A great way to go abroad is through volunteering: its provides an opportunity to see the world and help out at the same time. When I received an email earlier this academic year about an Alternative Spring Break trip to Honduras I was immediately interested. The organization is called Global Medical Brigade for Honduras and this is the first year for the club at Penn State. Groups from universities across the U.S. organize student groups to spend a week in Honduras operating a free clinic under the supervision of medical professionals. The different areas the Penn State volunteers could work in are: in-take, triage, medical consultation, the pharmacy, the dental station, or data input. While I have no medical practice I'm looking forward to practicing my Spanish!
My group leaves Friday and we are all extremely excited. We have spent the past months working hard in preparation to make our brigade as successful as possible. Fundraising events have helped us raise money for the trip costs and through donations we have gathered medical supplies and medicine to bring to Honduras. As I prepare for my trip I expect to see much poverty and a completely different way of living than I am used to, but I am also confident in the progress of such grassroots organizations, such as Global Medical Brigade for Honduras. As a doctor's visit is as convenient as a trip to Ritenour, it is hard to imagine living without access to medical care.
Here some statistics about Honduras:
-80% of the population lives in poverty
-35% unemployment
-22% of the population is undernourished
-GMB provides health care to more than 70 villages
-30,00 patients were treated in 2006
Posted by: Clare, Seville, Spain, Spring 2007
No comments:
Post a Comment