EcuaExperience: Pre-Medical and Volunteer Programs

I had an incredible time in Ecuador. The experience was a fantastic blend of home-building as volunteers, exposure to the medical field and to the system in a developing country, and of course plenty of recreation. I was able to lead and to follow, to share my skills and to make an immediate, visible, and lasting difference in the lives of the people I met. The medical component was engaging and educational and it reaffirmed my passion for medicine. We toured from hot springs and farmland to mountains and beaches and jungle and cloud forests, sometimes in the same day. As a group you move from urban to rural areas and experience the culture gaps. The hikes to waterfalls were exhausting and invigorating and I went hang-gliding and learned to surf with one-on-one instruction from a pro! If you can, don't hesitate to take an extra week in Peru or the Gallapagos, or try the new one in Argentina. The food ranged from incredible to not so hot, but it never mattered and I was never sick. I met lots of incredible people and never for a second regretted my decision to go. I would definitely go back.

To all the amazing people at HLD, and all the volunteers that made my month in Ecuador the best, I give you my most sincere and appreciative slow clap. Thank you so much!
To everyone and anyone considering this trip, it is definitely worth it! It truly is the whole ecuaexperience!

My experiences working with the community, sharing the excitement and hope for better days with them, and being able to feel like i really made a difference were life changing.
The insight into the different aspects of medicine was more than I expected. The medical students were fantastic at providing information, getting us into surgeries ect, and translating what was going on, or asking our questions in spanish. What I was able to see and learn was truly amazing and eyeopening.

The adventure tour was some of the most fun a person could have with a group of friends in Ecuador. From the trips and activities in the Amazon jungle, to the beaches and surfing in the ocean, it was an action packed 11 days of awesomeness.

This program does it right! They make it their goal for you to have the best time possible, and trust me it's not hard to have the time of your life. The people you meet on this trip become instant lifetime friends and make the trip that much better. Would recommend this trip to anyone I know, and I will never forget my time in Ecuador.

PS: Ruban, keep ridin dirty my friend!

This was truly the most unique experience of my lifetime. Imagine touring in a foreign country. How would you travel? What would you do? Most likely you'll visit a fraction of the major attraction sites without getting the first hand experience of what LIFE is like in that country. You will just be a tourist. HLD gave me an in-depth view of the common life of Ecuadorians and their struggles. It allowed me to actually see first hand the culture and how it has structured the people of this nation. I can say that during this trip, I was part Ecuadorian and to be able to leave the tourist's shoes and participate in community building gave me the feeling of being appreciated.

As someone who now works in the realm of global health, I would attribute this program with planting the first seed. Although I had reservations about participating due to the ethical issues associated with 'volun-tourism' in the South, I went anyways, and was happily surprised. This program is different from others since the program co-ordinators are Ecuadorian locals who seem to really understand how the country/culture functions. I would definitely suggest this program for students wishing to get a taste of what it feels like to work abroad, since there is such a good balance of work and play.

The medical rotations were super rewarding. Really made me realize that i want to study medicine in the future.

Great sightseeing and tour component - really get to see every side of Ecuador.

The bonding experience with everyone in your month is incomparable. Made friends to last a lifetime :)

During my time in Ecuador, I kept a journal (something I highly suggest if you go by the way), and every day I took the time to write some of the new things that I learned. Here are some of the main things I took away from my trip to Ecuador:

1) I really felt I made a difference volunteering. Although the volunteering in Ecuador building houses for a small village was the main (and by far the funnest) part of the whole trip, I would say I became a volunteer basically right after the first meeting after receiving notice that I was accepted into the program. The first thing we got to do was create fundraising plans to raise money in order to buy the materials we would need to build the houses with. I served as the treasurer for my group, and so I personally got to see that the money we raised went directly towards making payments to the various shops and vendors in Ecuador that helped supply us with goods (like, right down to actually giving the money to the shopkeepers in person). It was also gratifying to see a place that was originally bare all of a sudden have brightly colored houses standing there by the end of the summer.

2) I made lasting friendships, not only with my fellow group members who did the trip with me, but also with some of the local adults and children who lived in Ecuador. To this day, I still keep in touch with people who now live in the houses we helped to build, and it's lots of fun to exchange stories with them about what's going on in our lives and hear about how they're doing! In addition, some of my group members are now my closest friends--I don't know, something about spending a whole month together and having to endure doing medical rotations and volunteering together really built a group mentality that I enjoyed. Above all, the feeling of being in a group and accomplishing something that we all love together is a great feeling.

3) I got to witness just how diverse a country like Ecuador is within itself. I don't think I've ever been on a trip in which you can travel to mountains, beaches, hot springs, rainforest (the Amazon!!!), farmland, and large cities all at the same time. It was certainly an amazing experience going to all these difference places! One thing about Ecuador that was a new experience for me was the altitude--sometimes the altitude changes we experienced while we were travelling by bus were significant enough that our water bottles would concave or slightly inflate!

4) I gained insight into the nature of the medical field. Before this trip, I had a thought that I might want to do medicine when I graduate, but after this trip, I now know that I WANT to do something in medicine when I graduate. While we were in Quito doing medical rotations and taking lessons, I loved every second of all the hard work we were tasked with. The medical rotations were some of the coolest things I've ever gotten the chance to do. We got to get a glimpse of basically all the main fields in medicine, including ER, OR, Pediatrics, radiology, Sports Medicine, and Internal Medicine. In addition, during the week of medical rotations we were split into groups and given a group research project, and I learned A LOT from doing that project. The coolest part by far was that the project was in the form of a patient case study, and so I got to experience firsthand what it would be like to diagnose a patient. Absolutely the coolest experience ever.

This trip became the best month of my life by far. From the crazy activities that created endless friendships to the unexplainable feeling you achieve by changing the lives of countless local families in need, this trip is an emotional roller coaster in the best ways possible. I couldn't have expected any more from what I got out of this experience. Nothing could ever compare to how this trip could change an individual.

Everyday there were activities going on that involved the group. The experience was so great and I loved it. I would do it again in a second. Building houses was one of the most rewarding things I have ever done! Also the medical rotations I got to take part in furthered my interest and drive to attain a medical career, however if you don't want to go to med school this program would still be absolutely amazing. I went down with an open mind for the program and I absolutely loved it and made some new life long friends. All the leaders and organizers of the program are enthusiastic and fun, they helped to make the trip even better! Absolutely no regrets about doing it and I would recommend it to everyone!