newspeace winter 2011

6
physicians for peace h WINTER/SPRING 2011 IT means THE WORLD. Volunteering in a rural African country for nearly three months wouldn’t be a dream come true for everyone, but that’s exactly what an 11-week mission in Malawi represented for Marsha Scott, an Atlanta-based nurse practitioner. “I’ve wanted to work in women’s health in Africa for years,” said Scott, who volunteered in the southeast African nation last fall for Physicians for Peace. “I had a wonderful experience. The people in Malawi were warm and welcoming, and very happy to receive new information.” Still, dreaming of volunteering and actually volunteering are two different things, and Malawi, like other African countries, faces real healthcare challenges. While Scott was in the country, she noted that many clinics, relying on a constantly changing supply of donated medications, have a tendency to over-prescribe or prescribe incorrectly. Both scenarios are problematic for public health. As Scott worked alongside health workers, observing patient care and providing training and clinical support, she also gained a deeper understanding of some of the world’s most pressing issues of maternal and child health – including sex education, disease prevention and prenatal care – and the critical need for health worker education and training. “Healthcare professionals learn so much by using their hands, eyes and ears, but I didn’t, for instance, see many hands-on exams,” Scott said. “Those hands-on exams are important, and they should be happening. Guided questions could also lead to better diagnoses, and that’s a method of questioning that can be easily taught.” Scott volunteered in Malawi thanks to a partnership between Physicians for Peace and Adventist Health System. Physicians for Peace is currently exploring follow-up missions to Malawi. COMMUNITY-LEVEL INTERVENTIONS AND MIDWIFERY PROGRAMS ARE KEY AREAS OF PHYSICIANS FOR PEACE’S MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH PROGRAMS, AND FOR GOOD REASON. ACCORDING TO A JANUARY 2011 ARTICLE IN THE GUARDIAN, “THE 10,000 PAID COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKERS IN MALAWI (ARE) THE COUNTRY’S ‘MOST POWERFUL WEAPON’ IN IMPROVING CHILD HEALTH.”

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Physicians for Peace Newsletter Quarterly: Bridging the Healthcare Gap

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500 E Main Street, Suite 900Norfolk, VA 23510

Would you like to give online?Go to our website: www.physiciansforpeace.org

IT m e a n s THE WORLD. physicians for peace h W I N T E R / S P R I N G 2011

IT m e a n s THE WORLD.

Volunteering in a rural African country for nearly three months

wouldn’t be a dream come true for everyone, but that’s exactly what an 11-week mission in Malawi represented for Marsha Scott, an Atlanta-based nurse practitioner.

“I’ve wanted to work in women’s health in Africa for years,” said Scott, who volunteered in the southeast African nation last fall for Physicians for Peace. “I had a wonderful experience. The people in Malawi were warm and welcoming, and very happy to receive new information.”

Still, dreaming of volunteering and actually volunteering are two different things, and Malawi, like other African countries, faces real healthcare challenges. While Scott was in the country, she noted that many clinics, relying on a constantly changing supply of donated medications, have a tendency to over-prescribe or prescribe incorrectly. Both scenarios are problematic for public health. As Scott worked alongside health workers, observing patient care and providing training and clinical support, she also gained a deeper understanding of some of the world’s most pressing issues of maternal and child health – including sex education, disease prevention and prenatal care – and the critical need for health worker education and training.

“Healthcare professionals learn so much by using their hands, eyes and ears, but I didn’t, for instance, see many hands-on exams,” Scott said. “Those hands-on exams are important, and they should be happening. Guided questions could also lead to better diagnoses, and that’s a method of questioning that can be easily taught.”

Scott volunteered in Malawi thanks to a partnership between Physicians for Peace and Adventist Health System. Physicians for

Peace is currently exploring follow-up missions to Malawi.

ChildFund International Awards Physicians for Peace $500,000 Grant

John Hollinshead, PT, has volunteered twice in Haiti, including a January 2011

mission with Physicians for Peace.

John Hollinshead

Physical Therapist, Santa Maria Valley Physical Therapy Group

My mission:

I fi rst volunteered in Haiti through Project Medishare in Port-au-Prince in June 2010. I returned with Physicians for Peace in January 2011, along with my coworkers, Tom Meenzhuber and Todd Martin. We each have our own story about volunteering. For me, it’s like a contract. The patients in Haiti are putting forth the effort; I want to help them reach their goals. The status of things is always in fl ux there, so as a volunteer, you need to be fl exible and willing to do what is called for within the realm of physical therapy, and sometimes beyond. I feel we have an innate need to reach out to others to instill hope and lend a hand. In doing so, we fulfi ll a promise to ourselves and those we assist. Being there for one another might be that simple.

