This trip to Laredo was awesome. We ate some great food and had a really great time providing a service to middle and high school boys.
Early Saturday morning, Dr. Fred Campbell met with us to discuss the sports physical and to answer our questions. Arriving at Mercy Ministry at 8 am, Sister Rosemary gave us a brief history of the Mercy Ministry as well as the purpose of our services that day. The local Rotary Club had donated its time and money to pay for the sport physicals that the young men needed but were unable to pay for. The Rotary Club members helped direct traffic as we student doctors set up at different stations – vitals, eye exam, and complete physical exam. Nurses Martha and Ana Laura were the resident health care staff helping us throughout the day.
Emma Rodriguez checks the weight of a patient.
Linda Pham examines the ear canal of a patient
Joseph Peters examines a patient's eyes
It was such a busy and vibrant atmosphere, and we were able to see 58 patients and complete their physicals by 1:30pm. Most of the patients were healthy overall, and we did hear some heart murmurs and had to refer some patients for further observation and treatment.
Everything went really smoothly and we were so happy to be able to help all of the young men in their athletic endeavors. We even had Amanda from the Center of Medical Humanities and Ethics to take pictures of all the student doctors in action. The student doctors on the trip had a great time bonding with each other and eating great food from Laredo, TX. Great job everyone!
Linda Pham
(Photos contributed by Amanda Evrard)
