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Beyond the Mission: Shaping the Nurse I Will Be

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As we prepare to head home, I sit here and reflect back on this whole experience, in complete awe. It has reshaped the way that I view nursing in so many ways. Ways that I will carry with me long after I get back home. Before coming on this trip, I thought about nursing primarily as clinical skills, assessments, and care plans. While those things are indeed essential, this experience has reminded me that nursing is also about adaptability, humility, and meeting patients where they are - physically, culturally, and also socially. Nursing is not only practiced in well-maintained hospitals, it exists wherever people need care, compassion, and advocacy.  Working in the different communities (Los Pilares and Toza) with limited resources showed me that good nursing does not depend on having the most advance technology ( at all ). Rather, it relies on strong assessment skills, creativity, teamwork, and a great commitment to the patient and their dignity. As I got to watch these four provi...
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Shaping Stone, Shaping Perspective

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Today's cultural day at the resort offered a different kind of learning experience - it was one that reminded me that understanding the culture of a community, is just as important as understanding their healthcare needs. We were given the opportunity to learn how to carve soapstone, and purchase some handmade Panamanian crafts and jewelry - giving us the opportunity to connect with the culture in a way that went beyond observation. It gave us all some time to pause, appreciate and to reflect on the people and traditions that help to shape this community.  I tried to demonstrate respect for the cultural differences by approaching the whole experience with curiosity and humility. Rather than just seeing this crafts and jewelry as souvenirs, I tried to understand the deeper meaning and the time that was spent. Just watching the man demonstrate the soapstone carving showed me the amount of patience and tradition that go into their work. Getting the opportunity to participate in that p...
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Growing Through Discomfort: Lessons from the Dental Clinic in Toza

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Today we worked a clinic in the Toza community; where I had the opportunity to work alongside the dentist who joined us. I was able to assist with tooth exactions and fluoride treatments. This day truly pushed me outside of my comfort zone, as I have never done any work in a dental environment - or with teeth. But it also helped to show me the kind of nurse that I am becoming.  As I reflect on the day, I realize that I am becoming the kind of nurse who is willing to step into unfamiliar and even uncomfortable situations, with humility and a great willingness to learn. Working in a dental setting was very different from the hospital or clinics that I have worked in previously (urology and plastic surgery). However, it still involved the core of nursing, compassion, patience and advocacy. Each of these patients trusted us to help relieve the pain that they were experiencing, and that responsibility felt both humbling and motivating.  There were different moments throughout the d...
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Behind the Blood Pressure Cuff: Stories from Triage in Los Pilares

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Today, we worked in the community of Los Pilares. I was assigned to work in triage - taking vitals and helping direct the patients to their next destination. While our tasks were to take blood pressures, measure height and weights - it became very obvious to me that these people, this community, they are more than the number; they each have a story to tell, and different sets of circumstances that shaped their current state of health.  One of the biggest health disparities that I observed during this clinic day was the limited access to healthcare that the community experiences. We were told by more than one person, that they rarely have the opportunity to see a doctor, unless a clinic like Global Brigades comes to their community. Many of these people are living with different chronic diseases, such as hypertension and joint pain, for months or years without any treatment or pain relief. Back home, in the United States, you can have you blood pressure checked at your doctor's offi...
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First Patients, First Lessons: Day One in the Clinic

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Today was our first day in clinic, with Global Brigades. The only way to describe today was overwhelming (but in the best way possible). I was so excited, yet nervous, when we first got there this morning and were getting everything set up. We have been talking about and preparing for this trip for months now, and it was all about to come together. Before we had finished setting up, there were so many people arriving - which really showed me that we were in the right place. Providing medical assistance to those who truly need it.  I was assigned to help in Charla today. This was the room for health education - where the patients went after they seen a doctor or dentist. While we shared important information about dental hygiene with all of them, some of the most meaningful moments had nothing to do with that. It was all the small moments that happened because of that.  One of my favorite parts of the day was getting to spend time with all of these children - and see the smiles...
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A Walk Through the Community: Stories Behind the Health Surveys

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Today we traveled to a smaller community, to gather some information/statistics for Global Brigades. Going into this trip, I was most worried about walking through the community and completing health surveys. I do not speak Spanish (besides the very basic), so this task felt very daunting. How could I approach these people, that I didn't know, and talk with them about such personal topics - in a language I am not fluent in?!  Thankfully, the survey was available for download on our personal devices in both English and Spanish. This was very helpful with trying to learn how to communicate properly and effectively with this population, while also asking the specific questions that we were wanting to know. We also had a nurse and paramedic with us, who were fluent in Spanish and acted as an interpreter for us - they were a HUGE help!  There were not many people out in the community, as it was a Monday and a majority of them were probably at work - and the children at school. Our ...
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Full Days Of Travel Are Not For The Weak

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Saturday evening, we went to sleep unsure of what the next day of traveling would bring for us. We got up before the sun came up, and piled onto a shuttle bus to get to the airport. Security was intense, but we all made it safe and sound on the plane and off we went.  We were given omelets, sausage and potatoes on the plane (which we were very grateful for - because we were starving! ). While most of us were happy to leave the cold of Peoria, IL (or Chicago, technically) weather for the heat in Panama City - this wasn't for vacation, this was to visit different communities in Panama, and learn from them while also providing any medical assistance or education that we can!  Our initial flight left Chicago, IL around 8:30am and we got to our final destination (La Iguana Resort) about 7:30/8:00pm. While getting here may have taken all day, the true adventure is just getting started!  Global Brigades arrives in Panama!  After we arrived at the resort and had dinner, we w...
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