Hi friends!

As you may know, one of my passions and motivations for pursuing medicine is global health. I have been privileged to have worked with several communities in Central America, Ghana and Southeast Asia to carry out medical clinics, environmental sustainability projects, microfinance initiatives, and public health education. I have witnessed the ways in which systematic barriers affect people’s ability to live a full and healthy life, yet am always amazed at people’s resiliency in the face of hardship. Now that I am almost finished with my third-year clerkships, I am even more grateful for the opportunity I have of being in a field that often sees people during their most vulnerable times.

This summer, I am so excited to be returning to Haiti’s Central Plateau (!), though this time with Emory University School of Medicine’s Medishare month-long surgical trip. I will be working with a team of fifteen other Emory medical students and several surgeons, anesthesiologists, scrub techs and scrub nurses. Despite the incredible progress made in global health, the morbidity and mortality of conditions that would be easily treated with surgery are continuing to grow. Most of the world lacks access to safe, timely and affordable surgical care. Thus, one of our trip goals is to help relieve the burden of surgical disease in one of the most underserved populations in the Western Hemisphere. We will spend two weeks in pre-op and post-op clinic and two weeks doing over sixty surgeries. Throughout our time there, we will also continue research to improve patient outcomes, better understand our patient population and their barriers to seeking and receiving care, and cultivate the sustainability of our program with the local hospital staff.

As our team brings down all of the medications and supplies needed for clinic and surgeries, I am asking for your help in changing the lives of our patients. Any donation, big or small, is meaningful, and a $60 contribution covers the costs for an entire surgery! Thanks so much in advance – I’m thankful for each and every one of you! Feel free to get in touch with any questions or concerns!

All donations are tax-deductible!

Read more about our trip here: http://surgery.emory.edu/about-us/gifts-donations/emory_medishare_donate.html
Check out this video made by one of our trip team members: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nb9WZsJIbaw
Check out this short video from the Lancet Commission on Global Surgery: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRf8PbQgjGU
Read more about global surgery here: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/26/opinion/how-surgery-can-fight-global-poverty.html?referer&_r=2