January 2016
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Issue. 17
JOIN US: February 19th and 20th, 2016, at the Mobilizing Medical Missions Conference (#M3Conference) in Houston, Texas. Medical Bridges is a proud sponsor and exhibitor. Connect with doctors, nurses, dentists, and other healthcare professionals who have a desire to use their skills to make a difference in the pressing global health needs. Hear from experts in the field of global health and be inspired by men and women who save lives with limited-resource settings, doing what they can to make a difference in people's lives. Find out what you can do and how you can be involved.  
A  young girl received a jacket from another doctor who donated it and photographed her, but, sadly, he had no shoes to give her.
Making a difference with refugees on the Greek island of Lesbos

A Baylor College of Medicine doctor who hand-carried medical supplies with him on a trip to Lesbos, Greece, to help at a refugee clinic reported back to Medical Bridges, saying the clinic was "a scene out of the TV show M.A.S.H."

Medical Bridges provided supplies to Dr. Yunus Ahmadi for his visit   to Lesbos, a small island in the Aegean Sea th at has been  over whelmed by thousands of refugees seeking new lives away from war-ravaged Syria and Afghanistan and other mainly Mideastern countries as they make their way to Europe. Most of the refugees escape first to Turkey, which is only six hours away from Lesbos by boat, and one of the primary reasons the island has been favored by refugees and smugglers. The journey is treacherous for most and even deadly for some.

"Every day, between 500 to 1,500 refugees arrive on what are best described as white-water rafting boats, with a capacity of 12-15, each carrying approximately 40 to 60 people," Dr. Ahmadi said.

From Dec. 26, 2015, to Jan. 2, Dr. Ahmadi worked as a volunteer in a clinic - consisting of a triage area, dental suite, seven-bed "ward" and pharmacy - run by an NGO called Off Track Health in the largest refugee camp named Moria.

Volunteers who wait and look for boats to arrive from the beachfront help unload refugees from an overloaded raft.

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  Want to make difference, too?
If you or someone you know are interested in finding out more about hand-carried or container shipments of supplies from Medical Bridges to Lesbos, Greece, or any other region in urgent need, please check out  
Medical Bridges' Services  for more information.
Shipment arrives in Nicaragua
Receiving the supplies from left to right, ANF Director Rafael Sanchez, Aproquen Special Projects Director Katia Chamorro and Hector Gaitan, the Donations Director for Aproquen. 
A container of medical supplies and equipment from Medical Bridges reached Aproquen , a surgical medical center that provides free healthcare to children in Managua, Nicaragua, in December. 

"Thank you to everyone who made this a wonderful reality. We will be able to help hundreds of children in Nicaragua suffering from burns and cleft lip and palate," said Evelyn Murillo, development director for the center.

The shipment was a collaborative effort between Aproquen, the American Nicaraguan Foundation (ANF) and Food For The Poor.
An administrator at Savannah Sunrise Clinic looks over newly arrived supplies.

A gift for Kampala clinic

Hou stonians Paris and Mary Pippillion traveled to Uganda recently to attend a wedding and visit friends, and decided to gift the  Savannah Sunrise Clinic  in Kampala with a generous collection of hand-carried medical supplies.

"I just wanted to say the supplies were graciously received (by Dr. Grace Kaisa), and they were beyond amazed" at the clinic, Paris Pippillion said.
Savannah Sunrise Clinic is a Healthcare providerdedicated to sustainingthe communities' health care needs through affordable, accessible and quality medical services.
Mizzou students take winter break to 'humbly serve'

 
A group of 12 University of Missouri students took a break from the snow in their home state to visit Houston in January, including a stop at Medical Bridges to volunteer, guided by a primary principle to "Serve, Don't Help."

The students represented Mizzou Alternative Breaks, which sends groups on trips around the U.S. over weekend and seasonal school breaks to "selflessly and humbly serve a community by doing service that they ask of us," according to its website. They were told to head South on their winter break, and the students - all health majors who didn't know each other before they loaded into two cars to drive to Houston -- chose this city to visit on their health-focused trip because of its Medical Center and many hospitals.

