Group shot of Westfield State nursing students who will be participating in the service trip to Guatemala. (Photo submitted)
WESTFIELD, Mass., January 16, 2014- Westfield State University’s nursing department will hold a spaghetti dinner on Friday, February 7, to benefit their upcoming service trip to Guatemala where students and faculty will provide medical care and health promotion. The dinner will be held from 6-9 p.m. in Scanlon Banquet Hall. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children.
During spring break, 19 nursing students and two faculty members will travel to Santa Maria de Jesus, Guatemala. Students paid out of pocket for the excursion which counts as a clinical element for their nursing courses. All money collected will be go directly to the community in Guatemala including purchasing water filters, wound equipment, food for malnutrition centers, and vitamins.
While in Guatemala, students and faculty members will care for children at two different orphanages. They will supply and teach Guatemalan families how to use water filters, provide health and dental care, provide wound care for the homeless, and offer feedings at malnutrition centers. Depending on how much money is raised, they may have the opportunity to build wheelchairs or a metal house with a stove.
Course organizer Marcia Scanlon, Assistant Professor of Nursing and Allied Health, said she believes traveling to Guatemala will help her students broaden their understanding of healthcare in other countries.
“Our main goal is to increase students’ awareness and appreciation of other cultures,” Scanlon said. “Nurses care for many diverse patients and exposure to different cultures is beneficial. It prepares them to be a better future nurse- more culturally competent in delivering care to diverse patients.”
According to Scanlon, 51% the population of Guatemala lives below the international poverty line (CIA World Fact Book, 2009) and nearly half of all Guatemalan children suffer from chronic malnutrition (Bunkers et al, 2009). Water is generally only available every three or four days and it is often transported in jugs that are not well maintained and dirty (Campos de Sueños, 2013).
Scanlon said that the service learning experience will help students become better nurses because of the service they are providing is outside a typical nursing environment.
“It broadens their scope and vision of the nursing profession to include communities all over the world- not just patient in a hospital setting,” Scanlon said. “It promotes nursing qualities such as leadership, teamwork, respect and problem-solving skills.”
Tickets can be purchased through the nursing department located in Juniper Park at Westfield State University or reserved by emailing Marcia Scanlon at [email protected]. For those who cannot attend the spaghetti dinner, but still wish to donate, monetary donations will be accepted through the nursing department. Checks can be made out to Pathways Community Church, the leaders of the mission and sent to Westfield State University, Nursing Department, 577 Western Avenue, Westfield, MA 01086. They are also accepting school supplies, sun glasses, underwear, gloves, winter hats, band aides, and hygiene products including toothpaste, toothbrushes, soap, shampoo, and laundry soap. For more information, please contact Marcia Scanlon at 413-572-8414. The trip is made possible through assistance from the Westfield State University International Programs office.
