Newsletter
Name: Shon-Paul Swensen
From: St. George Utah
Major: Biology Premed
Followed the medical service engagement track
Four Corners Cultural Immersion Medical Service Trip
The Trip I attended was a week long in length and consisted of traveling with a group of Rural Health Scholars (RHS) over to the Four Corners area of Utah to help serve with the physicians in providing medical care for the Navajo people. The towns we frequently visited were Blanding, Monument Valley and Montezuma Creek. Our group consisted of about 15 guys and including our group leader Casey. It took about 6 hours of travel time to reach our destination and commuting between towns to get to the different clinics and hospitals took about 2 hours round trip.
​
Our usual day consisted of traveling to our selected clinic to shadow with the assigned physicians in helping screen and care for patients. Each day we were up early at 06:00 due to long commuting times and once we arrived at the clinics/hospitals we were usually there for about 8-9 hours. We were right with the doctors/PA's not only to shadow but to offer our assistance in helping care and handle many of the patients.
​
​
My Inspiration for proposing, planning and executing my project was from my amazing past experiences with other cultural immersion trips with RHS just how much I enjoyed serving others, learning of different cultures and acquiring the skill necessary in the medical field. I really wanted my project to challenge me by taking me out of my comfort zone and by being so centered around what I want to do for my career: Medical Doctor.
Some of the challenges I had to overcome while planning and executing my project came down to time management. There was so much to do with so little time that I sometimes felt a little too overwhelmed or that I would fear that I wouldn't be able to use the time allowed to efficiently work and get the things that i needed to do done. Other than making sure I utilize my time to the best of my abilities, it was pretty much smooth sailing although it was still tough, we had a lot of work to do each day but it was satisfying and rewarding.
I feel that the service I provided in my project not only really benefited myself in so many ways but also the great number of patients, both young and old that were needing treatment and help. I was able to help in many instances with holding children during exams, administering tools necessary for surgeries, and helping conduct health screenings to more efficiently and quickly administer to the patients.
This project has helped me acquire essential skills, knowledge and experience by allowing me to work closely with doctors, patients and those of differing cultures of my own because that I what makes up the health care profession: working with and understanding those of different cultures so you can better treat THEM and not their disease. I will continue to go to cultural immersion trips - I currently have paid to attend this years (2018) Christmas break Immersion trip down to the Dominican Republic. Not only has this project benefited me with the necessary hours of shadowing and patient exposure/service, but has taught me the skills and knowledge I need to know to be able to eventually serve other as a medical doctor.