During their week in Houston, the group volunteered at Medical Bridges on the afternoon of Jan. 14, in addition to a few other health-related organizations, including Texas Children's Hospital, Methodist Hospital, Ronald McDonald House and Red Cross. They spent their days volunteering anywhere from five to eight hours per day, said one of the group's co-site leader, Sarah McCrate. 
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If you think you'd like to volunteer at Medical Bridges, please go to our
New faces at Medical Bridges
J. David Clyde, M.D., FACOEM
Dr. Clyde is the Occupational Health Manager, Houston for ExxonMobil Corp., and previously served in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Dr. Clyde's  career includes serving as CEO of Spinnaker Medical Consultants International, Medical Director for ARCO International Oil & Gas Company, Regional Medical Director for Conoco Inc., and President and Senior Partner of Family Medicine Associates. He also served in the U.S. Air Force as Chief of the Primary Care Department at the U.S.A.F. Academy in Colorado. Dr. Clyde has been a member of boards of other organizations including Haven of Rest Ministries, Georgia Council for International Visitors, and Kings Bridge Retirement Center. Medical Bridges welcomes Dr. Clyde to the Board of Directors.
Carolyn Sanders   
One of the leading human resources and communication executives in the energy industry, with more than 35 years of experience. Mrs. Sanders retired as Vice President of Human Resources and Public Affairs at Total Petrochemicals and Refining USA Inc. During her career, Mrs. Sanders served as Chairman of the U.S. Affiliate HR Committee comprised of 15 subsidiary human resources directors. Mrs. Sanders also held executive board positions on five of Total U.S. Affiliate. Medical Bridges welcomes Mrs. Sanders to the Board of Directors.
Veronica Bucio  is our outreach coordinator, who will manage all aspects of our volunteer program as well as help increase public awareness of Medical Bridges. Her background is in newspapers, including more than 15 years as an editor at the Houston Chronicle, and more recently, at an oil and gas publications, conferences and research firm. Veronica also has previous experience as a volunteer coordinator for another medical surplus recovery organiztion. 
She can be reached at 713-766-6554 and [email protected]
Anisha Perez   is a development volunteer and graduate student from Rice University who will be with Medical Bridges until May. Anisha's parents are from Trinidad and the Dominican Republic, and having seen the disparity of healthcare in those countries first-hand, she truly believes in the mission of Medical Bridges and bridging the healthcare gap worldwide.



Texas Children's Global Health Initiative hosts  staff

From left to right Adam Gibson, Ed Pettitt, Veronica Bucio, Jeremiah Judkins, George Bolettieri, Steve Bolfing, 
Taylor Napier-Earle, Al Carrasco and Dr. Parth Mehta
  Part of Medical Bridges' success depends greatly on the partnerships it creates with other organizations whose missions align closely with or parallel its own. Recently, one such organization, Texas Children's Global Health Initiative (TCGHI) , invited Medical Bridges to personally meet some of its doctors and support staff and tour its offices to better learn about its mission and goals.  Texas Children's Global Health partners on various programs and initiatives, one of which is the Baylor College of Medicine Pediatric AIDS Initiative at Texas Children's Hospital (BIPAI).

The partnership is an important one, as TCGHI seeks to provide high-quality pediatric and family-centered health care, health professional training and clinical research, focused on women's health,  HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, malnutrition, hematology, oncology  and other conditions. TCGHI also builds clinics in countries where there is little to no medical infrastructure, training native health professionals to staff the facilities and working closely with Ministries of Health to ultimately transition the management of the clinics back to local or government authorities.

Medical Bridges has partnered with TCGHI to deliver equipment and supplies to a number of project sites, most recently in Liberia and Malawi. 
We know you like us, but "Like" us even more!
 
fb_like_thumbs.jpg We at Medical Bridges have decided we can't have too many friends, as the saying goes, and so we'd like to grow our circle of friends on Facebook in 2016. 

If you've already "Liked" us on Facebook, great! And if you like us in all other ways but not yet on Facebook, please go to Medical Bridges' page and become a fan and follower of ours that way, too! Our goal this year is to reach 1,000 "Likes," and we couldn't -- and wouldn't want to -- do it without you!

Save the date

 Please mark your calendars and save the evening of
April 28 ,  2016
to attend Medical Bridges' annual Service Awards Dinner at Rice University's Cohen House from 7-9 p.m.

We're looking forward to a wonderful evening honoring those who so generously donate their time and resources to our mission, and we want to ensure you'll be able to attend!

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