What inspired you to travel abroad?
Since I was a young girl, I have been drawn to traveling and exploring the world. However, as I grew older, I realized I was drawn to more than just “exploring the world.” I was drawn to engulfing myself in another culture, embracing different world views, and engaging in travel that truly brought about positive change in my life. I knew I wanted to see more, experience more, and do more from a global perspective.
I traveled to Spain, France, and England before my senior year of high school. Although that trip was extraordinary, it lacked the cultural understanding and humanitarian work that I desired to do. My soul felt like a wilting plant that needed watering in order to bounce back and grow taller than ever expected. The “water” that my soul needed was not the glitz and glam of tourism, but instead, the soul-to-soul human interaction between culture, race, religion, and socioeconomic status.
My desire to engage with people and movements that were bigger than myself is the reason I sought out an opportunity to go abroad and potentially fill this hole that my soul craved.
A quote from Mahatma Gandhi that has embodied the desires I had felt to travel abroad and give myself to others is, “the best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” I wanted to embody this quote through my search for a program that would not only take me abroad, but remold my whole being in the process.
The desire to travel abroad has always been at the core of my being, but the inspiration to serve, embrace, and understand others was what pushed me to do more than just “go abroad.”
Pre-surgery picture for a C-Section with the OB/GYN ward.
Why did you choose International Medical Aid?
During the fall semester of my sophomore year in college, I knew it was time to start looking for job opportunities for the following summer. At the time, I honestly wasn’t really looking for an internship or program abroad. It just wasn’t something that I thought was possible or feasible.
However, during the search jobs, my mom stumbled upon International Medical Aid. My mom and I are extremely close and she knew how much I desire to help others, travel abroad, and embrace a new culture. After reading over the website, my mom and dad had sat me down one night to discuss my summer plans. At the time, I had no plans, job offers, and no direction with what to do.
When my parents brought up IMA and the opportunity that their program might present for me, it was almost like the pieces fell right into place. IMA’s program and purpose embodied everything I was looking for in an internship opportunity.
I felt as if it was impossible to say that it wasn’t meant to be. I would not only gain clinical medical experience, but I would be able to immerse myself into the culture, history, and lives of the Kenyan people and their country.
What was your favorite part about Kenya?
My favorite part about Kenya, and specifically my host city of Mombasa, was the genuine love I always felt from the local people. It didn’t matter if I had just met someone, or had met them ten times, they always shared warmth towards me.
I never once felt ostracized for being foreign, not speaking Swahili, or simply for having a different skin color than most of the population. In Kenya, it felt as if these “boundaries” were limitless and simple human connection was prioritized. I felt as if I had been blind to how genuine human connection is supposed to work, but was enlightened to all of its beauty by the Kenyan people.
What made your experience abroad extraordinary?
To put it simply, my experience went beyond, and then some, past what is ‘usual, regular, or customary’ in terms of knowledge expansion and life experience. It’s hard to summarize how my experience felt extraordinary while abroad in Kenya.
Was it the visits to local communities and schools where I taught hundreds of children how to brush their teeth and wash their hands? Was it the patients that I held hands and laughed with?
For me, there are too many extraordinary moments to choose one synopsis of what made the entire trip that way, but that’s what makes it extraordinary on its own. The internship had so many moments of awe, and that’s what made it unforgettable and extraordinary.
How did the local program staff support you throughout your program?
Local staff support throughout my program was genuinely what made this program so special to me. I grew incredibly close with multiple staff members during my stay in Kenya. They embraced me with open arms and continuously reminded me that I could push myself beyond my limits to grow into the person I wanted to be.
I never once felt as if I couldn’t lean on them, laugh with them, or learn from them. I didn’t expect this relationship and bond with my program mentors, but it was absolutely crucial to my personal growth while in Kenya. Not a day passed without one of them checking in on me and reminding me to continue to laugh, smile, and brighten the day of those around me.
The local staff and mentors both forced me out of my comfort zone, while supporting me every step of the way.
I am forever grateful to the IMA local staff and mentors not only for the role they played with my internship experience, but with my personal growth process while there.
My final day in Kenya and completion of the program.
What's one thing you wish you would have done differently during your time abroad?
I was in Kenya for four weeks, but I wish that I could have stayed for longer. I wouldn’t change anything or do anything differently while I was there because I believe I fully immersed myself in the experience.
I thought spending four weeks halfway across the world would leave me yearning to come home at the end, but instead, it left me full of joy, hope, and humility that I wish could have lasted even longer in Kenya. I felt as if my time there wasn’t up when I had to leave, and I wish to this day, that I would’ve had more time halfway across the world.
Describe what a typical day in your life abroad looked like.
A typical day in my life abroad in Kenya consisted of constant growth. During the week when we interned at Coast General Provincial Hospital (CGPH), we shadowed doctors for about 5-6 hours a day. I rotated weekly and shadowed in the internal medicine ward, the OB/GYN ward, the comprehensive care unit (or dermatology), and the emergency medicine ward.
