A long-running tradition at American University of the Caribbean School of Medicine (AUC), Community Action Day (CAD) is a semesterly occurrence led by student organizations that partner with Sint Maarten schools, non-government organizations, the Ministry of Public Health, and civic groups to make a difference in the communities where our students and colleagues live, study and work.
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During the Summer 2023 semester, the year in which CAD celebrates its 15th anniversary at AUC, CAD brought together nearly 300 AUC students and colleagues to support Sint Maarten community members in various volunteer and support activities.
“It’s a chance for students to demonstrate their leadership on behalf of their community,” said Natalie Humphrey, PhD, assistant dean of community engagement at AUC. “These opportunities to give back refuel and refresh our students and colleagues and help them remember why they are here.” In her role, Dr. Humphrey helps facilitate the connections between community organizations and AUC students so that they can work collaboratively to identify and develop innovative approaches to addressing community needs and challenges.
AUC Gives Back
For Linedia Masson, class of ‘26, the chance to give back to local communities meant something special as a Sint Maarten local attending AUC. Led by AUC’s Project HELP, this year’s CAD featured the first ever health screening exclusively for non-English speaking community members. Together, Masson and a group of about 30 students, physicians, and local physicians, served over 50 members of the Faith Baptist Church, a Haitian Church in Sint Maarten.
Students were trained and well equipped to screen blood pressure, blood glucose and cholesterol, BMI, and vision, while also collecting data, conducting history-taking interviews, providing feedback, and presenting focused history to physicians onsite that conducted consultations. To alleviate the language barrier, students had the opportunity of working with professional translators aiding them to communicate effectively and ensure participants’ comfortability as they were well informed through every step of the screening. With the aim of increasing health literacy and medicine adherence, students also created health education videos in Haitian-creole to address some disorders that are prevalent in the Haitian community.
“As a daughter of an immigrant, Haitian father diagnosed with Diabetes, at a very young age, I witnessed firsthand the impacts of language barrier on health literacy and medicine adherence,” said Masson. “My experience of attending doctor’s visits with my father, translating and explaining his condition and medication to him, molded my decision to pursue medicine and most importantly, to be that advocate for members of the community that experience health disparities. I am grateful for AUC, as it has afforded me the opportunity and the resources needed to fulfill a long-term childhood goal of giving back to the community that poured so much into me.”
In addition to Project HELP’s non-English health screening activity, 18 other service projects to support environmental sustainability were hosted by student organizations directly impacting community members or other service organizations throughout Sint Maarten. While some planned projects are purely service-oriented, like restoring a playground with the Salvation Army, many student organizations like Project HELP take CAD as an opportunity to enhance their healthcare experiences outside the classroom.
One such project was jointly hosted by the Cardiology Interest Group and Family Medicine Interest Group, who partnered with the Sint Maarten Heart and Stroke Foundation to provide free blood pressure readings to local community members. During this project, a team of 11 students — under the supervision of Brian Patson, MD, associate professor of clinical medical sciences — educated people about their blood pressure readings, offered healthy lifestyle advice, and provided blood pressure monitors as needed.
“We chose this activity because it aligns with our club's focus on cardiology, and it benefits the community with screenings for a very prevalent condition but in a stress-free environment,” said Janani Srinivasan, one of the Cardiology Interest Group’s student leaders. “Giving back to the community in this way is valuable as it promotes health awareness among community members without the pressure and formalities of a doctor's office or other expenses.”
The breadth of healthcare-related volunteer projects included:
- Neurology Interest Group educating children at New Start Children’s Home about epilepsy facts and how to respond safely when someone has a seizure.
- Pediatric Interest Group, under the leadership of Neha Dayalani Vaswani, visiting faculty, clinical medicine and behavioral science, partnering with Sint Maarten Dental Association to provide dental education and screenings to teens from the Ujimma Foundation.
- Orthopedic Interest Group partnered with the Home Away Seniors Program to provide education on joint health.
- Psychiatry Interest Group teaches mental health literacy to kids from New Light Church.
- Some groups even find creative ways to bring healthcare education to life, like the Dermatology Interest Group using a Caribbean boat ride to educate kids from New Start Children’s Home about the importance of sun protection and taking care of your skin.
Whether it be service to the community or directly to people through health education, CAD remains one of the most popular endeavors AUC students participate in every semester.
To get started on your own path toward making a difference inside and outside of the classroom, learn about how you can be a part of AUC’s caring culture here.