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Bellin College students travel to Haiti

Bellin College students, representing three different programs, had the opportunity to travel to four different clinic sites in Haiti for a medical mission trip in October. Students were from the 15-month May 2018 class, RN to BSN and MSN programs. The villages they traveled to were Montalais (which required a 10-mile hike up very steep mountains), Thomazeau, Noyau and Grand Boulage. All four clinics saw over 1,100 clients during the 3-5 days clinic was open. The most common things encountered were severe hypertension, wounds, burns, skin infections and infestations and malnutrition.

The MSN students were able to function independently as providers under the direction of Dr. Jack Hale with Friends of Haiti. The other students got to experience a variety of roles such as doing blood pressures and heart rates, screening for glaucoma with a tonometer and treating elevated readings per the protocol with eye drops, performing various lab tests such as HIV, malaria, blood glucose, and working directly with both American and Haitian providers assessing clients, scribing,  and performing various procedures such as wound debridement, IM antibiotic administration, IV starts, ear flushes, fetal heart tones, etc. Students were also able to experience Haitian culture and develop a greater appreciation for the healthcare we have here in the United States. Extreme poverty contributes to this population’s vulnerability. Students came away from this experience with a greater empathy for vulnerable populations.

Bellin College will be offering another opportunity for students to travel to Haiti April 9-20, 2018. 

Travel & Service Learning Experiences


Student Perspective

Three MSN students had the opportunity to travel to the Friends of Haiti Montalais Clinic and were encouraged by Dr. Hale to work as independent providers demonstrating their skills as Nurse Practitioners. This allowed the students to strengthen their medical decision-making skills and were provided the opportunity for hands-on clinical experience doing things they might not have experienced in the United States.

Katherine Vander Zanden, a current FNP student recalls helping a woman with a terrible arm wound; a severely malnourished 2-month-old who was only 5 lbs. and was fed sugar water since birth due to the mother’s milk never coming in; a severely asthmatic elderly woman; a skin tag removal. “There is definitely nothing quite as memorable as using a headlight to perform pelvic exams on the church floor,” said Katherine.

A summary of Jennah Haque’s experience

“The night we arrived and set up clinic in Montalais, I had shared with the group my excitement of wanting to have a laboring mom come to us. Being a pediatric nurse, I have a lot of experience with kids but have very little experience with labor and delivery. I think my strong interest stems from my grandmother, a retired maternity nurse, who shares stories of her being a part of my own birth.

The first patient to our clinic our opening morning was, to my excitement, a mother in active labor wanting our assistance. My colleagues, two other nurse practitioner students with ER backgrounds, knew my desires and agreed the mother would be my patient. I initially thought I would be assisting Dr. Hale, however, Jack told me I would be delivering the baby. This was likely going to be my only opportunity this trip! I was so excited and equally as nervous, but knew I had a great teacher to lead me through the labor and delivery of this baby (or babies…you never know!). I reflected back on my maternity course in nursing school and asked Jack and the veteran nurses as many questions as I could think of. Dr. Jack was with me every step of the way and walked me through everything I needed to examine, perform, and communicate with the mom. The most memorable part was getting to cut the umbilical cord and later doing breastfeeding teaching with the mom. Breastfeeding is by far the most important education piece for new moms in Montalais, as they have very limited or no access to formula. 

Traveling to the FoH Montalais Clinic, functioning as a nurse practitioner student, was a life-changing opportunity and the birth of baby Mickenson is a memory I will always cherish!” – Jennah Haque, MSN-FNP student at Bellin College.

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