Journal of Community Medicine & Health Education
Open Access

Abstract

This reflective account analyses the experiences of two nurse practitioners from the UK, who joined a team of physicians from the USA to volunteer in rural primary care settings in the Dominican Republic (DR) and borders of Haiti for one week. The article discusses the medical treatment provided by the volunteers within the context of current evidence and an overview of the primary care and healthcare system in this developing country. Experiences of treating patients with medical conditions seen during the practitioners recent trip to the Dominic Republic in 2014, is compared to common medical conditions that present in primary care of the more developed countries. There is an overview of current health statistics in terms of hypertension, diabetes, immunisations and mother and child health in the Dominic Republic with some statistics comparing these conditions in the more developed countries such as USA and UK. The key objectives are: To determine the impact of engaging globally with primary care services in less developed countries by the volunteer healthcare professional and the people they treat; and to identify demonstrable disparities in primary care in poorly developed countries to that of the UK and USA. Target audience are General practitioners, community healthcare workersn and Nurse practitioners. The PowerPoint presentation provides an overview of healthcare in the Dominican Republic. Results were obtained from government statistics and a review of the literature was done. This is then compared to the healthcare statistics of the developing world.

Biography

Jeshni Amblum-Almer is senior lecturer teaching on modules designed to train primary care practitioners into advanced roles. I also volunteer internationally, providing free primary care treatments and services in rural villages of countries such as Haiti, Dominic Republic and Tanzania. As a nurse practitioner working in primary care settings, the volunteer experiences provides the opportunity to compare healthcare in developed countries to that of the developing country and reflect on the role of the volunteer. It also gives general practitioners and those working in primary care an insight into healthcare of developing countries and provides some statistical comparisons to common healthcare conditions in the UK. A brief discussion is provided on diabetes, hypertension, immunization programmes, mother and child health. The importance of engaging patients and their community to ensure concordance of treatment and responsibility for health is reinforced.

Email: Jeshni.Amblum-Almer@city.ac.uk