Caregivers travel to Southeast Asia to educate medical staff in rural clinics

Lindsay Post Aug 5, 2019

Intermountain caregivers, WSU students and faculty, and local clinic staff in Southeast Asia.

A group of Intermountain caregivers recently traveled to remote Southeast Asia to help combat infant mortality and teach clinical staff in rural Cambodia and Thailand about life-saving medical care for children and infants. The group was part of a Weber State University global health class and included nurses and respiratory therapists from Intermountain Medical Center, McKay-Dee Hospital, Logan Regional Hospital, Park City Hospital, Primary Children's Hospital, Sevier Valley Hospital, and Utah Valley Hospital.

Perry Gee, RN, PhD, nurse scientist at Intermountain and adjunct assistant professor at Weber State and the University of Utah, traveled with the caregivers as a faculty member. He says the clinics they visited had no windows or even doors and were located hours into the jungle in small villages with few resources. When the group visited in May, it was nearly 100 degrees with 90 percent humidity, no air conditioning, and often no electricity.

"The Intermountain caregivers were incredible," says Perry. "They dove right in and learned so much. On the first day we had more than 650 people show up to wait to be seen. We saw all of them that afternoon, with just as many showing up the next day."

Perry says the group showed the local medical professionals how to do neonatal resuscitation with the supplies they have on hand.

"They have very high infant mortality rates," he says. "Our goal was to educate the medical professionals at the rural clinics about neonatal resuscitation and show them how to do it themselves. For example, if an infant is having trouble breathing, they'll give up on it. But we know if you give the baby a little extra support by initiating neonatal CPR or providing extra oxygen and bubble continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), it might survive and get better the next day. At the end of the trip they credited us with helping to save more than 100 infants."

The caregivers donated a CPAP machine to each clinic. They also offered well-child checks while working with interpreters who are local medical students or physicians.

"In these areas you can't just go to a hospital and get care unless you pay up front," Perry says. "Plus, the rural clinics are so far away, they're really all these people have access to for their care, so education is crucial."

Laurel Duncan, a respiratory therapist at McKay-Dee says, "Although communication was limited, I realized laughter and smiles are a universal language and I made it my goal while doing the well-child checks to always get and give a smile."

Rachel Jones, RN, from Primary Children Hospital, says it was an incredible experience. "I was able to make a lot of new connections on this trip. It was a great opportunity."

Perry says the Intermountain Supply Chain contributed items to donate, such as backpacks and bags, with plans to donate more items in the future. The group also donated new stethoscopes and first aid kits, which the local caregivers appreciated.

"I personally hope we do more of these trips with Intermountain," says Perry." It's an amazing experience for these caregivers to share what they know and save lives."