ChildFund International recently awarded a grant of nearly $500,000 to Physicians for Peace to support our work in Haiti. Among other initiatives, the grant will help increase the capacity of prosthetic providers; support the launch of a national prosthetics and orthotics training and certifi cation program for Haitian technicians; provide medical equipment and assistive devices and empower healthcare providers to better address the psycho-social needs of disabled children.

“Working with Physicians for Peace means that children and others with disabilities will receive the support they need,” said Anne Lynam Goddard, president and CEO of ChildFund International.

Physicians for Peace has a history of collaborative partnerships in Haiti, having worked extensively with in-country organizations, including St. Vincent’s Center for Handicapped Children, which will be a focus of the grant. Immediately after the earthquake in January 2010, Physicians for Peace became a founding member of the Haitian Amputee Coalition, a public-private partnership with Albert Schweitzer Hospital, the Hanger Ivan R. Sabel Foundation, the Catholic Medical Mission Board, the Harold and Kayrita Anderson Family Foundation and

the Shepherd Center, among other groups. Hanger and the Catholic Medical Mission Board are both sub-grantees of the ChildFund award and will partner with Physicians for Peace to provide services.

“I will never forget the children in Haiti who kept smiling despite being orphaned and injured,” said Nancy Avena, one of 15 physical therapists who volunteered

for Physicians for Peace in Haiti last year.

Non-Profi t Org.U S Postage

PAID

Norfolk, VAPermit No. 2015

COMMUNITY-LEVEL INTERVENTIONS AND MIDWIFERY PROGRAMS ARE KEY AREAS OF PHYSICIANS FOR PEACE’S MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH

PROGRAMS, AND FOR GOOD REASON. ACCORDING TO A JANUARY 2011 ARTICLE IN THE GUARDIAN, “THE 10,000 PAID COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKERS

IN MALAWI (ARE) THE COUNTRY’S ‘MOST POWERFUL WEAPON’ IN IMPROVING CHILD HEALTH.”

A six-person team of Physicians for Peace volunteers provided education and training to 400 healthcare professionals in India last November. Led by Dr. Ed Karotkin, board chairman of Physicians for Peace, the team taught neonatal and pediatric life-saving techniques and served as guest lecturers at an international conference on pediatric diseases in Nagpur.

“We follow the same textbooks, we have the same procedures, but it’s the guidance of an experienced person that makes a lot of difference in what we do,” said Dr. Nilofer Mujawar, professor of pediatrics at the N.K.P. Salve Institute of Medical Science in Nagpur. “Physicians for Peace is doing great work.”

For team member Dr. Chris Foley, the chance to work with pediatric residents in India was especially meaningful. “These young folks hold a special place in my heart due to their unbridled enthusiasm,” he said. “They are the generation of physicians in India that will revolutionize healthcare in this country.”

Bank of America Charitable Foundation funded the mission to India.

The Universidad Nacional Autónoma in León (UNAN-León) took a step toward establishing Nicaragua’s fi rst academic program for dental assistants when it hosted a two-day conference on the profession in January. Sandra Mueller, CDA, of Norfolk, Va., participated in the conference as a lecturer.

“I talked about how we can support one another and how we can work as a team,” said Mueller, who helped in the collaborative development of the program’s macro-curriculum during a July 2010 mission. “Dental assistants should see themselves as educators, transferring knowledge to the patient, helping the patient achieve not only better dental hygiene, but a healthier way of living – really, a healthier life.”

Currently, practicing dental assistants in most of Central America are apprenticed into the profession without formal training or licensure. More than 60 dental assistants came to León for the conference, a turnout that underscored the enthusiasm for this education, said Dr. Humberto Altamirano Reyes, dean of UNAN-León. The dental assistant program launches in March. More than 25 students already are registered.

UNAN-León Launches Country’s First Dental Assistant Program

FEB. 11-16:San Jose, Costa Rica – Walking Free

FEB. 13-17:Santiago, Dominican Republic – Burn Care

MARCH 17 – APRIL 2Deschapelles, Haiti – Walking Free

MARCH 19 – 24:San Jose, Costa Rica – Burn Care

MARCH 31 – APRIL 9:Deschapelles, Haiti – Walking Free

APRIL 7-23:Deschapelles, Haiti – Walking Free

MAY 5 – 21:Deschapelles, Haiti – Walking Free

ODU Students See Physicians for Peace Programs in Action

Three physical therapy graduate students from Old Dominion University (ODU) in Norfolk, Va., participated in an educational exchange in the Dominican Republic last fall – the seventh exchange of its kind in the past 10 years.

On their mission, Mara Hemmerly, Brittany Spear, Brittany Clements and PFP volunteer leader and ODU professor Gail Grisetti, Ph.D., met with Dr. Ramón López, Physicians for Peace’s Director of the Americas, to learn about the Walking Free and Resource Mothers programs. For the students, the mission provided insight on physical therapy practices outside of the U.S.

