DOCare serves in Uganda
Posted: May 21, 2019
ATSU students in the DOCare club visited Uganda to provide medical and dental care to children in need. The trip was done in partnership with Power of a Nickel, an organization based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, that conducts medical mission trips in various countries. ATSU’s team consisted of students from ATSU-KCOM and ATSU-MOSDOH and was led by Stanley Grogg, DO, ’71.
Medical students performed screenings and triage, provided glasses to children with vision problems, and treated symptoms and diseases in conjunction with the pharmacy. Dental students watched and assisted a local dentist who was performing extractions, and assisted with patient intake, screenings, and intraoral exams. More than 1,000 patients were served, 90 percent of whom were children.
“The key to successful mission work is sustainability,” says Matt Freihofer, D2. “Power of a Nickel has a nine-year relationship with these underserved populations, and the sustainability of their aid, in conjunction with aid from other organizations, allows these populations to focus their energies on education and building their lives instead of suffering from disease.”