MEDICAL MISSION CAMP
You will spend four days serving at our pop-up medical camps. We may serve anywhere from 100-500 people at each camp. Efficiency and flexibility are vital skills to the success of these camps. Over the years, we have developed a system of stations that each patient travels through to receive care. Read below for a breakdown of each station and where you may be placed to serve.
Registration
At this station we gather each patient’s basic information (name, age, sex and chief complaint) and notate such information on a registration slip. The patient will take this registration slip through each subsequent station where our team will continue to notate information on this slip. This station is primarily run by students and non-medical personnel with a translator.
Vital Signs/Labs
Here we take the patient’s vital signs, finger-stick glucose and other labs which will be notated on the patient’s registration slip.
Finger-stick glucose checks are completed for all patients by registered nurses and students with previous experience in this skill.
Registered nurses and phlebotomists collect blood samples if ordered by a provider. We provide CBC testing and chemistry profile.
Providers
Here, we review the patient’s chief complaint, give a diagnoses, and recommend a plan of care. This station is primarily for physicians, physician associates and nurse practitioners paired with a physician licensed to practice medicine in India. Students will also have the opportunity to shadow and observe at this station.
EKG/Eye Exam/Dental Exam
These stations are optional according to the needs of each patient. Provider’s can issue a EKG request - this station is primarily run registered nurses. Eye exams and dental exams stations are another place where US based dentists, opthomalogists and students can serve along with dentists and opthamoligists licensed in India.
Pharmacy
After a patient has received a treatment plan, the patient will be given his/her medications as notated on their registration slip by the provider. Pharmacists, students, and non-medical personnel primarily serve at this station with a pharmacist licensed in India.
Exit Registration
Our last station, and one of our most important stations, is the exit registration where we gather information from the registration slips and record the data electronically for our medical report. Check out our medical reports HERE. This station is primarily run by students and non-medical personnel with a translator.
Meaningful Experiences
If you’re looking for an “instagrammable trip”, this may not be the experience for you, and that’s ok! The candidates we are looking for have a heart to serve and desire to immerse themselves into the culture. Meaningful experiences prioritizes deeper cultural immersion, authentic experiences, positive interactions with local communities, going beyond just taking photos to truly understand a place and it’s people.
While these activities differ from year to year, a standing tradition from the start of India Medical Mission has been Family Day! Family Day is a special time where our team visits a children’s home partnered with our organization. We gift each child a care package and our US based students share health education presentations.