A different kind of doctor's office

For most pre-med Tufts students, the days of actually administering health treatment, rather than just learning about it, seem very far off. For eight Tufts students, however, those days are only a month away: this Spring Break, they will be traveling to the Dominican Republic and giving medical care to Haitian refugees.

The eight pre-med Tufts students, along with medical personnel and 15 University of Colorado students, will travel to Puerto Plata with medical supplies, food, and clothing.

"They have no access to real medical care in the Dominican Republic," sophomore trip participant Eric Morley said. "We're going to see everything from poor nutrition to tropical diseases while we're there."

The trip is co-sponsored by the Student Association for Pre Health Professionals and the Timmy Foundation, a nonprofit organization whose work helps needy children around the world. Throughout the trip, the pre-med students will be directly involved in the care of the refugees.

"Unlike in the United States where there are a lot of restrictions on who can practice medicine, the [Dominican Republic] is a third world country where there are no restrictions," Morley said.

"This is an opportunity for us to see physicians at work in special circumstances," senior and trip participant Charline Han said.

"This is a great opportunity to see the conditions in another country and be able to help," agreed sophomore trip participant Cindy Marti. "It's an opportunity to get real experience."

During the mission, the students will be staying with an American couple who has converted their home into a "ranch" for volunteer groups. Each day, which lasts from 8:30 am to 6 or 7 pm, the students and medical personnel will visit a different Haitian refugee village where they will set up three different stations-- triage, a doctors' station, and a pharmacy.

The students will assist the doctors, help run the pharmacy, and perform "crowd control" by entertaining the refugees, who often spend long hours waiting for medical attention.

"Infectious diseases are very prevalent in third world countries because the people are malnourished," Marti said. "They die of diarrhea and the flu. Things that are small problems for us are life or death for them -- something like Neosporin can save someone's limb."

"Last year the group saw about 400 patients each day, and for many of the refugees, it was the first time visiting a doctor or receiving medical attention," Han said.

Since there are no medical supplies where they are going, the students and doctors are responsible for bringing all necessary supplies, including prescription medications, vitamins, and bars of soap. The campus is encouraged to help in this effort.

"Some of [the supplies] the doctors can get them themselves from pharmaceutical companies," Morley said. "But we're also giving boxes to the fraternities to collect supplies, and we're constantly asking around. We're even asking for crayons to give the children."

Gaining an understanding of the Dominican and Haitian cultures has been an important part of preparing for the trip. The group has been meeting every other week this semester, discussing topics ranging from "History of the Dominican Republic and Haitian Refugees" to "US and International Healthcare Issues." A Haitian speaker is also scheduled to visit the University in order to educate the students.

Since few of the students are fluent in French, Spanish, or Creole, they have been working on their language skills so that they can communicate with the Dominican and Haitian people. And perhaps most importantly, these future doctors are getting a crash course in triage skills.

Despite such preparations, Han acknowledges that, "for many, visiting a third world country will be shocking."

Marti agreed that the trip will be like nothing she has ever experienced before: "It's pretty alarming and disturbing," she said. "[In the pictures] these people are barely clothed and live in shanty homes, basically cardboard boxes."

"It's a different kind of poverty over there," junior trip participant Rebecca Francis said. "In countries like that, if you're poor, you're poor. There's no help from the government...they benefit greatly from trips like this, because they have never received attention like this."

Each volunteer will carry two suitcases with them--one containing clothes, the other medical supplies. All of their clothes will be washed and left there for the refugees.

"We're all pre-med and this is an opportunity to have hands on experience," Morley said. "It's an opportunity to see this culture and get a real feeling for medicine."

"Instantly, we will be able to see what kind of impact we will have on these people," Han added. "At the end of the day, I hope that we'll be able to take back from these people much more than we were able to give."

If you are interested in donating supplies, please contact Eric.Morley@tufts.edu, Charline.Han@tufts.edu, Ray.Hsu@tufts.edu, or Cindy.Marti@tufts.edu. You can also drop off supplies with the RA of your dorm.