Called to Serve: ATSU-CHC CCPA students travel to Carabayllo, Peru to provide care
Posted: September 6, 2024
Written by Brittney Whitlock, PA, ’25
Jennifer Harrington, DMSc, PA-C, DFAAPA, program director for the Central Coast Physician Assistant (CCPA) program at A.T. Still University-College for Healthy Communities (ATSU-CHC), has been involved in medical missions since 1995, traveling to Malaysia, South and Central America, and Papua New Guinea. She has led nine mission trips total, seven of those to Peru.
Dr. Harrington sought to create her own organization with a distinct focus on connecting practicing PAs and other medical providers to PA students during medical outreach trips, in order to create an opportunity to engage in short-term medical missions and mentor and equip students to begin a life-long journey of serving others through medicine.
The CCPA class of 2025 was invited to join the inaugural 2024 Called to Serve (CTS) mission in Carabayllo, the largest and poorest district in Lima, Peru. This past June, on their summer break, three CCPA students, Natalie Ramirez, PA, ’25, Wilson Niu, PA, ’25, and Brittney Whitlock, PA, ’25, and Cristina Tipei, PA-C, assistant professor, joined CTS to fulfill the ATSU mission and serve the primary care needs of the medically underserved.
CTS set up its pop-up clinic across from one of Carabayllo’s health centers, Centro de Salud Juan Pablo II, the only health center for roughly 15 miles. Each morning, the team would assemble the clinic and patients lined up to be seen.
“My favorite part of the trip was setting up the tents in the mornings and learning more about the community,” said Niu.
Once constructed, the clinic included a triage station, three clinic rooms, a physical therapy station, a reading glasses/patient education station, a pharmacy/lab, and a prayer area where patients could pray with a pastor from Cristo Viene, a local church.
“I was so excited to put my skills and knowledge to practice but also terrified,” said Ramirez. “All of us [students] were on the same page… Helping those who need it most is why we chose the PA profession to begin with.”
In the CTS clinic, students put their didactic year education to the test and got a taste of what their upcoming clinical year would be like. Many of the visits to the clinic included musculoskeletal complaints which felt serendipitous as the students had just finished their finals which included mastering the musculoskeletal physical exam.
Niu fondly remembers working with Dr. Harrington and performing the Ortolani test to look for hip dysplasia on a baby. Another memorable patient brought their printed spine x-ray, CT, and MRI and asked for an interpretation.
Students also learned the importance of collaboration in working with the medical director of Centro de Salud Juan Pablo II, Ronald Mendoza. When a local matriarch presented with a stage four pressure ulcer, Dr. Mendoza welcomed CTS into his clinic to treat the patient. PA Tipei, who has extensive experience in wound care, taught Whitlock how to clean and debride the pressure ulcer, and Ramirez jumped in and put her prior phlebotomy experience and skills class knowledge to use to place a line for the patient to receive IV antibiotics.
When asked about the impact of mission work, Dr. Harrington likes to share an excerpt from “The Star Thrower” by Loren Eisley:
One day a man was walking along the beach when he noticed a boy picking up and gently throwing things into the ocean. Approaching the boy he asked, “Young man, what are you doing?”
“Throwing starfish back into the ocean. The surf is up, and the tide is going out. If I don’t throw them back, they’ll die,” the boy replied.
The man laughed to himself and said, “Do you realize there are miles and miles of beach and hundreds of starfish? You can’t make any difference.”
After listening politely, the boy bent down to pick up another starfish and threw it into the surf. Then, he smiled at the man and said, “I made a difference to that one.”
Of the 333,039 people in Carabayllo, the Called to Serve clinic served an estimated 500.
By emphasizing patient education about illness and teaching physical therapy techniques to use in activities of daily living, patients weren’t just treated but given the tools to continue to heal. What makes CTS unique is that not only were patients served but ATSU CCPA students were given the opportunity to apply their learning.
“I will never forget the people of Carabayllo. They were so appreciative and kind. Peru will always have a special place in my heart because it was there that I saw and treated my first patients, bonded with my faculty and our CTS team became like a family. I am so thankful to CTS for this opportunity,” said Whitlock.