community service & LAMSA
activities calendarLAMSA works primarily with
students and local groups to discover and organize opportunities for
community service activities to benefit the local Latino community.
LAMSA has associations with the Hispanic American Medical Association of
Louisiana (HAMAL) and the
Tulane Hispanic Health Initiative
(THHI), which runs local health fairs through the
Hispanic Organization of
Health Professionals to Improve Health Outcomes (HOHPTIHO)
program. Recently, LAMSA has also begun an annual trip to rural Siuna,
Nicaragua, in conjunction with organizational support from
Bridges to Community. The trip
is scheduled during Spring Break, and students work in a local clinic and set up
activities to provide health care to the local population. Information regarding
this exciting opportunity is posted here on this page, below the events calendar.
Health Fairs - opportunities to interact with the local
community. Students' activities vary, but can include: blood pressure
screenings, measuring height and weight, fingersticks to test for glucose or
cholesterol, and distributing health pamphlets. Spanish language abilities are
helpful but not a requirement for participation.
Spanish Potlucks - the location rotates, the host usually provides beverages,
everyone attending brings a dish to share, which doesn't have to be, but has
usually been in the past, a traditional food from a Spanish-speaking country. We
gather and mingle, casually conversing in Spanish. People of all levels of
speaking proficiency are invited to attend, as are any non-med-students who also
wish to practice with us. It's low-key and a lot of fun!
Events Calendar:
Past:
September 15, 2002 - Health
fair at community festival sponsored by the Honduran Consulate
February 4, 11, 18, 25, March 3, 2004 (5:30-6:30pm)
- Medical Spanish Class
March 21-29, 2003 - Service trip to Siuna, Nicaragua
Current:
February 4, 11, 18, 25, March 3, 2004 (5:30-6:30pm)
- Medical Spanish Class
service trip to rural clinic in Siuna, Nicaragua
The Second Annual Spring Break
Service Trip to Nicaragua. From March 21-29, 2003, a group of
first-and second-year students returned to the rural town of Siuna,
Nicaragua. This year we hope to support 2-3 physicians who are willing
to volunteer their time to accompany us and if we are lucky, a dentist
as well.
Over the course of 9 days, we will have a life-changing experience. Students
will assist physicians by serving as Spanish translators for
American physicians, taking medical histories from patients
and applying physical diagnosis skills to perform the physical
exam, dispensing medicine from the pharmacy. Participants
will also be able to shadow Nicaraguan physicians at the
hospital in Siuna. In
addition to working at a women's clinic which treats expecting mothers
with high-risk pregnancies, we will set up satellite clinics to offer
medical care to Nicaraguans who usually get little to no health care. We will
also travel to local schools to treat children for parasites, administer
immunizations and teach public health lessons on nutrition and
hygiene. We are fortunate to be working under the auspices of
Bridges to Community, a
nonprofit with over 10 years of experience leading medical and construction
teams in Nicaragua.
Why travel to Nicaragua?
- To deepen our understanding of the health problems faced worldwide.
- To gain exposure to the way the health system operates in a developing country.
- To learn how to overcome cultural and socioeconomic barriers in caring for patients from another country.
- To reflect on our social responsibilities as future physicians.
- To gain experience that will help us focus our medical and public health training.
- To strengthen our lifelong commitment to service as physicians.
If you are a student interested in PARTICIPATING, here are the details:
-
There will be
space for 10-15 students, depending on the funds we raise.
-
You will need to
pay your airfare to Managua (which can range anywhere from $250-$500+
depending on timing and luck) and some portion of your trip fee ($775/person).
Again, this depends on the amount of funds we are able to raise (The
more we raise, the less you pay).
- It is helpful to
know some Spanish. After all, you will be interacting with patients who
only speak Spanish.
- You need to be
willing to do some group fundraising. We do have some funds already,
but we need quite a bit more.
- If you are genuinely interested in participating in March, please email
LAMSA with a brief
blurb about why you want to go. Once we have a list of people, there will
be a
short organizational meeting prior to winter break. Please also feel free to
email LAMSA with any questions you may have about the trip.
We also need Volunteer Physicians as well as donations of funding and/or
supplies:
- Physicians - all specialties needed (Residents
included): OB/GYN,
ER, Internal Med, Family Med, Pediatrics. We also need a Dentist. As a
volunteer physician or dentist, your commitment includes:
- A willingness to teach students clinical skills.
- Airfare to Managua, Nicaragua.
- Any medical equipment you need for patient exams (the local
clinic is extremely limited).
- Any medicine or equipment you can donate to the clinic.
- Donations
- Monetary donations to support 15 trip participants (first- and
second-year students).
Organizing an effective medical effort in a rural area requires funding for
immunizations, medicine, teaching materials, and local transportation to
reach those in need (Bridges to Community covers those expenses with a
facilitation fee of $675/person). Our accommodations in Nicaragua will be
minimal. We will eat with the local community and stay in homes or churches
in Siuna. All donations are tax-deductible, made payable to Bridges to
Community.
- Eyeglasses and Hygiene products (toothbrushes, toothpaste, soap, etc.)
- Medicine (Bridges has a Nicaraguan staff who will facilitate all medicine
transfers through customs)
- To find out more about getting involved with the trip as a
volunteer doctor or as a donor, email us.
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