What began as a conversation in 2022 between Sonia Lobo, PhD, RYT, associate dean for research & scholarship and Wasique Mirza, MD, FACP, program director for Geisinger’s Internal Medicine Residency Northeast, about expanding global health opportunities evolved into a fully realized mission trip to Guatemala. “We wanted to create something that was our own—something the school could stand behind and say, ‘This is a Geisinger experience,’” said Dr. Lobo.
In 2023, Alejandra Marroquin, program lead, entered the conversation. “I knew that Geisinger medical students could travel abroad to provide medical care, but the programs had to be vetted by the Association of American Medical College’s (AAMC) Visiting Student Learning Opportunities (VSLO),” she said. “Fortunately, I’ve known about Friends of San Lucas in Guatemala since 2019, when I traveled as a counselor with undergraduate students and I was impressed. So I immediately started efforts at Geisinger with my colleagues to internally vet the San Lucas Mission program so we could offer it to Geisinger Medical students. program so we could offer it to Geisinger Medical students. St. Lucas Mission has been working with medical students for many years and has an established system that makes the whole operation a wonderful first-time medical experience for students.”
Unlike previous trips where students joined external organizations, this was the first time Geisinger designed and led its own global health mission, working with the local mission Friends of San Lucas. “There’s a kind of assurance when we design it ourselves,” said Dr. Amanda Caleb, PhD, MPH, professor of medical humanities and director of the Center for Medical Humanities, who helped shape the program. “It’s a uniquely Geisinger experience. We know our students are getting the full benefit—clinical exposure, mentorship, and a structured curriculum.”
The program was built with intention. Phase 1 students (rising M2s) participated in a summer immersion, while Phase 3 students (rising M4s) earned elective credit. Students worked in pairs under the supervision of Geisinger’s
Dr. Mandy Maneval, MD, PhD, FAAFP, the director of the family medicine residency at Geisinger Lewistown, and chief resident, Dr. Sunmeet Singh, MD, delivering care in jornada pop-up clinics across 4 rural villages. Throughout
the trip, the team treated more than 100 patients with hypertension, diabetes, upper respiratory infections, and poor nutrition.
For Diego Santos, a second-year medical student, the experience was transformative. “It was exactly what I want to do as a future physician—actually provide care to people who need it,” he said. “Sometimes we were seeing a mom and her three kids who hadn’t seen a doctor in years. We didn’t just treat one complaint—we went through everything they’d been dealing with for years.”
The trip was made possible through the Jennifer A. Sidari, MD’13 Global Health Scholarships and Global Health Enrichment Awards, as well as a grant awarded to GCSOM from the United Nations Association of Northeastern Pennsylvania.
About Geisinger College of Health Sciences
Educating. Inspiring. Leading. At Geisinger College of Health Sciences, we bring innovation and purpose together to educate the next generation of healthcare leaders. As the academic and research arm of the Geisinger family, our college was founded to enhance and improve community health, with a focus on discovery, hands-on learning and applied practice across our system. Today, we offer a research institute, graduate medical education, schools of medicine, graduate education and nursing, and faculty and professional development programs. Visit geisinger.edu/gchs.
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