“This trip helped to transform my perspective of physical therapy as a profession,” Spear said. “It made me re-examine the role that physical therapy plays in general medicine and how essential it is to each patient’s well-being.”

When Charlie Henderson Jr., the Hampton Roads market president for Bank of America, fi rst heard about Physicians for Peace at an informal get-together he was “sold on the idea that night.”

And he didn’t let that idea slip away. Convinced of the potential for a new partnership, Henderson’s next step was to determine how Bank of America could support Physicians for Peace. The timing for collaboration proved to be perfect.

“Bank of America had just acquired Merrill Lynch, and because of our global presence, it made sense for the Bank of America Charitable Foundation to fi nd a way to work with a great organization like Physicians for Peace,” Henderson said. “Your mission fi t perfectly with what we wanted to do.”

In September, Henderson presented a $25,000 grant to Physicians for Peace. The money funded a Maternal and Child Health mission to India. (Read more about that mission in this issue of News Peace.) Both groups look forward to future partnerships.

FACT FIND MISSIONS SERVE AS A CRUCIAL FIRST STEP IN MANY PHYSICIANS FOR PEACE PARTNERSHIPS, ALLOWING TEAM MEMBERS TIME TO ASSESS NEEDS AND EVALUATE WHETHER

CORE PROGRAMS CAN ADDRESS THOSE NEEDS. RECENT FACT FIND MISSIONS INCLUDE:

Look for information on follow-up missions at www.physiciansforpeace.org.

Team members identifi ed specifi c healthcare needs in Niger State that align with PFP programs, including Maternal and Child Health. Physicians for Peace planned the Fact Find at the request of the government, and Niger State funded the mission.

Physicians for Peace volunteers were impressed by the facilities, personnel and services of La Junta De Benefi cencia in Guayaquil. The team collaboratively identifi ed the possibility for future partnership through Burn Care or Maternal and Child Health missions.

During the January Fact Find, volunteers identifi ed ways to support enhanced care for burn victims. A six-hour rehabilitation workshop brought together more than 50 healthcare professionals for demonstrations in splinting techniques and compression mask fabrication.

Volunteer Gail Grisetti, Ph.D., facilitated an educational exchange with three of her students, Brittany Spear, Mara Hemmerly and Brittany Clements. Grisetti was honored as a Health Care Hero in February 2011 by Inside

Business in Norfolk, Va.

More than 60 dental assistants came to León for a conference on the profession.

A Physicians for Peace team in India taught neonatal and pediatric life-saving techniques at local hospitals and served as guest lecturers at an international conference.

Nigeria Ecuador The Philippines

Thanks to a successful Fact Find, women

and children in Niger State may benefi t

from future missions.

Don Buckley, Ph.D., the vice chairman of Physicians for Peace’s board, was a member of the volunteer Fact

Find team in Ecuador.

Dr. Tom Gampper and Leslie Baruch, OTR/L, completed a Fact Find mission for Burn Care in the

Philippines in January.

Name: Emily Tinsley, RN, MSNed

Occupation: Burn Care Educator

How long have you been a volunteer?

Since 2004

What inspired you to get involved? I have always enjoyed teaching, and I was immediately attracted to PFP’s efforts toward sustainability and independence.

What motivates you to keep

volunteering? I get tremendous personal satisfaction from sharing my knowledge and skills. I also feel an obligation to give what I have gained from my experience and education in order to improve the health of others.

How are you involved beyond missions? I co-founded the Global Nurse Education Committee and am a member of the Medical Operations Committee. I’m also involved in volunteer recruitment and as a donor.

Can you share a favorite Physicians

for Peace story? As the surgeons from Nicaragua and PFP began their day on a burn reconstruction surgical mission in Nicaragua, I realized there was not a designated recovery room for patients. We had several days and many surgeries ahead, so gathering forces with the local nurses, we created a safe place for patients to recover. Our combined efforts were a dance of human connections. That week, I gained a higher understanding of what nursing is all about. Our mission was not about PFP coming into a place to fi x problems, or to be superior, or even to just teach. We were there to work in partnership with our host country to improve the health of their people and to carry what was learned far beyond those few days. This mission defi ned and clarifi ed my understanding of PFP and was the beginning of many more years and missions.

Charlie Henderson Jr., the Hampton Roads market president for Bank of America, presents a $25,000 check to Edward A. Heidt Jr., immediate past board chairman of

Physicians for Peace.

India Team Builds Healthy Partnerships

I get tremendous personal satisfaction from

sharing my knowledge and skills.

SUPPORT PFP: Sponsorship opportunities are available for our 2011 Gala in October. Contact Laurie Harrison,

[email protected].

A six-person team of Physicians for Peace volunteers provided education and training to 400 healthcare professionals in India last November. Led by Dr. Ed Karotkin, board chairman of Physicians for Peace, the team taught neonatal and pediatric life-saving techniques and served as guest lecturers at an international conference on pediatric diseases in Nagpur.

