Hello! I’m Palmer Carroll a nursing student at the Citadel Military School of SC. The Citadels Swain Department of Science and Mathematics hosts a Kenya Study Abroad program to provide care at a medical camp in 3 major slums within Nairobi, Kenya (Kayole, Kariobangi, and Kibera) to provide medical assistance to those living in extreme poverty who have no access to basic healthcare and living needs. These people include infants, children, and the elderly. We will be serving 300-900+ patients a day over the course of 15 days.

Outside of serving patients, this experience is designed for Citadel students to experience many different fields of medicine and healthcare. There are multiple fields within this camp including dentistry, physical therapy, EKGs, lab work and much more.

As a student nurse, I want my healthcare journey to be founded in humanitarian nursing focusing on volunteer work, compassion, and grace. Not only to become a moral and trustworthy nurse but to give confidence in my future patients that they are in hands that will fight for their health and well-being. I want my first “job” in healthcare to be helping people who do not normally have access to basic necessities and the opportunity to personally help the conditions these people are living in.

The hands-on experience would make me a better student as well. Learning a new element of pressure, being resourceful with limited equipment and supplies, and understanding how to advocate for an underprivileged patient can serve as an opportunity to be a leader to my classmates and medical teammates in the coming years. Knowing how to be a leader in the medical field early on will further my confidence in being a new nurse and defender of the justice, autonomy, and veracity of my patients.

I hope you can help me fund this amazing trip! Thank you!!