By Emily McMason
Sometimes, acting locally means within the 774 square miles of Thurston County. But sometimes, acting locally means packing up a mini-Olympia medical community in stuffed suitcases and travelling nearly 3,500 miles to provide care in a small Haitian village.
Dr. Devin Sawyer, the program director at Providence Medical Group – St. Peter Family Medicine Residency Program, has made such a trip seven times. Twice a year he and his team trek to the same village to treat the neediest of the needy. Considering that Haiti has been referred to as ‘a nightmare gone bad’, what does it take to make real, sustainable change in such a place? Dr. Sawyer explains, “This is not a single intervention. We’re returning each time to the same region. We’ve made a commitment to it, a commitment to the people of these villages.”
Each trip to the village of Grand Boulage results in the treating of 1,200-1,400 patients. By returning to the same place “we get to know the locals, the translators, the community. Once I got there you get infected in a good way. It gets in your blood.”
It is true that the conditions are difficult. But Dr. Sawyer finds deep medical need and warm, generous people whose biggest concerns are their children and education. “They cope better than we do in Western culture. The scope of what they know is limited. Their exposure [to media] is non-existent. They lead a simpler life,” he comments.
Dr. Sawyer’s work is organized through the non-denominational relief organization “Friends of Haiti” and is supported by Providence St. Peter Hospital. “Friends of Haiti” is fully supported by volunteers, ensuring that 98% of donations are spent creating opportunities for meeting the medical needs of seven Haitian villages.
Providence St. Peter’s local support is crucial as well. Providing grant money for family practice residence physicians allows them to travel, bringing much needed medical care and supplies to places such as Guatemala and Nepal, as well as Haiti.
Additionally, Dr. Sawyer’s trips are considered teaching time by Providence. The timing of Providence’s donations means that physicians’ professional lives are impacted at the beginning of their careers, changing the arc of their medical paths.
As Dr. Bethany Sweet explains, “I have gone to Haiti twice now and it was such a great experience. I immediately was able to reflect on how blessed we are to live in a country where healthcare is available and was humbled by the joy the Haitians have with life in general despite not having much in ways of material things. The complete trust and faith they have in you is frightening at times when you are working with limited supplies and conditions where you have to jerry rig equipment such as IV poles and other tools to treat, but the love they showed, their laughter, their bright eyes was worth every minute. What a great experience to serve your fellow human beings in need, and through that service, show them that they matter, we are concerned about them, and we love them. I would go again in a heartbeat.”
Providing care half a world away impacts local patients as well. Dr. Sawyer reflects that professionally “I return much more immune to time constraints. I see one patient every 3 to 4 minutes in Haiti.” Once home, he recognizes the luxury of spending more time with each patient, not feeling rushed by a preset schedule. It has taken the edge off of the professional pressure, providing him with a different perspective.
Personally, he has been impacted by the work as well. “Haiti is a depressing place if you allow yourself to become depressed. There are little to no resources. But if you meet the people, they are not stressed. I learn about myself through them. It’s a very sobering experience. It provides time out from work here. There is a sense of relief. It is very centering for me. My priorities get reset.”
Providence supports its physicians both as they act locally, and as they carry that to action on a global scale. One patient, one doctor at a time creates change in both places.
To learn more about and contribute to Providence St. Peter Foundation, please visit http://washington.providence.org/donate/st-peter-foundation/.
To act locally, please contact Dr. Devin Sawyer to volunteer during the 6-8 weeks prior to the trips to help the team gather, sort and pack supplies.
Interested in participating? You can apply through Friends of Haiti at http://friendsofhaiti-gb.com/.
