Last month, LLU sent a small but mighty pharmacy team on a mission trip to Kenya. Associate professor Dr. Lisa Hong, along with students Mitch Teng and Rita Dementyev, and LLUMC pharmacist Dr. Liz Nam worked 12 to 15-hour days with only Sabbaths off for two weeks! They rounded daily and taught on a variety of topics (e.g., inpatient diabetes management, antibiotic stewardship, some PK concepts, local clinical resource utilization, kidney dosing, ICU drip preparation and administration). They also improved clinical workflows and the drug formulary and left resources for medication dosing in kidney dysfunction as well as for proper preparation and administration of continuous IV meds in their new ICU. It was a very successful trip! See more photos.
The journey home was a three-day long nightmare with three delayed flights, a missed connection, two rebooked flights, and an overnight stay; but they made it home safely and in time for Christmas!
Challenges abound during mission trips, but the experience of helping others and bringing positive change makes them all worth it.