OT, PT students gain new clinical perspectives in Guatemala

A group of students in the University of New England’s Doctor of Physical Therapy (D.P.T.) and Master of Science in Occupational Therapy (M.S.O.T.) programs recently returned from a springtime trip to Guatemala, where they toured clinical facilities and adaptive equipment manufacturers, all while taking in the joy and wonder of education done abroad.

The trip was no ordinary spring break. The group of eight students and three faculty glided into La Aurora International Airport on March 10 and spent the next seven days meeting with local providers and patients and learning about adaptive therapy practices in the Central American nation.

A highlight of the trip was a tour of the Transitions Foundation wheelchair and prosthetics clinic in the city of Antigua. The clinic manufactures, from scratch, mobility equipment and prosthetics tailored to every client. patient. “Each patient leaves the facility with a perfectly fitting device that is suited to their needs. That’s really amazing,” remarked Kiara Boeck (M.S.O.T., ’24). The group returned to the facility several times during the week to observe patient interactions and even cheer on teams in a wheelchair basketball league.

Transitions was only one stop on the students’ journey. The group also voyaged to the Virgen del Socorro Hospital and Rehabilitation Center, an inpatient facility mainly focused on children with adaptive and sensory needs. There, physical therapists and occupational therapists — called “teachers” in Guatemala, where occupational therapy is still a budding field — guided the group through their daily routines and how they interact with patients.

A similar center, La Puerta, provided students with an interactive experience. The nontraditional school empowers children and families to use creativity, critical thinking, and literacy to become innovative problem solvers and leaders within their communities. 

“[Empathy] will teach you to better understand the world and better understand yourself, as well,” she added.

The benefits of a global education were not lost on Boeck, who said the trip will make her a better health care provider when she graduates.

“I think the benefit of studying abroad is really getting to know yourself as a professional and where you kind of fit into the world,” she said. “As a professional, it was important to see how the social determinants of health define the kind of care and access to care that people have, since I know that we’ll encounter patients in similar circumstances. This trip gave me a chance to advocate for the occupational therapy profession and understand how we can really touch people’s souls and get them back to the meaningful things they love doing.”

Both students commented that the trip also gave them a deeper appreciation for interprofessional patient care and each other’s field of study.

“The conversations that came from working between the two really added to the experience,” Gagne said, while Boeck remarked that, “the power of having different perspectives on the trip and navigating those two collaborative approaches was wonderful.”

Adam DePrimo, Ph.D., OTR/L, assistant professor of occupational therapy at UNE, remarked that such international, interprofessional trips contribute to the formation of students’ professional identities and aid in developing skills of cultural humility in becoming competent and responsive practitioners.

"The opportunity to learn more about how different health care models work opens participants' eyes to new ways of thinking about what we do here at home and to think critically about access and health justice around the world,” she said.