“We follow the same textbooks, we have the same procedures, but it’s the guidance of an experienced person that makes a lot of difference in what we do,” said Dr. Nilofer Mujawar, professor of pediatrics at the N.K.P. Salve Institute of Medical Science in Nagpur. “Physicians for Peace is doing great work.”

For team member Dr. Chris Foley, the chance to work with pediatric residents in India was especially meaningful. “These young folks hold a special place in my heart due to their unbridled enthusiasm,” he said. “They are the generation of physicians in India that will revolutionize healthcare in this country.”

Bank of America Charitable Foundation funded the mission to India.

The Universidad Nacional Autónoma in León (UNAN-León) took a step toward establishing Nicaragua’s fi rst academic program for dental assistants when it hosted a two-day conference on the profession in January. Sandra Mueller, CDA, of Norfolk, Va., participated in the conference as a lecturer.

“I talked about how we can support one another and how we can work as a team,” said Mueller, who helped in the collaborative development of the program’s macro-curriculum during a July 2010 mission. “Dental assistants should see themselves as educators, transferring knowledge to the patient, helping the patient achieve not only better dental hygiene, but a healthier way of living – really, a healthier life.”

Currently, practicing dental assistants in most of Central America are apprenticed into the profession without formal training or licensure. More than 60 dental assistants came to León for the conference, a turnout that underscored the enthusiasm for this education, said Dr. Humberto Altamirano Reyes, dean of UNAN-León. The dental assistant program launches in March. More than 25 students already are registered.

UNAN-León Launches Country’s First Dental Assistant Program

FEB. 11-16:San Jose, Costa Rica – Walking Free

FEB. 13-17:Santiago, Dominican Republic – Burn Care

MARCH 17 – APRIL 2Deschapelles, Haiti – Walking Free

MARCH 19 – 24:San Jose, Costa Rica – Burn Care

MARCH 31 – APRIL 9:Deschapelles, Haiti – Walking Free

APRIL 7-23:Deschapelles, Haiti – Walking Free

MAY 5 – 21:Deschapelles, Haiti – Walking Free

ODU Students See Physicians for Peace Programs in Action

Three physical therapy graduate students from Old Dominion University (ODU) in Norfolk, Va., participated in an educational exchange in the Dominican Republic last fall – the seventh exchange of its kind in the past 10 years.

On their mission, Mara Hemmerly, Brittany Spear, Brittany Clements and PFP volunteer leader and ODU professor Gail Grisetti, Ph.D., met with Dr. Ramón López, Physicians for Peace’s Director of the Americas, to learn about the Walking Free and Resource Mothers programs. For the students, the mission provided insight on physical therapy practices outside of the U.S.

“This trip helped to transform my perspective of physical therapy as a profession,” Spear said. “It made me re-examine the role that physical therapy plays in general medicine and how essential it is to each patient’s well-being.”

When Charlie Henderson Jr., the Hampton Roads market president for Bank of America, fi rst heard about Physicians for Peace at an informal get-together he was “sold on the idea that night.”

And he didn’t let that idea slip away. Convinced of the potential for a new partnership, Henderson’s next step was to determine how Bank of America could support Physicians for Peace. The timing for collaboration proved to be perfect.

“Bank of America had just acquired Merrill Lynch, and because of our global presence, it made sense for the Bank of America Charitable Foundation to fi nd a way to work with a great organization like Physicians for Peace,” Henderson said. “Your mission fi t perfectly with what we wanted to do.”

In September, Henderson presented a $25,000 grant to Physicians for Peace. The money funded a Maternal and Child Health mission to India. (Read more about that mission in this issue of News Peace.) Both groups look forward to future partnerships.

FACT FIND MISSIONS SERVE AS A CRUCIAL FIRST STEP IN MANY PHYSICIANS FOR PEACE PARTNERSHIPS, ALLOWING TEAM MEMBERS TIME TO ASSESS NEEDS AND EVALUATE WHETHER

CORE PROGRAMS CAN ADDRESS THOSE NEEDS. RECENT FACT FIND MISSIONS INCLUDE:

Look for information on follow-up missions at www.physiciansforpeace.org.

Team members identifi ed specifi c healthcare needs in Niger State that align with PFP programs, including Maternal and Child Health. Physicians for Peace planned the Fact Find at the request of the government, and Niger State funded the mission.

Physicians for Peace volunteers were impressed by the facilities, personnel and services of La Junta De Benefi cencia in Guayaquil. The team collaboratively identifi ed the possibility for future partnership through Burn Care or Maternal and Child Health missions.

During the January Fact Find, volunteers identifi ed ways to support enhanced care for burn victims. A six-hour rehabilitation workshop brought together more than 50 healthcare professionals for demonstrations in splinting techniques and compression mask fabrication.

