I was cleaning out my junk box today and happened to come across an old issue of The New Physician magazine I receive from the American Medical Student Association. I was just about to toss it when I noticed the article ‘The Global Resume’. Immediately I plopped down on the couch and proceeded to get some insight to how admissions view these global excursions to offer medical need to those who need it in third world countries especially considering that I have always wanted to go to Latin America on a medical mission. However, the article turned out to be completely different than expected.
“ I think some students…get on these trips and go beyond their level of expertise…This would be totally unethical to perform that on a population that might be indigent or disadvantaged- or any population for that matter” says Dr. Michael Kavan. I was surprised to find out that some—definitely not all—admissions have indifferent attitudes towards medical missions and similar things. The main issue tends to be the length of the trip itself. Jane Cary, a director of science and technology advising at Williams College warns that “’Medical schools are cynical about brief experiences that anyone with enough money can participate in’”. In other words, a one week excursion in Haiti 1) isn’t enough time to fully understand what it means to be of aid in a third world country and 2) If you have enough money, you can go. This is honestly disappointing to me. I know many pre-med students who have done these excursions and come back with phenomenal stories about how they aided a community medically and performed these tasks that in the States only licensed professionals can do. Anyone with ambitions of practicing medicine would love to have that opportunity. That said, there are of course those students whose intentions are questionable. Putting a medical excursion on a list isn’t guaranteed to get you into medical school especially if your passion for it is lacking. Performing a pap smear in Guatemala may sound enticing to pre-med students, but sends off ethical alarms to admissions committees.
As I continued reading another point arose. Many students are running to third world countries to help them when our own country has many parts that need help. Going to help a community is Panama is wonderful and, yes, helpful to them, but go across the highway and there are also 3 children who haven’t gotten their shots up to date, aren’t able to bathe properly, and are just unable to see a doctor. To paraphrase what Jane Cary said in the article, since students will be practicing in the United States it is also important that they get a feel on how US medicine is conducted and then if they would like to expand their horizons, they could go abroad. It isn’t negatively looked upon to help locally or abroad and both hold about equal weight, but the intention must be apparent. It’s the passion that matters.