I recently had the opportunity to travel to Honduras with an interprofessional team of healthcare providers to work with patients in underserved areas.
I was one of three Duke Doctorate of Physical Therapy (DPT) second-year students on the trip supervised by Faculty Development Resident Courtney Jeffries, PT, DPT, NCS. We were welcomed into one of the most rural communities in the mountains, El Naranjo, and a less rural community near Copan, La Laguna. The nursing and MD students evaluated and treated what they could, and they referred patients with pain to us for physical therapy.
Many people in Honduras work physically demanding jobs, including fieldwork using machetes, lifting in agricultural employment, lifting their children in the home, and doing laundry by hand. We educated them on safe lifting and body mechanics while working and provided exercises to decrease pain from poor posture. Many patients experienced orthostatic hypotension, so we explained why it occurs and taught them methods to reduce their symptoms.
People walked from hours away to receive care before we started in the mornings and would stay all day hoping to be seen. Their trust in us and patience with my lack of Spanish-speaking skills was touching! I connected with many children while we were there, despite them only knowing Spanish and me knowing English. I learned that laughs and smiles connect people across cultures and language barriers. I've always wanted to work with patients in underserved areas, but seeing the need in person made my passion for rural and global health grow immensely. I'm thankful that Duke University and the Duke DPT program allowed me this fantastic opportunity.
