The first Brigade sent out from Northeastern University to West Panama was in March 2016. The 7-day-Brigade consisted of:
3 clinic days where we were able to treat 692 patients and 1 public health day where we worked with the local community of Las Delicias in West Panama to build economically-beneficial latrines. The other days were spent assisting in medication packaging, discussing cultural se
nsitivity, and analyzing feedback for improvement. During clinic days, volunteers have the opportunity to take vitals and patient history in triage, shadow licensed doctors in medical consultations, and assist in a pharmacy under the direction of licensed pharmacists. Mobile Medical clinics are provided directly in communities, utilizing a community center or school as the clinic space. Electronic patient records are collected for future visitations and to monitor overall community health trends. Volunteers assist with in-take, triage, medication packing, and health education. Global Brigades is unique from other student-led service organizations because the Global Brigades initiative is centered around the model of sustainability. University volunteers and local teams work to create sustainable resources through a holistic approach of multiple interdisciplinary brigades: water, agriculture, public health, microfinance, and even human rights. Each of the partner communities receives a brigade approximately twice a year. Between brigades, Global Brigades' in-country team maintains relationships with the communities to provide follow-up and to conduct Community Health Worker trainings to empower local leaders to sustain a consistent level of healthcare. Eventually, volunteers transition out of these communities once they have met their country's success indicators.
