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Chapter Spotlight: University of Kansas

Congratulations to MEDLIFE chapter at the University of Kansas for winning Best New MEDLIFE Chapter Award 2015! MEDLIFE at KU has made incredible strides within this past semester. Through successful campaigning and hard work, they sent 23 students on a mobile clinic, raised $520 and elected 8 new executive board members. We´re proud to have their president Aly Lange interning with us in Lima this summer. Read the following interview to find out more about this amazing chapter!

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When and how did your chapter begin?

The MEDLIFE chapter at the University of Kansas began when their Chapter President, Aly Lange, transferred to the University of Kansas from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in the Fall of 2014. There is a very strong MEDLIFE chapter at UNL, and after seeing that there wasn’t a chapter at KU, Aly started one!

What strategies did you use to promote MEDLIFE on campus?

At KU, social media outreach goes a long way! MedLife KU utilizes Facebook events and groups, e-mail, GroupMe, Twitter and Instagram extensively to keep chapter members engaged and informed. They also do lots of tabling throughout the year as well as chalking the sidewalks of campus! 

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What process does a new member go through once part of the chapter?

Something that helps MedLife KU stand out against similar organizations on campus is that it has an “open arms” policy for students! It welcomes students of all majors, time constraints and disciplines to join at any point in the year. Once a student expresses interest in joining MedLife KU, we add them to our e-mail list and all social media groups that they can stay in the loop and be invited to meetings!

What activities do you organize to keep your members interested throughout the year?

This year, MedLife KU will implement a within-Chapter competition called the Family Cup. We have 7 members who will act as “Mama”s and “Papa”s to their “Family” of 5-10 students. Each MedLife KU event will be worth a certain number of points for the Family Cup, and the top 3 scoring Families will receive a prize at the end of the year! In addition, individual students that accumulate a certain number of points will be awarded special recognition and prizes. 

MedLife KU also hosts a number of annual fundraisers throughout the year. This includes Music For Medicine (a battle of the bands), Sweethears for Staircases (a Valentine’s Day candy delivery service), and Serves for Service (a volleyball tournament). MedLife KU will expand upon this to add at least 3 more major fundraisers in the upcoming year. They also are hosting 2 MEDTALK conferences this year, in order to bring University-wide attention to global health issues.

They also plan to host more social events for members to meet fellow students interested in going on MEDLIFE trips over both Winter, Spring and Summer breaks!

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What are your goals as a chapter for this academic year (2015-2016)?

This year, MedLife KU is determined to raise at least $1000 for MEDLIFE throughout the course of the school year and to send a total of 50 students on mobile clinic trips. They also want to reach out to at least 3 high schools and colleges to help start new MEDLIFE chapters!

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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.