Pre-Med Medical Mission Trip - 2020

The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” — Mahatma Gandhi

Each summer, the George E. Schreiner '43 M.D. Pre-Medical Center at Canisius College hosts a medical mission trip to Central America. We have partnered with Niagara University to build our capacity to ensure sustained service to the communities with whom we partner. Students spend two weeks in impoverished communities assisting local physicians and dentists in running free medical clinics. Students also help in broader community health efforts. 

Through this experience, students gain valuable experience in the healthcare field while also learning about the history, culture, and socio-political-economic reality of the country in which they serve, where they also assist in public health work and local efforts in disease prevention. 

After a tumultuous history, Nicaraguans continue to face difficult challenges. We have served several wonderful communities in Nicaragua for many years. Currently the political situation is not stable and many Nicaraguans have sought refuge in Costa Rica where they have been welcomed into the country yet do not have access to the health system (the papers required are just too expensive). This year, we will again work with Nicaraguan immigrants and refugees residing in the slum community, La Carpio, and other areas around San Jose, Costa Rica. We will also host some clinics for the indigenous folks living on the Caribbean side of the country.

This program requires a high degree of personal maturity, responsibility, and a firm commitment to compassion and team building. Students participate in group reflections on the cross-cultural experience and each student's sense of vocation as a healer. Students also live with a local family part of the time to build solidarity and gain a better understanding of family dynamics and social relationships within Central American communities. 

We are entering our 10^th year of this medical mission with 136 student participants to date. We are proud of the lasting impact this experience has made on our past participants and we ask your support of those students hoping to join our 2020 team.