they had a hole in the ground to use as a bathroom. When I asked people what they ate on the daily basis, a common reply was ‘a couple of tortillas and a handful of beans.’ How could you not go back after you have seen that?” said Deitrick.
On March 12-18, Deitrick will be a part of a group of 20 student-doctors and five faculty members who will spend close to a week in the Zacapa region of Guatemala, part of a continuing and growing partnership between Hope of Life International (HOLI) and LUCOM.
During this medical outreach trip, the group will focus on women’s health by conducting a clinic in three remote villages. They are expected to provide free screenings to about 400 women.
“About 90% percent of them have never seen a physician, had a cervical examination or were provided a pap smear. Because of the high rate of STIs, cancer, and reproductive issues, providing medical screenings to women will increase their quality of life exponentially,” said James Cook, Director of Medical Outreach and International Medicine.
Aside from the screenings, LUCOM is also working with the State Department as part of a Medical Capabilities (MEDCAP) Humanitarian Service Mission to donate medicines and vitamins to the Zacapa region. They are also bringing CPR simulation equipment to provide instruction for the HOLI staff.
While medical outreach trips like this three to four times a year are beneficial to patients in limited doses, LUCOM aims to provide for continuity of care in the region, considering it a critical step in improving the health status of patients there. LUCOM is striving to establish a full-service medical clinic on the grounds of HOLI to further expand access to quality and timely primary medical care.
The planned clinic will be supported by Liberty University and provide full-time medical services by Guatemalan physicians and LUCOM physicians and student-doctors. This effort allows student-doctors and graduates to support and augment the care available in the region, learning while they serve.
“The partnership with HOLI is proving to be mutually beneficial. We are able to assist their focus in providing continuity of care for the very poor and underserved population, and we are able to provide a most excellent opportunity to train our student-doctors,” said Cook.
Also returning to Guatemala in March, student-doctor Megan Hoffer. She was a part of the group of 80 student-doctors who assisted 1500 patients in Zacapa region in July.
She is looking forwarding to providing health care for women, especially as she looks back on one of her most memorable moments from the last trip.
“We were doing an ultrasound for a woman who was about ten weeks pregnant. Most women in the villages in Guatemala have never seen an ultrasound, and it’s really incredible to watch a woman see her baby for the first time, as well as intervene early with simple things like prenatal vitamins that will give the child a better start to life,” said Hoffer.
Student-doctor David Wilson will also return to Guatemala for the March trip. He says medical outreach is a way to keep his perspective not only just in medical school but also in life.
“Seeing people live day to day without the comforts that are so routine here in America, people who live with daily pain or disability without remedy, is a true reality check,” said Wilson.
Deitrick’s father had a brief glimpse of that reality check at Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello last summer, if only for a brief moment.
While there are a lot of powerful images she remembers and passes along to others, Deitrick says her overall outreach experience has been positive and rejuvenates her mind, body, and spirit.
“It’s so easy to become lost in the sea of books. Once lost it becomes easy to forget why you are in medical school in the first place, and it’s easy to lose momentum and energy. So, when I go to Guatemala and get to see the people there and treat them, suddenly I become alive again,” concluded Deitrick.
LUCOM is set to host its inaugural Helping Hands Black Tie Gala on Saturday, April 23, to raise money in supporting the medical outreach efforts of LUCOM in Guatemala and to advance the development of the aforementioned medical clinic and hospital at HOLI. To support this event, more information is available online or email R. James Cook, Director of Medical Outreach and International Medicine.