Volunteer Gail Grisetti, Ph.D., facilitated an educational exchange with three of her students, Brittany Spear, Mara Hemmerly and Brittany Clements. Grisetti was honored as a Health Care Hero in February 2011 by Inside

Business in Norfolk, Va.

More than 60 dental assistants came to León for a conference on the profession.

A Physicians for Peace team in India taught neonatal and pediatric life-saving techniques at local hospitals and served as guest lecturers at an international conference.

Nigeria Ecuador The Philippines

Thanks to a successful Fact Find, women

and children in Niger State may benefi t

from future missions.

Don Buckley, Ph.D., the vice chairman of Physicians for Peace’s board, was a member of the volunteer Fact

Find team in Ecuador.

Dr. Tom Gampper and Leslie Baruch, OTR/L, completed a Fact Find mission for Burn Care in the

Philippines in January.

Name: Emily Tinsley, RN, MSNed

Occupation: Burn Care Educator

How long have you been a volunteer?

Since 2004

What inspired you to get involved? I have always enjoyed teaching, and I was immediately attracted to PFP’s efforts toward sustainability and independence.

What motivates you to keep

volunteering? I get tremendous personal satisfaction from sharing my knowledge and skills. I also feel an obligation to give what I have gained from my experience and education in order to improve the health of others.

How are you involved beyond missions? I co-founded the Global Nurse Education Committee and am a member of the Medical Operations Committee. I’m also involved in volunteer recruitment and as a donor.

Can you share a favorite Physicians

for Peace story? As the surgeons from Nicaragua and PFP began their day on a burn reconstruction surgical mission in Nicaragua, I realized there was not a designated recovery room for patients. We had several days and many surgeries ahead, so gathering forces with the local nurses, we created a safe place for patients to recover. Our combined efforts were a dance of human connections. That week, I gained a higher understanding of what nursing is all about. Our mission was not about PFP coming into a place to fi x problems, or to be superior, or even to just teach. We were there to work in partnership with our host country to improve the health of their people and to carry what was learned far beyond those few days. This mission defi ned and clarifi ed my understanding of PFP and was the beginning of many more years and missions.

Charlie Henderson Jr., the Hampton Roads market president for Bank of America, presents a $25,000 check to Edward A. Heidt Jr., immediate past board chairman of

Physicians for Peace.

India Team Builds Healthy Partnerships

I get tremendous personal satisfaction from

sharing my knowledge and skills.

SUPPORT PFP: Sponsorship opportunities are available for our 2011 Gala in October. Contact Laurie Harrison,

[email protected].

A six-person team of Physicians for Peace volunteers provided education and training to 400 healthcare professionals in India last November. Led by Dr. Ed Karotkin, board chairman of Physicians for Peace, the team taught neonatal and pediatric life-saving techniques and served as guest lecturers at an international conference on pediatric diseases in Nagpur.

“We follow the same textbooks, we have the same procedures, but it’s the guidance of an experienced person that makes a lot of difference in what we do,” said Dr. Nilofer Mujawar, professor of pediatrics at the N.K.P. Salve Institute of Medical Science in Nagpur. “Physicians for Peace is doing great work.”

For team member Dr. Chris Foley, the chance to work with pediatric residents in India was especially meaningful. “These young folks hold a special place in my heart due to their unbridled enthusiasm,” he said. “They are the generation of physicians in India that will revolutionize healthcare in this country.”

Bank of America Charitable Foundation funded the mission to India.

The Universidad Nacional Autónoma in León (UNAN-León) took a step toward establishing Nicaragua’s fi rst academic program for dental assistants when it hosted a two-day conference on the profession in January. Sandra Mueller, CDA, of Norfolk, Va., participated in the conference as a lecturer.

“I talked about how we can support one another and how we can work as a team,” said Mueller, who helped in the collaborative development of the program’s macro-curriculum during a July 2010 mission. “Dental assistants should see themselves as educators, transferring knowledge to the patient, helping the patient achieve not only better dental hygiene, but a healthier way of living – really, a healthier life.”

Currently, practicing dental assistants in most of Central America are apprenticed into the profession without formal training or licensure. More than 60 dental assistants came to León for the conference, a turnout that underscored the enthusiasm for this education, said Dr. Humberto Altamirano Reyes, dean of UNAN-León. The dental assistant program launches in March. More than 25 students already are registered.

