Saving skin
Posted: August 19, 2013
“The number and types of diseases we saw was not what I was prepared for. What I read about is not what I saw. And I saw some devastating things,” says dermatologist G. Scott Drew, DO, FAOCD, ’87.
Dr. Drew is describing a January 2012 expedition with Passion to HealSM in which he joined 16 healthcare providers serving 11 vulnerable communities in rural Kenya for 10 days. When the team arrived at Baraka Health Center, they were astonished at the devastating skin conditions with which the locals were living.
The team visited several local schools, screening between 700-1,000 kids each day. They found that more than one-third suffered from a skin fungus. By the close of their trip, they had screened 3,700 Kenyans.
They encountered one 5-year-old girl with a severe blistering disease that affected her entire body. Because she had no access to care, the disease had taken a toll on her young body and had caused her education, social life, and family to suffer as well. Since many therapy options traditionally used in America were not available, the physicians were prompted to get creative with her treatment. Happily, by the time they left, she was better.
“We relieved human suffering with just that one episode,” Dr. Drew recalls. “We’ve gotten more than we’ve given. These people are happy and hopeful. It’s fulfilling and life altering. It’s depressing and exhilarating. And I would do it again in a heartbeat.”
Local Kenyan
The first dermatologist to ever set foot in Narok South District, Kenya, Dr. Drew is ecstatic about his responsibility with Passion to HealSM. The organization, sponsored by Medicis Pharmaceutical Corporation, makes several trips to the region each year. Between journeys, Dr. Drew continues to care for Kenyans by communicating via Facebook with clinicians currently there.
An energetic Dr. Drew, who practices in Marion, Ohio, “ … as different from Kenya as you can imagine,” loves his profession. A first generation college grad, he was mentored as a medical student to integrate the family nature of dermatology.
“It’s not just popping zits,” he says. “[My mentors] taught me what it was like to be an osteopathic husband and father.”
The passion Dr. Drew brings to each new endeavor is more than skin-deep. Recently an empty-nester, he has enthusiastically taken on a new role as chair of ATSU’s Board of Trustees. His calendar may be filling up, but as for future trips to Kenya–“Wild horses couldn’t keep me away,” he says.