VCOM - Auburn 2017 Yearbook

Honduras | Tegucigalpa

Honduras is known for its vivid mountain ranges that are best viewed from the tops of its ancient Mayan ruins.

I n Honduras, VCOM partners with the Baxter Institute to operate the James Moody Adams (JMA) Clinic, serving families in an impoverished area of Tegucigalpa. The site offers primary care, gynecology and prenatal services, a children’s nutrition program and dentistry. In addition, the Honduran Ministry of Health, National Hospital, San Felipe Hospital and UNITEC Medical School are key VCOM partners. On July 3, 2016, a team of VCOM OMS II students, faculty,

staff and alumni preceptors from the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine (VCOM) embarked on a one- week medical outreach trip to Tegucigalpa, Honduras. Over the course of the week, the team served approximately 470 pediatric and adult patients. Clinical activities in Honduras included conducting primary care and routine breast and pelvic examinations at the VCOM-affiliated James Moody Adams Baxter Clinic, as well as day trips to various other communities scattered throughout the mountainous

region surrounding Tegucigalpa. Traveling by a rustic school bus, the group quickly assembled OMM tables to transform local schools and churches into temporary clinics. The week concluded with a visit to the Jóvenes orphanage, where the VCOM medical team shared recreation time and enjoyed a roasted chicken lunch with about 80 orphans. Patients seen during the week were referred to the JMA Baxter Clinic for any follow-up care. VCOM’s partnership with the Clinic, as well as with area hospitals, ensures sustainability and continuity of care for patients following all mission trips. “Serving in Tegucigalpa was an extremely humbling and unbelievable experience that I will appreciate for the rest of my life,” said Sara Nelson, a class of 2019 student.

104