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Bridging the Gap Between Communities & High-quality Medical Care

Meet Roy

Roy is a playful three-year-old boy living with his family in Ongoto Bajo, an impoverished community on the outskirts of Tena. Read Roy’s story to learn about how MEDLIFE fights against unequal access to high-quality medical care every day.

Access to high-quality medical care in Roy’s community

We first met Roy at one of our Mobile Clinics where we bring free, high-quality medical care directly to communities that lack basic health services. Students from Universidad de Puerto Rico-Aguadilla, University of North Dakota, and Georgia State University joined us at this clinic as part of a Service Learning Trip. They helped to make the clinic possible.

Roy suffered from a high fever and extreme pain in his hip at the slightest movement or touch. The pain left him unable to play, walk, or go to school and learn. The conditions in Roy’s community added to the challenges his family faced.

Roy’s father worked hard on the farm every day to provide for his family. To make matters worse, there was limited access to high-quality medical care in their community. The constraints of poverty meant that Roy’s condition continued to deteriorate until he found MEDLIFE at one of our Mobile Clinics.

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How MEDLIFE bridged the gap

When Roy arrived at our Mobile Clinic, our team of local nurses took immediate action. They rushed him to the local hospital. After running some tests, the local medical professionals discovered that he had a critical bacterial infection in his hip.

The infection spread to his blood and approached his bones. Roy needed urgent surgery. Left untreated, the infection could have threatened his life. With the support of MEDLIFE and local medical professionals, Roy received life-changing surgery within a week. The successful surgery transformed Roy’s daily life. He is now back at school and enjoying life as a happy, healthy kid.

It is not uncommon for our in-country staff to face life-and-death situations like Roy’s at our Mobile Clinics. By connecting students, local services, and impoverished families, our team works to empower communities like Roy’s to overcome the constraints that make high-quality medical care inaccessible. In Roy’s case, MEDLIFE bridged the gap between local medical professionals and the families of Ongoto Bajo.

Join a Service Learning Trip to support our worldwide Movement to create a world free from the constraints of poverty, with access to high-quality medical care for all! Thank you to the students from Universidad de Puerto Rico-Aguadilla, University of North Dakota, and Georgia State University for their hard work and dedication at the M40 Clinic in Tena.

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Hear it From MEDLIFErs

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Reya Seby
Western University

This trip motivated me more to pursue a career in the healthcare field so that I can use my resources to help those who need it the most, similar to MEDLIFE’s mission.

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Victoria DiCanio
University of Connecticut

It was most enjoyable to finish the hard work and see how big a difference a group of individuals can make. It was such an amazing experience.

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Anita Woo
University of Toronto

I enjoyed the mobile clinics the most, especially the dental and triage portions. I would definitely recommend a MEDLIFE trip, it was a great experience.

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David Saff
Maclay High School

The most enjoyable part of my trip was hanging out with the amazing group of kids I was with. I would highly recommend a MEDLIFE volunteer trip to others.

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Sydney Sansone
Nova Southeastern University

This trip made everything that I was learning in my public health courses come to life and immersed me in a new culture while also learning about medicine.

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Abygail Youmans
College of Charleston

Being involved with MEDLIFE is not like joining another club - its bigger than that. It is about joining a movement that seeks to help change people’s quality of life for forever.

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Emi Hofmann
University of Central Florida

Not only was I able to participate in a week long Mobile Clinic, shadowing doctors of all types of specialties including pharmacy, dentistry, gynecology, and more, but I was also able to learn about the culture and visit incredible places.

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Julian Takagi-Stewart
University of Toronto

One thing that I really loved about this trip was that MEDLIFE made sure that the volunteers got an understanding of the complexity of issues that lead to underprivileged people in communities outside of the main city

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Hannah Van Hofwegen
University of Ottawa

Whether it was basketball with the local kids, assisting the doctors, talking with families, building washrooms, holding babies, or spending time with the people who were on the SLT with me, this was an amazing opportunity that I would do over and over again.

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Isabelle Holt
Cornell University

I loved learning about the patients MEDLIFE has followed and how they offer real help to people with chronic/urgent conditions. It is amazing how the organization formed real connections with the communities.

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Valerie Lindeborg
Parent

Our family had the privilege of participating in multiple trips with Nick [founder] and his amazing staff. Their expertise made the trips unforgettable while instilling in my boys the fundamentals of good character: selflessness, compassion, and empathy.

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Harry Vildibill
University of Georgia

As an aspiring physician, MEDLIFE motivated me to further continue my goal of becoming a doctor. In fact, I enjoyed the Tanzania Service Learning Trip so much that I decided to go on another trip to Cusco, Peru.