Doctors Without Borders

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DuncanYoyo

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Anyone else have an interest in this, or any experience with them?

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DuncanYoyo said:
Anyone else have an interest in this, or any experience with them?


I have dreamed of joining their ranks for YEARS! Their website is very informative.
 
Yeah, I have also thought about doing this. 6 month commitment isn't bad at all.
 
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Totally into this organization. You guys should read "Hope in Hell," a book about MSF. It's eye-opening, pretty thrilling.
 
I've looked into the possibility of doing a rotation with them (or even just following one around for a while. i'd be willing to be a mule and do nothing but carry things and load/unload supplies), and it sounds like you really need to offically have your MD and be trained before they'll even consider it. Based on their website, it seems like the only non-medical volunteers they accept are for administrative purposes within the U.S. Has anyone heard any differently?

On a side note - I do know one individual who managed to finagle a rotation during his fourth year with doctors without borders. He went to Harvard Med and had to get the Dean of Harvard's Public Health program to pull strings for him before he could go.
 
From the FAQ

What are MSF's recruitment criteria?
The general criteria for volunteering are at least 2 years of professional experience in relevant fields, availability for at least six months, and current professional credentials. Assets that benefit applicants are flexibility, experience working in developing countries, community service projects, adaptability to basic living conditions, and foreign language skills.

Does MSF accept medical students as field volunteers?
No. Due to extensive workloads, MSF field teams are unable to oversee unlicensed staff. All ancillary duties are filled by national staff, both increasing local capacity and maximizing donor contributions.
 
When I worked overseas, I did some projects along with MSF and my former supervisor was with MSF- fantastic organization- they do great work. I don't know about doing rotations with them as a student, but post-training would be well worthwhile.
 
Another good book about this awesome organization is War Hospital and it describes their work in Bosnia.
 
Sarikate said:
Totally into this organization. You guys should read "Hope in Hell," a book about MSF. It's eye-opening, pretty thrilling.

I'll second that recommendation. It is a brutally realistic look at a truely inspiring group of people. These people sacrifice far more than just a warm bed in Europe.

If you are committed to working for this group, check their list of acceptable specialties. They do not have spots for ER docs or for orthopods.
 
scrappysurfer said:
If you are committed to working for this group, check their list of acceptable specialties. They do not have spots for ER docs or for orthopods.
I agree about orthopods, but here's the quote about what they DO want:

"MSF is particularly seeking emergency medicine physicians, general practitioners, family practitioners, internists, pediatricians, obstetricians/gynecologists, and infectious-disease specialists."

from http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/volunteer/field/vol_physicians.shtml
 
bbaek said:
no surgeons???

they want surgeons too and actually surgeons only have to be able to commit to 2 months instead of 6
 
one day....one day....
 
lightnk102 said:
I've looked into the possibility of doing a rotation with them (or even just following one around for a while. i'd be willing to be a mule and do nothing but carry things and load/unload supplies), and it sounds like you really need to offically have your MD and be trained before they'll even consider it. Based on their website, it seems like the only non-medical volunteers they accept are for administrative purposes within the U.S. Has anyone heard any differently?

If anyone really wants experience doing medical mission work abroad before attaining a degree, International Service Learning (www.islonline.org) is a good organization to look at. I'm a sophomore in college right now and for Spring Break I am going to Costa Rica and Nicaragua to do work there. From hearing from students who went last year, I'll be taking histories, doing diagnoses, dispensing medications, and doing dental work, obviously after training. So I will be getting hands on experience before going to medical school.
 
Yeah, I'm keeping doctors without borders in my bookmarks - I loved going on international service trips in undergrad. :thumbup:
 
So where do these guys buy their books? At Barnes and Noble? Amazon?

(sorry, dumb joke :) )
 
I'm definitely doing this after I get through residency. I didn't realize it was so selective though - I've looked at their website before, but I never got the impression that it would be tough to get involved - I can't imagine that many people would want to sacrifice their personal lives to volunteer. It's not like getting into medical school :rolleyes:

How many people are thinking about volunteering as docs? I really want to make moves once I have my MD in hand. I want to wear out that degree like an in-laws welcome, both here and abroad. I want to get into the business aspect of it here in the States - some specialties make upwards of a million a year, especially if you work your way to the head of multispecialty groups. I figure if I can earn enough here, I can take some of that money and open up some clinics in rural areas of developing nations. I'm pretty sure my imagination is more than reality can handle right now, but does anyone else feel this way? Who else is frustratingly passionate about medicine?
 
