WKU’s International Multi-disciplinary Public and Clinical Health Team (IMPACT) recently provided much-needed medical and dental services to the village of Gales Point, Belize.
WKU's IMPACT team of students and faculty recently visited Belize.
The team of 17 students and seven faculty members represented the disciplines of Nursing, Dental Hygiene, Public Health, Environmental Health Science and Women’s Studies.
The villagers within Gales Point rely on WKU staff and students for their dental and medical needs. Many have never stepped inside a doctor’s office or hospital during their lifetime.
While in Gales Point, students and faculty set up a clinic for three days and saw 55 out of the 65 households within the village. Students also surveyed the villagers about their water use and tested several water sources. One afternoon, students held a Health Fair and educated community members on how to live safer and healthier lives.
The WKU students who participated in the Jan. 7-14 trip were Jordan Norris of Bowling Green; Molly Calico of Cincinnati; Rasmi Nair of Maharashtra, India: Mary Beth Wimsatt of Louisville; Jody Thompson of New Deal, Tenn.; Rachel Cusick of Louisville; Sarah Burton of White Mills; Michelle Allison of Owensboro; Wendi King of Tompkinsville; Elizabeth Ralph of Scottsville; Heather Rasmusson of Morgantown; Amanda Gaspar of Bowling Green; Breeze King of Tompkinsville; Laura Payne of Goodlettsville, Tenn.; Heather Woolwine of Greenbrier, Tenn.; Jill Norris of Bowling Green; and Linwood Strenecky of Louisville.
While WKU holds a social contract with the village, the utmost hope and goal of WKU’s IMPACT is to help empower the people of Gales Point to become a self-sustaining village.
For information on the IMPACT in Belize, contact Dr. Ritchie Taylor at (270) 745-8975 or ritchie.taylor@wku.edu.
