Volunteers Help Treat 930 People in Six Hours
Roughly 930 people were treated during a six-hour period at the Wamper medical site in Papua New Guinea.
Roughly 930 people were treated during a six-hour period at the Wamper medical site in Papua New Guinea.
Project HOPE volunteer nurse, Maureen Kisicki stayed busy using her medical skills to take vitals on patients and get them directed to the right doctors on site. She also made sure to take some time to get to know the local people who came seeking medical help at the clinic. “I just really loved meeting the people in line, talking to them before they saw the doctor and learning about them,” she says. “They were really sweet, and even though we live continents away, we still have so much in common.”
HOPE volunteer Dr. Alan Jamison shared the same sentiments. “It was a very exciting and interesting day with the patients I saw today,” he says. Dr. Jamison treated all kinds of ailments, including a few patients with symptoms similar to Malaria. “The sad thing is there are not many specialists available in Wamper to help people with specific diseases.”
In addition to treating patients, Dr. Jamison also worked with local staff. “I had the privilege of working with the Wamper clinic’s head nurse, Patricia Mitel Gahanao, who has been here for about 28 years,” he says. “I was really impressed with how things are setup at the clinic the process for communicating important information about diseases like HIV, AIDS, TB and Malaria.”
Photos by Pacific Partnership 2011 Tech Sgt. Tony Tolley