Medical Missions Allow Rheumatologists to Volunteer Around the World
In addition to diagnosing their condition and offering them steroid injections and anti-inflammatories, Dr. Mallay and her colleagues worked to educate patients on how to lift correctly and not exacerbate disease activity. They also gave out information on stretching exercises that could improve stiffness and range of motion.
“People would bring us food to show their gratitude and walk for miles to come to the mission clinics,” Dr. Mallay says. “Practicing medicine on a mission makes you more empathetic and very appreciative of everything we have in the United States.”
Each medical mission is unique, Dr. Mallay says. She’s treated children suffering from malnutrition and adults with undiagnosed diseases such as Parkinson’s, and worked to provide vaccinations to children and prenatal care to expectant mothers.
Dr. Mallay says the medical missions she’s embarked on have all partnered with local health professionals in developing countries to stress continuity of care.
“I think the most successful medical missions are those that are sustainable and continue to provide patient care long after the mission has ended and the medical volunteers have returned home,” she says. “Treating chronic conditions requires continuity of care, so it’s important for medical missions to partner with health professionals based in the [mission’s] country.”
Linda Childers is a health writer located in the San Francisco Bay area.