Global public health class takes field trip to Dominican Republic

A trip to the Dominican Republic (DR) during spring break has given a group of RIT students a new perspective on access to healthcare delivery, public-health initiatives, medical education, and emergency services in another country.

‌

John Oliphant

A little boy learns to floss his teeth with the encouragement of physician assistant students Maddie Johnston, kneeling, Makayla Rosettie, and Emma Sledzik. They taught Haitian and Dominican children about oral hygiene practices. Interpreter Fermin Perez Jean is at left.

Thirteen students spent March 8-15 in the DR in the western region of Pedernales and in Santo Domingo, the capital along the southeastern coast, as part of their class, Global Healthcare Delivery with International Field Experience. John Oliphant, professor and director of the new global public health bachelor’s degree program, led the trip along with Mary Golden, RIT director of interior design, Jallah Kennedy, adjunct professor in the global public health program, and host partners in the DR.

The group visited medical schools, clinics, hospitals, civil defense, and Red Cross facilities, and a prison, and met with emergency medical teams and firefighters. The students interviewed medical and public health professionals and medical students about their various research topics, and recorded their reflections in daily video journals.

“This experience opened my eyes to other parts of the world that I have never been exposed to,” said Cody Lawson, a global public health major from Sherburne, N.Y., who described his experience in the Dominican Republic as “life changing.”

‌

John Oliphant

RIT students Buyi Owo-Odusi, a biomedical sciences major, and Cody Lawson, a global public health major, gave a presentation about handwashing to remove dirt and germs and prevent illness.

“I learned that the Dominican Republic faces a lot of challenges in the healthcare of children—access to healthcare, lack of vaccinations due to financial circumstances, and various diarrhea and respiratory diseases,” Lawson said. He is studying global public health as a stepping stone to medical school. He hopes to work in pediatric oncology.

Lawson was struck by the plight of children they met living on a beach. “One of them didn't have any family. He had his own business of polishing shoes to make money and he was unable to attend school. To know that there are many children like this in the same circumstances is absolutely heartbreaking and motivates me to take action and show my support for these communities.”

During the trip, the students gave public health talks and distributed gift bags of personal care items. They talked to Haitian and Dominican children about oral hygiene, illness prevention through hand washing, and puberty and menstruation for girls nine to 12 years old (presented with a local obstetrician/gynecologist). Their talks for adults focused on understanding blood pressure numbers and eating nutritiously.

‌

John Oliphant

RIT students Ella Lewis, a biomedical sciences major, and physician assistant students Emma Tucker and Emma Sledzik, sit with Mary Golden, director of RIT’s interior design program, in an ambulance simulator. Program host and guide Raphael Perez Jean sits in the foreground.

Abby Giacoman, a fourth-year physician assistant student from Rochester, N.Y., noticed how much is taken for granted in the United States, “such as access to first-line medication or an individual’s ability to attend college,” she said. “It helped me realize the true impact of inequities that exist in healthcare, and how they can affect the local population.”

The students will talk about their experiences in the DR at the Innovations in Global Public Health Conference on April 12 and the Imagine RIT: Creativity and Innovation Festival on April 26.

Their time in the DR was profound and emotional. Sometimes, circumstances overwhelmed them all, Oliphant said. “Seeing homeless children living on a beach and firefighters without fire-protection gear—these are things you cannot forget.”

These experiences felt surreal when returning to life as normal after spring break, he said. The group will spend time during their following classes processing what they observed and finding outlets through action, advocacy, and compassionate understanding.

“Our planet is incredibly interconnected and pathogens do not know national boundaries. COVID-19, Ebola, West Nile virus, Zika—they may start at other places but they don’t stay there,” Oliphant said.

He continued, ”My goal for this program is to help students understand that none of us get to pick where we are born and that we are all citizens of this shared planet. We should work together to make sure people everywhere have what they need to reach their full potential in life.”