During my day in whichever ward I was assigned, I shadowed physicians during their morning rounds, sat in on patient consultations, and took notes whenever I could to absorb the amount of critical information being thrown my way.
Once my shift at the hospital would end, I returned to the residence to prepare for evening activities. These included community-based hygiene clinics, orphanage visits/volunteering, local culture experiences, or an extra shift at the hospital. Even though my days in Kenya were consistently busy, I would’ve never experienced the multi-faceted approach to this internship in Kenya both professionally and personally without it.
What did you enjoy doing in your free time abroad?
When I had free time in Kenya (which was few and far between) I tried to engage in a local activity. It depended on the day whether this included visiting the local mall, eating a meal at a local restaurant, or volunteering in the local community. I enjoyed discovering the local culture and day-to-day activities within the community, but I also enjoyed volunteering as much as I could.
What type of accommodation did you have? What did you like best about it?
I lived in an apartment-style housing complex. We all had at least one roommate per room, with about 10-20 of us staying within one building at any given time. The amazing cooking staff provided meals to us three times a day in one of the apartment buildings.
I absolutely loved the aspect of having roommates while in Kenya, as well as having other interns in our building. This made the time spent there feel more comfortable and safe. I grew to absolutely love my roommate, as well as create lifelong friendships with the other interns. We were able to share our own personal experiences with each other during the program, as well as learn from each other in the process.
What is one thing every future participant should know about your program before their program begins?
One thing every single future participant should know about this program before they begin their journey would be to consciously keep yourself in an open-minded state. You will be pushed, if not shoved, out of your comfort zone while you are in Kenya. If you go into this internship with a closed mind and strict expectations, you will never get out of it what you should and could.
You have to go into this experience with an open-mind and be willing to be comfortable with the uncomfortable moments. You will see things that will shock you, and feel things that will break you. However, you must look at every experience as a chance to grow.
You will never get this experience or this time back. Embrace every single moment and live in the present. So, I guess to answer this question in short, my biggest piece of advice while in the program is to
consciously remind yourself to choose to be comfortable with the uncomfortable.
Would you recommend International Medical Aid to others? Why?
I would recommend IMA to others without second thought. This was a life-altering and mindset-shifting experience, but it never would have been without such a well-run program and supportive staff. This program is strategically structured so that you may get the absolute most out of your time spent in Kenya, professionally and personally.
Not only is the program itself set up so strategically, but the staff is professionally equipped to run such a program, as well as emotionally prepared to support us interns while we are there. There was never a time that I felt a sense of disorganization or lack of support in both the program and staff.
Outside of CPGH where my internship was conducted.
What do you feel the biggest benefit of traveling abroad is?
I feel the biggest benefit of traveling abroad is engulfing yourself in a culture, a people, and a community that you have never experienced before. However, I believe the benefits don't just come from your experience while you are there, but from the changes that occur in your heart that you will take home with you. The impactful moments that happened while abroad should be carried with you after the fact and resonate in your life thereafter.
Now that you're home, how has your time abroad impacted your life?
My time abroad in Kenya has impacted every single aspect of not only my life, but my perspective on life. I never knew how life-altering this trip abroad would be, and how the benefits from this experience would seep into every day of my life from then on.
My time abroad took my privilege of being a white, middle-class American, and shook it to the core. I truly learned what my privilege looked like, and how blinding that can be when you want to grow. When I traveled abroad, I was met with humility, but also with forgiveness. I was able to understand my privilege, forgive myself for my ignorance towards it, and embrace a humbling step forward.
I think about my experiences in Kenya each and every day of my life. I think about the smiling faces of the nurses, the comfort of the hands that held mine while they laid in their hospital beds, and the laughs of the children playing with my blonde hair. I think about the moments. Moments of joy. Moments of sorrow. Moments of gratitude. Moments of forgiveness. I like to say that I didn’t know what true joy felt like, until I went to Kenya.
I didn’t know what it felt like to embrace somebody with genuine love, even if I had just met them. I didn’t know what it felt like to stand in your pre-travel abroad self, and watch yourself reshape into someone that is humble, patient, kind, and genuine. Kenya taught me what the word “genuine” truly meant.
What does meaningful travel mean to you?
I think meaningful travel can encapsulate many different perspectives depending on the person. However, for me, meaningful travel means that you are actively and consciously choosing to embrace the experiences you will run into when you travel. This means you will embrace the complexity of a culture, or the differences in religious beliefs, or simply engage with the local population in such a way that you want to put yourself in their shoes as much as possible.
Tourism is great, but meaningful travel is so much more than visiting somewhere and leaving without a change happening within yourself. If you want to change your mindset, your potential medical practices, or your tendencies when traveling abroad, you must first decide to apply the concept of “meaningful travel” into every day you are there.
It’s so easy to travel abroad and only return with pictures to show for it. It’s much harder to travel abroad and return with a change in character, outlook, and soul.