UNAN-León Launches Country’s First Dental Assistant Program

FEB. 11-16:San Jose, Costa Rica – Walking Free

FEB. 13-17:Santiago, Dominican Republic – Burn Care

MARCH 17 – APRIL 2Deschapelles, Haiti – Walking Free

MARCH 19 – 24:San Jose, Costa Rica – Burn Care

MARCH 31 – APRIL 9:Deschapelles, Haiti – Walking Free

APRIL 7-23:Deschapelles, Haiti – Walking Free

MAY 5 – 21:Deschapelles, Haiti – Walking Free

ODU Students See Physicians for Peace Programs in Action

Three physical therapy graduate students from Old Dominion University (ODU) in Norfolk, Va., participated in an educational exchange in the Dominican Republic last fall – the seventh exchange of its kind in the past 10 years.

On their mission, Mara Hemmerly, Brittany Spear, Brittany Clements and PFP volunteer leader and ODU professor Gail Grisetti, Ph.D., met with Dr. Ramón López, Physicians for Peace’s Director of the Americas, to learn about the Walking Free and Resource Mothers programs. For the students, the mission provided insight on physical therapy practices outside of the U.S.

“This trip helped to transform my perspective of physical therapy as a profession,” Spear said. “It made me re-examine the role that physical therapy plays in general medicine and how essential it is to each patient’s well-being.”

When Charlie Henderson Jr., the Hampton Roads market president for Bank of America, fi rst heard about Physicians for Peace at an informal get-together he was “sold on the idea that night.”

And he didn’t let that idea slip away. Convinced of the potential for a new partnership, Henderson’s next step was to determine how Bank of America could support Physicians for Peace. The timing for collaboration proved to be perfect.

“Bank of America had just acquired Merrill Lynch, and because of our global presence, it made sense for the Bank of America Charitable Foundation to fi nd a way to work with a great organization like Physicians for Peace,” Henderson said. “Your mission fi t perfectly with what we wanted to do.”

In September, Henderson presented a $25,000 grant to Physicians for Peace. The money funded a Maternal and Child Health mission to India. (Read more about that mission in this issue of News Peace.) Both groups look forward to future partnerships.

FACT FIND MISSIONS SERVE AS A CRUCIAL FIRST STEP IN MANY PHYSICIANS FOR PEACE PARTNERSHIPS, ALLOWING TEAM MEMBERS TIME TO ASSESS NEEDS AND EVALUATE WHETHER

CORE PROGRAMS CAN ADDRESS THOSE NEEDS. RECENT FACT FIND MISSIONS INCLUDE:

Look for information on follow-up missions at www.physiciansforpeace.org.

Team members identifi ed specifi c healthcare needs in Niger State that align with PFP programs, including Maternal and Child Health. Physicians for Peace planned the Fact Find at the request of the government, and Niger State funded the mission.

Physicians for Peace volunteers were impressed by the facilities, personnel and services of La Junta De Benefi cencia in Guayaquil. The team collaboratively identifi ed the possibility for future partnership through Burn Care or Maternal and Child Health missions.

During the January Fact Find, volunteers identifi ed ways to support enhanced care for burn victims. A six-hour rehabilitation workshop brought together more than 50 healthcare professionals for demonstrations in splinting techniques and compression mask fabrication.

Volunteer Gail Grisetti, Ph.D., facilitated an educational exchange with three of her students, Brittany Spear, Mara Hemmerly and Brittany Clements. Grisetti was honored as a Health Care Hero in February 2011 by Inside

Business in Norfolk, Va.

More than 60 dental assistants came to León for a conference on the profession.

A Physicians for Peace team in India taught neonatal and pediatric life-saving techniques at local hospitals and served as guest lecturers at an international conference.

Nigeria Ecuador The Philippines

Thanks to a successful Fact Find, women

and children in Niger State may benefi t

from future missions.

Don Buckley, Ph.D., the vice chairman of Physicians for Peace’s board, was a member of the volunteer Fact

Find team in Ecuador.

Dr. Tom Gampper and Leslie Baruch, OTR/L, completed a Fact Find mission for Burn Care in the

Philippines in January.

Name: Emily Tinsley, RN, MSNed

Occupation: Burn Care Educator

How long have you been a volunteer?

Since 2004

What inspired you to get involved? I have always enjoyed teaching, and I was immediately attracted to PFP’s efforts toward sustainability and independence.

What motivates you to keep

volunteering? I get tremendous personal satisfaction from sharing my knowledge and skills. I also feel an obligation to give what I have gained from my experience and education in order to improve the health of others.

How are you involved beyond missions? I co-founded the Global Nurse Education Committee and am a member of the Medical Operations Committee. I’m also involved in volunteer recruitment and as a donor.

Can you share a favorite Physicians

for Peace story? As the surgeons from Nicaragua and PFP began their day on a burn reconstruction surgical mission in Nicaragua, I realized there was not a designated recovery room for patients. We had several days and many surgeries ahead, so gathering forces with the local nurses, we created a safe place for patients to recover. Our combined efforts were a dance of human connections. That week, I gained a higher understanding of what nursing is all about. Our mission was not about PFP coming into a place to fi x problems, or to be superior, or even to just teach. We were there to work in partnership with our host country to improve the health of their people and to carry what was learned far beyond those few days. This mission defi ned and clarifi ed my understanding of PFP and was the beginning of many more years and missions.

