KPU nursing students return from Guatemala field school

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Nine Kwantlen Polytechnic University nursing students completed a 17-day field school in Guatemala this summer. Led by bachelor of science in nursing instructors Cindy Milner and Connie Klimek, students provided essential health-care services to local communities while gaining hands-on experience.

The team operated a pop-up clinic each day in different communities near the city of Antigua. The clinic was organized to provide basic checkups, distribute medication, and offer health-care education to the local population via seven distinct stations — handwashing, assessment, pharmacy, deworming, dental care, breast self-examination, and foot care.

“We wanted to give our students a unique opportunity to gain new perspectives on health-care and learn outside of the traditional classroom setting,” Milner said in a KPU press release. “It was incredible to see each student step out of their comfort zone and grow both professionally and personally in such a short amount of time.”

Nursing student Erin Blackmore spearheaded the field school’s breast self-examination station. With breast cancer being one of the leading causes of death among women in Guatemala, Blackmore sought to educate women on self-examinations. 

Despite initial challenges, such as cultural sensitivities around the discussion of breast health in public, they saw few women participate in the offered breast self-exam station. Blackmore adjusted her approach by creating a poster in Spanish and relocating the station to a private room. By doing so, she quickly saw participation soar from just five women on the first day to 15-to-20 women daily.

One of the patients the students saw was worried about a lump on her breast. The woman noted that it was painful and she had recently finished breastfeeding, Blackmore wrote in an email to The Runner.

“We put two and two together and thought it was most likely a clogged milk duct,” Blackmore wrote. 

“From the time she first felt that lump, she believed that she had breast cancer. She must have been worrying so much since, and to be able to provide that relief for her and other patients was one of the things that I absolutely loved about this experience.” 

The students also visited Lake Atitlán, where they met with a traditional Mayan healer who introduced them to various herbs she cultivated. The healer shared with them her knowledge of plants she grew, including peppermint and lemongrass, which she used to treat digestive issues. The traditional healer prepares herbs into tea, ointments, and lotions, as well as mixes herbs with alcohol or honey to make tinctures, Milner wrote in an email to The Runner. 

Another field school is planned for October with a new group of 11 students travelling to Arusha, Tanzania. Beyond Tanzania, Milner is already considering destinations for next year, including Sri Lanka, India, Mexico, Peru, and Jamaica.

For those interested in participating in the future, the program is open to all KPU nursing students, alumni, and nursing students from other college and university programs. 

“Priority is given to students currently enrolled in the BSN-AE [bachelor of science in nursing advanced entry] program, who are completing their global health course,” Milner wrote. “Students need to have completed a medical and surgical rotation and community health course at the second-year level.” 

All submitted applications will be reviewed, and faculty permission is also required, Milner added. 

“I love travelling and this was an opportunity to see a country that I hadn’t seen. It was also an opportunity to do something different and provide a service that is so necessary while immersing myself in a new culture and language,” Blackmore wrote. 

“I’m so happy I went and would recommend it to absolutely anyone that thinks they want to go to another country and provide a service, no matter what it is.”

For more information about KPU’s field schools and learning abroad, visit www.kpu.ca/studyabroad.