One of the best kept secrets in Caribbean Medical Schools | Trinity School of Medicine | Community service

Last month, the World Pediatric Project returned to St. Vincent to provide cardiology services to the Eastern Caribbean pediatric patient population. As is always the case, Trinity students were with them, lending a hand and gaining invaluable experience. 

Earlier this month, Kid Companions visited their young friends at the St. Benedict Children's Home on St. Vincent. Each trip has a theme, with carnivals, arts and crafts, and field day games being popular choices among students and residents alike. Today's introduced a new and exciting variable for the kids: a well stocked and adaptability-inclusive water balloon fight. 

For the past decade and a half, The World Pediatric Project (WPP), has been conducting general and specialized surgical missions to St. Vincent.  For the very first time, there was a visit explicitly to perform craniofacial procedures for Eastern Caribbean pediatric patients in need.

The new team was lead by pediatric plastic and craniofacial surgeon Dr. Jennifer Rhodes of the Children's Hospital of Richmond at VCU.  She was supported by anesthesiologist Dr. Seamus Dore, plastic surgeon Dr. Franklin Lew, and OR nurse Molly McCabe.  The team’s focus was to evaluate and provide care for children with complex head and facial anomalies, and to follow up cases of children seen by previous surgical teams.  Joining them in triage, prep, OR, and recovery, were Trinity 5th term students.

Earlier this month, the World Pediatric Project (WPP) held its first mission for 2019 in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.  Its focus was on general pediatric surgery with Dr. Jeffrey Lukish, pediatric surgeon from Children’s National Hospital in Washington DC as team leader. 

For the unaware, the WPP offers surgical and diagnostic care to children in the Eastern Caribbean and has been actively working in St. Vincent and the Grenadines since 2002. Trinity School of Medicine students are frequently in the mix with them in a volunteer/learning capacity. This mission was no different, with Trinity students taking part, re-dedicating the school to clinical education and community service.  The busy visit was a productive one. On consultation day alone, forty-one local children, and an additional fifteen from neighboring islands, were seen by Trinity students and the visiting team of surgeons. 

Ten years ago, Trinity School of Medicine opened its doors and welcomed its small charter class. Those students are now alums, practicing as fellows and attendings, and changing lives across the US and Canada. This week, with the close of 2018 and our decade anniversary, we look back on what makes Trinity such a good option for so many students and celebrate the coming of the next ten years. 

Late last month, Trinity held its 4th annual charity 5k in conjunction with the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Medical Association (SVGMA). The route, going from the Arnos Vale Playing Field to the National Lotteries Tennis Court in Kingstown, was full of walkers and runners enjoying the lower temps on a rainy Sunday. The event involved everything from fierce competition to 3.1 miles of laughter for fun-runners and culminated with the presentation of a check for $9,520 from Trinity to the SVGMA. Read on for a gallery, a race report, and the future of another successful Trinity-student initiative. 

Earlier this month, a group of second year Trinity students and faculty physician-supervisors traveled to Georgetown, the most northerly town on St. Vincent. They worked with the Rotary Club of St. Vincent to take part in a Village Doctor Exercise, bringing medical care to under-served communities in the small island nation. Trinity students have worked with the Rotary in this capacity for years, as the event aligns the school's culture of global health outreach and clinical experience. Read on to learn about what student responsibilities entailed and what both they and faculty thought of the day.

Earlier this month, the Trinity student organization "Kid Companions" held their final event for the 2018 summer term at the St. Benedict Children’s Home and Orphanage. The end of the term is a transitional period at Trinity, as fifth term students head to clinical clerkships in Baltimore right as a new group of students begin at the school. To ease the transition, both current and newly elected executive boards of the Kid Companions traveled together to the St. Benedict Children’s Home in Georgetown. We sat down with members Andrea Bodale, Clara Bil, and president Sam Brosman.

Mid-summer is Carnival season in St. Vincent & the Grenadines, and at this time of year, the streets are packed with visitors and locals enjoying the cultural experience that is "Vincymas." Against this backdrop, Trinity's American Medical Students Association (AMSA) chapter held a series of clinics in the Vincentian capital city of Kingstown. The clinics provided health checks and continued the ongoing national project of addressing the two primary chronic health concerns in St. Vincent: hypertension and diabetes. Read on for student insights, local comments, and a gallery of our students in action in this vibrant time!

Earlier this month, the Trinity student group Kid Companions had their most recent visit the Bread of Life Orphanage and the St. Benedict Children's Home to hold the tri-annual carnival for the residents of both facilities. 

The Bread of Life Orphanage is a home for Vincentian orphans with HIV and AIDS. The St. Benedict Children's Home serves local orphans with a wide array of special needs. Kid Companions strives to bring additional light and consistency into the residents' lives, through both adaptive play at regular carnivals and through material donations, as well as labor at the sites themselves. This particular carnival represented the culmination of several ongoing projects to upgrade the games and prizes for the events, as well as some extra donation efforts. Read on for the full story and for a short gallery of the day's fun.