Charlie Henderson Jr., the Hampton Roads market president for Bank of America, presents a $25,000 check to Edward A. Heidt Jr., immediate past board chairman of

Physicians for Peace.

India Team Builds Healthy Partnerships

I get tremendous personal satisfaction from

sharing my knowledge and skills.

SUPPORT PFP: Sponsorship opportunities are available for our 2011 Gala in October. Contact Laurie Harrison,

[email protected].

500 E Main Street, Suite 900Norfolk, VA 23510

Would you like to give online?Go to our website: www.physiciansforpeace.org

IT m e a n s THE WORLD. physicians for peace h W I N T E R / S P R I N G 2011

IT m e a n s THE WORLD.

Volunteering in a rural African country for nearly three months

wouldn’t be a dream come true for everyone, but that’s exactly what an 11-week mission in Malawi represented for Marsha Scott, an Atlanta-based nurse practitioner.

“I’ve wanted to work in women’s health in Africa for years,” said Scott, who volunteered in the southeast African nation last fall for Physicians for Peace. “I had a wonderful experience. The people in Malawi were warm and welcoming, and very happy to receive new information.”

Still, dreaming of volunteering and actually volunteering are two different things, and Malawi, like other African countries, faces real healthcare challenges. While Scott was in the country, she noted that many clinics, relying on a constantly changing supply of donated medications, have a tendency to over-prescribe or prescribe incorrectly. Both scenarios are problematic for public health. As Scott worked alongside health workers, observing patient care and providing training and clinical support, she also gained a deeper understanding of some of the world’s most pressing issues of maternal and child health – including sex education, disease prevention and prenatal care – and the critical need for health worker education and training.

“Healthcare professionals learn so much by using their hands, eyes and ears, but I didn’t, for instance, see many hands-on exams,” Scott said. “Those hands-on exams are important, and they should be happening. Guided questions could also lead to better diagnoses, and that’s a method of questioning that can be easily taught.”

Scott volunteered in Malawi thanks to a partnership between Physicians for Peace and Adventist Health System. Physicians for

Peace is currently exploring follow-up missions to Malawi.

ChildFund International Awards Physicians for Peace $500,000 Grant

John Hollinshead, PT, has volunteered twice in Haiti, including a January 2011

mission with Physicians for Peace.

John Hollinshead

Physical Therapist, Santa Maria Valley Physical Therapy Group

My mission:

I fi rst volunteered in Haiti through Project Medishare in Port-au-Prince in June 2010. I returned with Physicians for Peace in January 2011, along with my coworkers, Tom Meenzhuber and Todd Martin. We each have our own story about volunteering. For me, it’s like a contract. The patients in Haiti are putting forth the effort; I want to help them reach their goals. The status of things is always in fl ux there, so as a volunteer, you need to be fl exible and willing to do what is called for within the realm of physical therapy, and sometimes beyond. I feel we have an innate need to reach out to others to instill hope and lend a hand. In doing so, we fulfi ll a promise to ourselves and those we assist. Being there for one another might be that simple.

ChildFund International recently awarded a grant of nearly $500,000 to Physicians for Peace to support our work in Haiti. Among other initiatives, the grant will help increase the capacity of prosthetic providers; support the launch of a national prosthetics and orthotics training and certifi cation program for Haitian technicians; provide medical equipment and assistive devices and empower healthcare providers to better address the psycho-social needs of disabled children.

“Working with Physicians for Peace means that children and others with disabilities will receive the support they need,” said Anne Lynam Goddard, president and CEO of ChildFund International.

Physicians for Peace has a history of collaborative partnerships in Haiti, having worked extensively with in-country organizations, including St. Vincent’s Center for Handicapped Children, which will be a focus of the grant. Immediately after the earthquake in January 2010, Physicians for Peace became a founding member of the Haitian Amputee Coalition, a public-private partnership with Albert Schweitzer Hospital, the Hanger Ivan R. Sabel Foundation, the Catholic Medical Mission Board, the Harold and Kayrita Anderson Family Foundation and

the Shepherd Center, among other groups. Hanger and the Catholic Medical Mission Board are both sub-grantees of the ChildFund award and will partner with Physicians for Peace to provide services.

“I will never forget the children in Haiti who kept smiling despite being orphaned and injured,” said Nancy Avena, one of 15 physical therapists who volunteered

for Physicians for Peace in Haiti last year.

