CMA Students Plan Mission Trip to Mexico
The trip, now in its ninth year, is the major annual outreach project for the College of Medicine's chapter of the CMA. More than 70 people, including medical students, college faculty members, local physicians, translators and pre-med undergraduate students, will be traveling to Morelos, which is south of Piedras Negras and across the border from Eagle Pass.
The group plans to set up five sites in Morelos and the nearby Allende, and will offer screening, medical care, medication and health education to members of the local communities. Each clinic will consist of a triage area, exam rooms and a makeshift pharmacy. Teams of first and second-year medical students will take histories and evaluate patients, and then present to physicians on site to determine the best course of action for each patient.
Second-year student organizers Matt Brown and Vivian Lichaa say the trip gives medical students an opportunity to see first-hand the impact they can make as physicians.
"There is a lack of access to health care in the areas we will be visiting," Brown says. "Every time we visit, we are often the only medical care these people receive all year. We see a lot of colds and allergies, but also hypertension and diabetes. Because we can't be there on a regular basis, we do the best we can to treat people, but we also educate them on how to take care of themselves."
The group will be staying at a church in Morelos, and are prepared to cook for themselves and sleep on air mattresses. But they don't mind, Lichaa says, because the chance to make a difference in the lives of people, both physically and spiritually, is worth it.
"When we come to take care of them, they want to know why we do it," Lichaa says. "That opens up an opportunity to talk to them about Christ. It really is amazing to be able to pray with and for these people."
In preparation for the trip, which is a six to seven-hour drive, the group has rented five vans to carry all the people, supplies and luggage they will need. Brown and Lichaa say their fundraising efforts have been highly successful and even surpassed their expectations.
"We did blood pressure screenings at Wal-Mart a couple of weeks ago and it was great to see the support from the community," Brown said. "We raised $750 just from that event, so it will cover the cost of the medications we'll take with us. We have also received support from local churches and physicians, friends and family and our classmates. It's been really neat to see the money coming in because now we don't have to worry about expenses."
The CMA group will leave for Mexico on Saturday, March 11 and return Wednesday, March 15.