I had the chance to meet James Orbinski, who headed the group and accepted the Nobel, when he was a fellow at U. Toronto in my second year. He's a great person, and some of the stories he told were very inspiring. It's amazing to think that people like him would stay in places like Rwanda and Bosnia when everyone else was trying to get out. Thanks for the heads up on the books Sarikate & Larsitron.
 
shantster said:
If anyone really wants experience doing medical mission work abroad before attaining a degree, International Service Learning (www.islonline.org) is a good organization to look at. I'm a sophomore in college right now and for Spring Break I am going to Costa Rica and Nicaragua to do work there. From hearing from students who went last year, I'll be taking histories, doing diagnoses, dispensing medications, and doing dental work, obviously after training. So I will be getting hands on experience before going to medical school.

I generally have a hard time going through organizations that make you pay to volunteer. There's something about it that rubs me the wrong way. I guess part of it is because I'm not sure if my money is going to the community anyways, and part of it is because I'm uncomfortable with someone being capitalistic about my desire to donate my time and energy (some of the tuition costs are upwards of $1k, NOT including plane flight). That and, it's my most bitter sentiment that these programs effectively make volunteering abroad the special domain of kids with rich parents.

I've done international volunteer work before that didn't require me to pay "tuition", and that's normally been through organizations local to the country who need help (most volunteer-organizations that charge you are based in developed countries). The local organizations are usually thrilled that someone wants to "work for free" (in third world countries, they have a harder time finding "volunteers") and are usually understaffed anyways. Plus, you get to interact with the community on a more personal level. Usually the only costs I incur are my own plane flight there, and room and board when I get there (sometimes the organization is even willing to cover your room for you and you end up staying with one of the employees there. sort of like a "host family"). I'm not aware of a website that has links to local organizations that need help, but perhaps someone here knows of one? I tend to stumble upon my projects by chance through surfing the web and reading the local news articles online.
 
One of the things I did was to find some non-profit hospitals in developing nations and contact the CEO to volunteer there. You can learn about differences in medicine across cultures and also get the chances to work in local/rural communities, because some of these hospitals have departments that set up temporary clinics in places without access to health care.
 
lightnk102 said:
I generally have a hard time going through organizations that make you pay to volunteer. There's something about it that rubs me the wrong way. I guess part of it is because I'm not sure if my money is going to the community anyways, and part of it is because I'm uncomfortable with someone being capitalistic about my desire to donate my time and energy (some of the tuition costs are upwards of $1k, NOT including plane flight). That and, it's my most bitter sentiment that these programs effectively make volunteering abroad the special domain of kids with rich parents.

I've done international volunteer work before that didn't require me to pay "tuition", and that's normally been through organizations local to the country who need help (most volunteer-organizations that charge you are based in developed countries). The local organizations are usually thrilled that someone wants to "work for free" (in third world countries, they have a harder time finding "volunteers") and are usually understaffed anyways. Plus, you get to interact with the community on a more personal level. Usually the only costs I incur are my own plane flight there, and room and board when I get there (sometimes the organization is even willing to cover your room for you and you end up staying with one of the employees there. sort of like a "host family"). I'm not aware of a website that has links to local organizations that need help, but perhaps someone here knows of one? I tend to stumble upon my projects by chance through surfing the web and reading the local news articles online.

I know with this organization, my money is going toward airfare, food, lodging, and transportation throughout the two countries. It also helps to pay for the expenses of the doctors that accompany us because if they have traveled with them already, I believe that they only pay for airfare. Some money also goes toward the organization for their offices in the US and the countries we travel to as well as their employees since I do not think they do their own fundraising. I for one have completely covered the cost of my trip through donations from various organizations as well as had a number of medications donated to me to take with me as well. I see your concern with the cost, but I know if I would go talk to the Dean of Arts and Sciences, I would also be able to receive 3 credits toward graduation if I write a ten page paper. So the experience is one that I will be getting a lot of benefit out of so it does not bother me to have to help pay for the cost of my trip.
 
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