The team from PC partnered with local clinicians and the nonprofit Therapy Across Borders for a two-week medical service trip to Kenya, providing care across cities and rural communities while also collaborating and exchanging methodologies with local therapists

 by Sarah Murphy

Plastic and metal – those are the materials most commonly used to make a medical splint.

Yet a piece of cardboard and a plastic water bottle had to do the trick last month when Presbyterian College Occupational Therapy Doctoral Program students were treating a patient abroad in Kenya. With limited resources available, the team got creative and was still able to stabilize the patient’s hand until a more long-term solution became available.

“In clinics in the U.S., there are an abundance of items that can be used,” said Caroline Philbeck, one of the PCOTD students on the trip. “In Kenya, treatment sessions include using the resources that they have, which are sometimes very little. This experience provided me the opportunity to think outside of the box with ways to use simple items.”

“So often during our trip, we found ourselves identifying a patient’s immediate need and asking, ‘okay, what help can we provide right now in order to bridge the gap?’” said Dr. Allie Turner, academic fieldwork coordinator and assistant professor. Turner and her colleague Dr. Courtney Addison, assistant professor and student services coordinator, first started dreaming up a service abroad opportunity for the doctoral program more than two years ago. Finally, for two weeks this past December and into January, that dream became a reality.

A group of nine individuals affiliated with PCOTD departed for Nairobi, Kenya on December 31, 2023 in collaboration with Therapy Across Borders, a nonprofit focused on enhancing the lives of those in need around the world. Joining Turner and Addison were three PC OTD students—Sloan Cromwell, Ashley Erwin, and Caroline Philbeck—as well as four clinicians from Holy City Pediatric Therapy: Kellye Tolley, Val Hengenmuhle, Emma Small, and Megan Dearing. Together, their goal was to collaborate with Kenyan therapists to provide a full spectrum of critical therapy services to rural communities.

“This trip was entirely focused on service towards others; to make cross-cultural connections, collaborate with Kenyan OT students and clinicians, and to be leaders in service,” said Turner. “We want to help our students become servant leaders with a global perspective. As professionals, we want them to consistently ask themselves, ‘what do I see around me that I can help and serve?’”

For two weeks, the team worked tirelessly to provide therapy aid at a variety of locations, including Total Rehab Therapy, Gertrude’s Children’s Hospital, Cerebral Palsy Society of Kenya and a variety of rural outreach posts, including working with the Maasai tribe on the Maasai Mara National Reserve.

“Going into this, I really had no idea what to expect,” said Ashley Erwin. “It was all very accelerated; as students, we gradually got more and more hands on with helping patients.” She recalls a particular moment when she worked with a speech therapist to help a child learn to correctly suck and swallow food. The mother was overwhelmed with gratitude, saying this would completely transform how her child eats and how she is able to feed him.”

“We know our students so well from having them in the classroom, but still, they surpassed any level of compassion, flexibility, and understanding that we could have asked for,” said Turner. “They learned to challenge one another and hold each other accountable.”

The PCOTD group stayed with a host family, Grace Minjire and Jackson Agatia, whose hospitality went above and beyond, says Turner and Addison. They were particularly helpful answering cultural-related questions, helping the group understand things they experienced during the day that were unfamiliar.

“Something we talk about frequently in [the OTD program] is cultural competency and sensitivity,” said Cromwell. “But it is one thing to discuss it, and another to observe and experience it. We were truly able to witness a different culture and see how to implement competency and sensitivity to its fullest. It was so enriching.”

While the group did have a planned schedule for each day of the trip, there was an element of flexibility that needed to be embraced as plans often went off course.

“During the rural outreach, for example, we were only supposed to spend about 15 minutes with each family, but that turned into hours with each family,” said Addison. “The mental and physical flexibility that our students demonstrated, along with the maturity—it was incredible to watch.”

While the team spent most days in hands-on clinical settings, they were able to take a few moments to embrace new cultural experiences. During their visit to the Maasai Mara National Reserve they went on safari. They later played a soccer match with teachers at the Kipepeo Inclusive School. The group felt touched by elements of spirituality throughout their two weeks, including when their host mother prayed over them on their final Sunday in Kenya.

Turner aims to continue developing these program partnerships so that collaboration can continue, hopefully with more service trips on the horizon, too.

“We’ve established these beautiful cross-cultural relationships,” said Turner. “We’re still in conversation with the people we worked with, still sharing resources and education with one another. I do believe that this can be a sustainable project where we continue to share and collaborate on different perspectives.”

To learn more about the Occupational Therapy Doctoral Program at PC, visit the program website.