Great way to get involved in the medical community

I thoroughly enjoyed volunteering in Cusco, Peru for the medical program. I worked at Centro del Salud en Chinchero for the month as a medical student and I learned so much about their healthcare including things that need to be improved on. The mentality of healthcare is very different than in the United States such as the importance of hygiene, sterility and preventive medicine. Many of the Quechuan speaking women live hours away from the clinic and wake up early morning to begin their walk. Many of them cannot afford medications. I remember I had donated some medications to this 78 year old Quechuan speaking woman and she was ever so grateful. It made me so glad that I decided to volunteer here because even though we did not understand one another, her smile resonated the room. In addition, watching the little toddlers walk around barefoot in the clinic broke my heart a little because providing shoes was not a priority to their families. There are so many diseases that could be prevented if they had the tools and resources to implement these changes. I am glad that I did this volunteering experience because I will cherish the memories and treat my patients with the top care necessary to prevent the illnesses I saw within my volunteering experience. I hope I can volunteer again because I want to continue impacting others as they have done for me. Thank you for the experience.