Non-Profi t Org.U S Postage

PAID

Norfolk, VAPermit No. 2015

COMMUNITY-LEVEL INTERVENTIONS AND MIDWIFERY PROGRAMS ARE KEY AREAS OF PHYSICIANS FOR PEACE’S MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH

PROGRAMS, AND FOR GOOD REASON. ACCORDING TO A JANUARY 2011 ARTICLE IN THE GUARDIAN, “THE 10,000 PAID COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKERS

IN MALAWI (ARE) THE COUNTRY’S ‘MOST POWERFUL WEAPON’ IN IMPROVING CHILD HEALTH.”

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IT m e a n s THE WORLD. physicians for peace h W I N T E R / S P R I N G 2011

IT m e a n s THE WORLD.

Volunteering in a rural African country for nearly three months

wouldn’t be a dream come true for everyone, but that’s exactly what an 11-week mission in Malawi represented for Marsha Scott, an Atlanta-based nurse practitioner.

“I’ve wanted to work in women’s health in Africa for years,” said Scott, who volunteered in the southeast African nation last fall for Physicians for Peace. “I had a wonderful experience. The people in Malawi were warm and welcoming, and very happy to receive new information.”

Still, dreaming of volunteering and actually volunteering are two different things, and Malawi, like other African countries, faces real healthcare challenges. While Scott was in the country, she noted that many clinics, relying on a constantly changing supply of donated medications, have a tendency to over-prescribe or prescribe incorrectly. Both scenarios are problematic for public health. As Scott worked alongside health workers, observing patient care and providing training and clinical support, she also gained a deeper understanding of some of the world’s most pressing issues of maternal and child health – including sex education, disease prevention and prenatal care – and the critical need for health worker education and training.

“Healthcare professionals learn so much by using their hands, eyes and ears, but I didn’t, for instance, see many hands-on exams,” Scott said. “Those hands-on exams are important, and they should be happening. Guided questions could also lead to better diagnoses, and that’s a method of questioning that can be easily taught.”

Scott volunteered in Malawi thanks to a partnership between Physicians for Peace and Adventist Health System. Physicians for

Peace is currently exploring follow-up missions to Malawi.

ChildFund International Awards Physicians for Peace $500,000 Grant

John Hollinshead, PT, has volunteered twice in Haiti, including a January 2011

mission with Physicians for Peace.

John Hollinshead

Physical Therapist, Santa Maria Valley Physical Therapy Group

My mission:

I fi rst volunteered in Haiti through Project Medishare in Port-au-Prince in June 2010. I returned with Physicians for Peace in January 2011, along with my coworkers, Tom Meenzhuber and Todd Martin. We each have our own story about volunteering. For me, it’s like a contract. The patients in Haiti are putting forth the effort; I want to help them reach their goals. The status of things is always in fl ux there, so as a volunteer, you need to be fl exible and willing to do what is called for within the realm of physical therapy, and sometimes beyond. I feel we have an innate need to reach out to others to instill hope and lend a hand. In doing so, we fulfi ll a promise to ourselves and those we assist. Being there for one another might be that simple.

ChildFund International recently awarded a grant of nearly $500,000 to Physicians for Peace to support our work in Haiti. Among other initiatives, the grant will help increase the capacity of prosthetic providers; support the launch of a national prosthetics and orthotics training and certifi cation program for Haitian technicians; provide medical equipment and assistive devices and empower healthcare providers to better address the psycho-social needs of disabled children.

“Working with Physicians for Peace means that children and others with disabilities will receive the support they need,” said Anne Lynam Goddard, president and CEO of ChildFund International.

Physicians for Peace has a history of collaborative partnerships in Haiti, having worked extensively with in-country organizations, including St. Vincent’s Center for Handicapped Children, which will be a focus of the grant. Immediately after the earthquake in January 2010, Physicians for Peace became a founding member of the Haitian Amputee Coalition, a public-private partnership with Albert Schweitzer Hospital, the Hanger Ivan R. Sabel Foundation, the Catholic Medical Mission Board, the Harold and Kayrita Anderson Family Foundation and

the Shepherd Center, among other groups. Hanger and the Catholic Medical Mission Board are both sub-grantees of the ChildFund award and will partner with Physicians for Peace to provide services.

“I will never forget the children in Haiti who kept smiling despite being orphaned and injured,” said Nancy Avena, one of 15 physical therapists who volunteered

for Physicians for Peace in Haiti last year.

Non-Profi t Org.U S Postage

PAID

Norfolk, VAPermit No. 2015

COMMUNITY-LEVEL INTERVENTIONS AND MIDWIFERY PROGRAMS ARE KEY AREAS OF PHYSICIANS FOR PEACE’S MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH

PROGRAMS, AND FOR GOOD REASON. ACCORDING TO A JANUARY 2011 ARTICLE IN THE GUARDIAN, “THE 10,000 PAID COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKERS

IN MALAWI (ARE) THE COUNTRY’S ‘MOST POWERFUL WEAPON’ IN IMPROVING CHILD HEALTH.”