Immigrant and Refugee
Service Opportunities
in the San Diego/Baja California Area
The following
article provides more information on the Flying Samaritans.
On
a mission to heal Baja's poor
Sick flock to see UCSD's Flying Samaritans
Samuel
Autman. The
San Diego Union - Tribune. San
Diego, Calif.: Apr
28, 2002. pg. B.1
ENSENADA
-- Juanita Escalante's children were sick, but she couldn't
afford a doctor. Her 1-year-old had a fever; her 8-year- old
had sharp pains in his mouth; and her 10-year-old's right ear
ached from having a cotton swab jammed deep into it.
Escalante thought she had nowhere to turn. Then
she heard about a group of doctors and University
of California San Diego
students providing free medical care at a community center on
the edge of Ensenada.
When a caravan of doctors and students arrived
on a recent Saturday morning, Escalante fought back tears. To
her, they were a band of angels.
One-year-old Sergio had an infection and got
the antibiotic he needed. Eight-year-old Fernando's mouth pain
was caused by cavities. The clinic does not offer dental care,
but at least she knew what was wrong. Ten-year-old daughter
Danya's ear was examined and found to not have suffered lasting
damage.
"I am so happy these people are doing this,"
Escalante said.
The clinic, now in its second year, is run by
UCSD student volunteers. They are called the Flying Samaritans
and are part of a larger organization with about a dozen chapters
in California, Arizona
and Baja California that offer medical care to
Baja's poor.
Some chapters travel by air. The UCSD group travels
by car.
People in Ensenada
have lined up by 7 a.m. for doctors who normally don't arrive
until 10 a.m. Most patients are children with ailments such
as a common cold and disorders such as cerebral palsy.
Once, sometimes twice a month, a dozen student
volunteers push aside their books and college life at UCSD and
head for Baja. They go whenever doctors are available.
o o o
Raj Chudasama, one of three students who helped
establish the clinic in Ensenada,
remembers well his first trip to Baja. It was to a Flying Sams
eye clinic in Tecate.
Most people came for cataract surgery or other
eye care, but some came with other medical needs because they
had no place else to go. Chudasama marveled at the time and
distances people would travel to be seen by a doctor -- two
or three hours by car, bus and even horse and buggy.
One encounter that day hooked him. A woman in
her late 60s or early 70s had waited in line for hours. She
told him, through a translator, that arthritis in her hands
prevented her from sewing.
"I had an emotional attachment because she
reminded me of my grandmother," Chudasama said. "I
felt like my grandmother would have been happy with me."
That encounter confirmed his desire to be a doctor,
not for big bucks or prestige, but rather so he could help people
get better. Chudasama has graduated from UCSD and has applied
to its medical school.
He liked the way the clinic's patients responded.
Even though he wasn't a doctor, he could help someone locate
a seat in the shade or offer them a drink of water while they
waited. They were so grateful.
Chudasama and students Lori Lamb and Ritesh Bhayani
got involved in the Palomar Flying Samaritans' eye clinic in
Tecate in 1999. It was there they met Emma Lencioni, an Ensenada
resident who drove families to the clinic from Ensenada.
Lencioni wanted to start an Ensenada clinic and the students were interested.
It took them two years to find a location and get the Mexican
state government's permission.
Students raise money for the clinic by selling
Flying Samaritan T- shirts and holding dances. They locate pharmaceutical
companies willing to donate supplies. Their biggest challenge
is finding doctors willing to help. Sometimes they make cold
calls to physicians listed in the phone book.
Most of the 150 members are pre-med or medical
students, hardly the type you would expect to regularly take
hours away from their studies.
Pat Griffith Sr., a volunteer with the Palomar
Flying Samaritans, has worked closely with the students and
seen the impact they have. He accompanied them on their recent
Saturday visit.
"They are the most amazing people,"
said Griffith, who lives in Escondido.
"They are dedicated, kind, wonderful and full of compassion.
They are the stars in the world."
o o o
Vists to the Ensenada
clinic give students a chance to work with patients and decide
whether medicine is the right field for them. But they said
they are learning much more.
Emily Dong, a pre-med student, said she learned
to appreciate how much she has and the importance of helping
others.
"I was not aware of the health system in
Mexico,"
Dong said. "The people we serve don't have access to health
care. When I first came down here, I was surprised to see the
impact we have. I was surprised by the difference we made."
On most trips, Dong and other students leave
for Ensenada at 7:15 in the
morning. They get there before the doctors and take patients'
blood pressure and compile the patients' medical histories.
They see people with diabetes, high blood pressure, stomach
aches, cancer, bone disorders, heartburn, cerebral palsy and
other ailments and disorders. Many of the students speak Spanish
and translate for patients.
In the waiting area on a recent Saturday, women
rocked children in their arms. Toddlers cried and fidgeted.
Older children giggled, ate potato chips and colored while waiting
to see a physician.
For patient Isabelle Hernandez, seeing a doctor
meant the difference between breathing easily or not.
Speaking through a translator, she told Dr. Mark
Wedel about her four episodes of bronchitis. She still had chills
and her bronchial tubes were inflamed. The last time, a doctor
prescribed a medication that caused an allergic reaction. It
contained sulfur. She told Wedel, who is from San Diego, that she's
also allergic to penicillin.
"Tell her she has a routine acute bronchitis
and will need to avoid sulfur and penicillin," Wedel said
to the translator.
Two students darted for an antibiotic in the
medicine cabinet that did not contain penicillin or sulfur,
and gave it to Hernandez. Medication in hand, Hernandez smiled
and said thanks before going on her way.
"It's a good help to the community,"
she said. "It's a tremendous social service to our society."
The students understand the clinic's limitations.
They are in early discussions with San
Jose Hospital,
down the road from the clinic, to use some of its lab equipment
and X-ray machines for free. The hospital has surgical rooms,
an emergency room, an intensive-care unit and a full array of
X-ray machines and other cutting-edge medical technology available
to those who can afford it.
It's a contrast to the building used for the
clinic, which needs new windows, doors and a major cleaning.
"Hopefully, we will be able to get more
participation with the Mexican government and establish a better
relationship with the nearby hospital," said Douglas Thompson,
a third-year medical student. "We want to be able to provide
more services."
