My Global Medical Brigades Experience

R E F L E C T I O N A

B Y : O L I V I A N I E P S U J

MY GLOBAL BRIGADES EXPERIENCE IN GHANA

How did I serve Techiman?

Medical Care

During four clinic days, we provided medical care to over nine hundred community members—people who

truly needed it. We did this through triage, filling prescriptions, and providing free physician access.

Ph

arm

acy

After patients were seen by a doctor, we filled prescriptions—most frequently for

pain killers and anti-malarials.


Education

We educated community members on the importance of clean water, malaria prevention, good hygiene,

healthy eating, and exercise.

In addition to talking with community members about brushing

teeth, wearing shoes, and bathing regularly, we also provided them with toothbrushes and toothpaste so they could begin some of the good habits

we were encouraging.

Hy

gien

e

The nutrient most eaten in the community is starch. While, as the community members mentioned

during “Public Health”, the nutrient is filling, it is also lacks many

vitamins and minerals. We educated community members on the health

problems such a diet causes and encouraged them to eat “colorful

fruits and vegetables”.

Nu

trition

We stood up and stretched with the community members, teaching them a few exercises to help alleviate pains

associated with farming.

Many were prescribed short-term pain killers, but teaching stretches was a more long-term solution to their back, neck, and hip pains.

Ex

ercise


Building Community

Through Global Brigades, we were able to build community and create relationships that aided in the

success of the brigade and, ultimately, the health of the people.


Connection

The door-to-doors really allowed me to connect with the community members, making me feel like “their

ills are my ills”—a reason for service illustrated by Adam Davis in What We Don’t Talk About When We

Don’t Talk About Service. Through talking and listening about their lives, we were able to not only

create an environment where providing good healthcare was possible, but where building

friendships and community came easily.

What issues were observed in Techiman?

Water

The first problem with water in Techiman is that people are not getting enough of it. There is no local

source of water—community members have to walk to the next town over to pay for filling up their large

gallon containers that they then carry back to their village.

Secondly, the water is not clean. Without the use of Aqua tabs and boiling, their water is discolored and contains many parasites and bacteria that have the

potential to cause serious disease.


Poor Healthcare

The people of Techiman had virtually no access to a health clinic, let alone a free health clinic. Additionally,

chronic conditions such as diabetes or hypertension are rarely treated properly because of high cost of

treatment/medication and poor access to a pharmacy.


Malaria

The primary cause of sickness in Techiman? Malaria. We were able to provide anti-malarials; however, the disease inevitably returns unless precautions such as sleeping under mosquito nets and avoiding standing

water are taken.

Even so, if someone does get Malaria, due to inability to get to an affordable health clinic make the disease

life-threatening.


Education

Most children only finish school through what we would consider a middle school level. Much of the

problem stems from there being no higher-education facility in the community and the need for children to

work to help support the family.


Misconceptions About Healthcare

Most community members had no clue of the poor nutritional value of dishes such as Foofoo, thinking that starches, since they are filling, are nutritious

enough—even teasing us at door-to-doors for eating so many “green things”.

Many women do not have access to educational materials about menstruation and pregnancy. One

pregnant woman came to the gynecologist asking how to stop having children—illustrating the need for better

access to educational materials.


Money

Although we encouraged community members to eat a variety of fruits and vegetables and brush their teeth, money is an enormous barrier. If people can barely

afford clean water, shoes, and healthcare, it is unlikely that they will splurge on toothpaste and more

expensive vegetables.

Many of my experiences in Ghana left me truly surprised, but I was perhaps most taken aback by the first day of door-to-door when one of the community members

asked me and my fellow brigaders if we were “commanded to volunteer”. At the time we all answered “no”. After reading What We Don’t Talk About When We

Don’t Talk About Service by Adam Davis, I was forced to reconsider my answer to the question. In his essay, Davis states “It has become so clear that Service Is

Good (SIG) that we can demand service activity” (Davis). In this experience, no one directly commanded that I go; however, volunteer work has almost become

demanded by many institutions. My intent for going to Ghana was to help people who were not as fortunate as I—to bridge, even a little bit, the inequality gap. However, I would be lying if I said I didn’t also go to prepare my resume for

medical schools—where volunteering is almost a requirement.

My overall experience in Ghana was life changing largely do to the fact that it reinforced my passion for not only the healthcare field, but also the inequality in

healthcare—another concept that Davis mentions in his essay. I went on the brigade knowing that I would see a tremendous discrepancy between our access to

healthcare versus the access the community members have. After all, we have doctors on almost every city block, whereas the clinic nearest Techiman is a few miles walking. I thought that by going on this brigade, I would be helping close

that gap, if even just a little. As the week went by, I felt like my goals were getting further and further away. Yes, we were treating children of malaria and parasites. Yes, we were giving overworked people analgesics for their pain. But how long are

the effects of our brigade going to resonate? A few days while the medication lasts? Until the next brigade comes in a few months?

After this brigade, I feel angry. My anger at the unequal distribution of medical care narrowed in then from this global inequality to unequal access in Chicago.

Recently, hospitals near the south side of Chicago—increasingly called “Chiraque”—have been closing down trauma centers due to the large influx of

uninsured gunshot victims—of which many are children. As a result, ambulances are forced to drive several miles to the north side of Chicago where the closest

hospitals authorized to take these victims are located—Rush or Northwestern. The chances of survival, as a result, are at best slim. I cannot possibly put into words my frustration at the medical system for not providing health care for those who

need it most. Davis emphasizes “We cherish inequality […] schools, jobs, cars, clothes, teeth, bellies, eyes. Look anywhere at all and you’ll see signs, indisputable signs, of inequality”(Davis). Yes, of course inequality exists. However, healthcare

ought be the exception. Regardless of social status, wealth, race, gender, age, access to healthcare is a human right, not a privilege. My experiences in Ghana

have further solidified this belief.

My Global Medical Brigades Experience

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