The Gift of Time

Because I am interested in integrating or joining a similar program at South Alabama, I took extra notes on the interactions with volunteers and those in the community this week. As you can probably imagine, the volunteers probably take away just as much, if not more from the experience, when comparing the health benefit received by the community from this brigade. 

I think the most tangible benefit to the people in the community was the medical attention they received. There were patients suffering from easily treatable diagnosis, like dehydration. Others were walking around with infected and decaying teeth. As mentioned yesterday, one patient had an undiagnosed AAA. Most of these patients only see the doctor when the brigades come, so there is a definite medical benefit. 

Although there is no denying the benefit of these medical brigades, one can’t help but question the sustainability of our efforts. Certainly, we are on the right track with the opening of CMHH full time. The employees work hard to continue the education and basic healthcare that the brigades bring in. However, with the rehabilitation sciences, there is usually no continued presence once the brigades leave.  I was able to schedule some of this patient’s for follow up this time. But, I really think that our efforts could be better sustained with a full time PT at CMHH.

From a volunteer’s perspective, I don’t think most people expect something when they go on these brigades, other than students looking for some clinical experience. Most people that go on these brigades say they look at things differently when they return home. For example, some people say they begin to question whether they really need certain material things in the States.  Consistently, though, most people tell me that I know this experience changed my life in a positive manner, but I just can’t articulate a specific thing. Perhaps, what we take from these experiences are very individualized and we will only figure out with time.

Speaking of time, my theory is that the greatest gift that we give or receive in life is each others time.  Perhaps more than the medical attention we give, I think the time we spend with a patient is most beneficial. Our brigade did a great job of spending time with patients and yet somehow we were able to see a large quantity of patients. Going forward, I think we should never lose sight of the benefit of spending quality time with our patients on these brigades. Maybe this is why the home visits appeared to be so successful this week.