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From left: Nicole Grossenburg, Katie Honz and Missy Yeska. |
They’re not sure what they’ll find in the town nearly wiped off the map by Hurricane Katrina, but they’re ready to lend a hand.
This weekend, fourth-year medical students Nicole Grossenburg of Sioux Falls, S.D., Katie Honz of Omaha and Missy Yeska of Norfolk will drive to Waveland, a coastal community of 7,000 about 35 miles east of New Orleans.
Their 2 1/2 week volunteer experience, which will include living in a tent and assisting health care teams with wound care, triage, immunizations and basic health care, will be invaluable, they said.
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Entries may be given to any Student Senate, Faculty Senate and American Medical Chapter member before Oct. 13. Entries should include a name, telephone number and e-mail address. Entries also will be accepted between 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. outside the Nebraska Cafe and Clarkson cafeteria on Friday, Sept. 30. |
“As students we have an incredible debt load, so we can’t donate financially, but we can give our time,” Honz said.
Grossenburg agreed. “It’s a unique opportunity and a way for us to give back,” she said.
The American Medical Student Association assigned the trio to Waveland, to assist in a clinic that sees about 80 patients a day. The students will receive rotation credit for their experience as part of their family medicine off-campus elective.
“It’s good preparation in how to handle emergency situations,” Honz said.
Yeska agreed. “We’ll learn how to deal without and cope with less than ideal circumstances,” she said.
Other senior medical students who are setting up similar experiences, should contact Paul Paulman, M.D., professor of family medicine, to arrange for academic credit.