A four-module orientation program for short-term international medical mission trips
Utilizing videos, narrative, articles and much more, this orientation is designed to prepare someone to competently and humbly participate in a short-term medical mission to a low- or middle-income country. For more information, please contact Bruce Compton.
The orientation modules were developed in response to CHA often being asked if it has resources available for the orientation of persons participating in mission trips. While we have many resources available for such use — including the booklet, A Reflection Guide for International Health Activities — we wanted to provide something that allows the user to complete the orientation online in her or his own time since the majority of those who do go on medical mission trips are volunteers from various locations in any given health system or organization. In so doing, we wanted to be sure that the resource provides space for discernment of the activity — opportunities to consider who is being served and who is doing that service, motivations on both sides of a mission trip partnership and other aspects of the activity that stem from Catholic social teaching and tradition, particularly as that relates to how one enters into another's community. We also want to stress that this is just one orientation tool — many organizations already have orientation programs or processes.
What follows is a four-segment orientation module — with the fourth module being for SOON AFTER a person returns. Utilizing numerous resources developed by CHA and others, the hope is that it orients not only the mind, but also, the heart.
This opening module will familiarize you with the Guiding Principles for Conducting International Health Activities, which bring to life the richness of Catholic social teaching and tradition as they relate to our health promotion activities in low- and middle-income communities across the globe.
Please note: This module video includes questions for reflection. As each is provided, we recommend you pause the module to consider your response.
WATCH THE VIDEOOver the past two decades, the number of short-term international mission trips for the provision of health services has dramatically increased. Catholic health care has participated in this growth. According to researchers at Harvard Medical School, an estimated 6,000 medical missions are sent from the United States to low- or middle-income countries every year with an annual expenditure of at least $250 million dollars.
While these experiences provide an opportunity for Catholic health care to continue its mission of reaching out to those persons who are poor, sick and vulnerable, there are consistent concerns about their value and effectiveness. Considering the significant human and economic investment in health service trips, it is essential to gain a better understanding of these activities and to consider how they can provide the maximum benefit for all involved.
The goal is to provide you with insights from both sides of the partnership relationship: those who plan the trips and those who host them. Understanding the recommended practices that are based on research and narrative from both hosts and sponsors should allow you to see your part in this activity in a new light. Who is helping who? What are the benefits for both sides? What are the shortcomings? Gaining new perspectives will hopefully allow you to enter the short-term trip with a sense of the aspects of partnerships in short-term medical mission trips.
Please note: This module includes questions for reflection. As each is provided, we recommend you pause the module to consider your response.
In this third module you will be taken through some exercises to help you culturally prepare for taking part in a short-term medical mission trip. You'll get to question your motivations and ability to hear and listen, rather than problem solve. Please note that this module is the longest in this orientation. Cultural competence is the most important part of preparation – even if you've traveled to this location before or have gone on lots of mission trips – because it is at the heart of why we do this work. We are in solidarity, we are providing access, we are partners with the community being served. As included in the Guiding Principles, Humility – with us all having something to learn – is an imperative in this work. Please view the video and additional resources offered after.
Please note: This module includes questions for reflection. As each is provided, we recommend you pause the module to consider your response.
Articles referenced in the video
- "Things No One Tells You About Going on Short-Term Mission Trips: A few ways to make sure your mission trip is effective," by Michelle Acker Perez
- "Prepare a Well-Planned Itinerary," by Carolyn M. Brown
Geert Hofstede and Cultural-Dimensions Theory
Geert Hofstede is a Dutch social psychologist and anthropologist who has studied interactions between cultures. He has received numerous awards for his intercultural research all over the world. One of his most notable accomplishments is the establishment of the cultural dimensions theory, which provides a systematic framework for assessing the differences between nations and cultures. Learn more about the six dimensions of national culture and compare countries:
Also recommended:
Module Four is intended for your use after returning from your short-term mission trip. We recommend that you view it within days of your return.
Returning home can be a mixed experience. You will realize that you have changed, although you may not be able to explain exactly how. With your return, you'll be asked by many about your experience — what it was like in the country, how the people live, what you ate, what work you completed, how you lived while there.
In this final module, you'll be led through reflective exercises to help you reenter your life back in the U.S. and process the experience more fully down the road. It is a time to consider what it is you are called to do moving forward after your experience.
Please note: This module includes questions for reflection. As each is provided, we recommend you pause the module to consider your response.