My summer in the DR

This summer I went on a service trip to the Dominican Republic. My trip was titled “public health in the Caribbean.” I have always been interested in medicine and public health, but I didn’t know what to expect. As soon as I showed up to the airport i was greeted by so many amazing girls and I immediately knew that it would be a great trip. We stayed in an amazing base house, and went to very informative and interesting NGO’S (non-government organizations) regarding women and children’s health and rights in the DR. After we learned the issues we had a man named Gary teach and certify us in first aid, cpr, and other wilderness first aid skills to use in the community health workshops. After this we went into the Batey communities and saw first hand the many issues that people in these communities face. Although they faced so many hardships, the people in these communities were so outgoing and caring. One of my favorite memories was when we were pouring a concrete for a family of 5, and the abuela gave us fresh mangos and coconuts. Her compassionate personality really stood out to me, and my whole group formed a really amazing and tight bond with her over the 5 days we worked to help the sanitation in the community. After doing the construction projects like pouring cement floors and building latrines, we used our knowledge of wilderness first aid to do public health workshops that went to 4 communities in the bateys. This was definitely the highlight of my trip, because we really got to know and understand what the families in the communities go through. We gave them anti parasite medicines, weighed and measured babies, gave vitamins and much more. When I got home, I realized how fortunate we all really are, and how important it is to help others who may not be in the best situations. Forming bonds with different people around the world is one of the things I love to do most in life, and this rustic trip really helped me do what I love.