Skip to main content

Part of UT Health San Antonio

School of Health Professions, UT Health Science Center San AntonioSchool of Health Professions, UT Health Science Center San Antonio

Part of UT Health San Antonio

Give
Search

Quicklinks

School of Health Professions logo

Logins

  • LiveMail
  • Canvas

Schedule/Calendar/Catalog

  • Class Schedule
  • Catalog
  • Academic Calendars

Health/Wellness

  • Student Health Center
  • Needlestick Guidelines
  • Needlestick Incident Report
  • Insurance
  • Counseling Services

Technology

  • Service Desk
  • Password Reset
  • TechZone (Computer Store)

Other

  • Student Directory

 Close Quicklinks

Menu
  • Home
  • About
  • Programs
  • Admissions
  • Tuition and Financial Aid
  • Research
  • Student Life
  • Alumni

You are here

  • School of Health Professions News
  • Project Hispaniola includes physical therapy students for the first time

Project Hispaniola includes physical therapy students for the first time

Time & Date

Tuesday, June 27, 2017


By Kate Hunger 

Five physical therapy students and two faculty members traveled to the Dominican Republic in late May to offer mobile health clinics for sugar cane plantation laborers who lack regular access to health care. 

The trip marked the first time physical therapy students have joined Project Hispanola, a team of medical students and faculty advisors from UT Health San Antonio which has been making trips to the region since 2008, said Michael Geelhoed, D.P.T., OCS, MTC, associate professor and director of clinical education of the physical therapy department. 

"They had noticed the past couple of times that there were patients who had aches and pains, things a physical therapist can treat," he said. "So they invited us along this year for the first time." 

Geelhoed attended the clinical week of the trip, in which the group treated adults and children in five inland villages, called bateyes. About 600 patients were triaged and the physical therapy students treated 140 patients, often showing them stretching extension and core exercises to alleviate pain. 

"Most of them were laborers who had back pain or knee pain," Geelhoed said. 

"There were a few that had machete wounds that we dressed and cleaned. But we were able to make a difference ... most reported they felt better right away." 

Rebecca Smith, a third-year physical therapy (PT) student, said the trip was a great way for PT students and medical students to learn about what each has to offer. The PT students spent a second-week helping the 11 medical students on the trip conduct their public health research survey. 

Smith said the poverty she observed was striking. 

"When I first got selected for the trip, I started researching and I had no idea a few miles inland these people are struck with poverty, hunger. They don't even have basic resources," she said. " Getting to see that firsthand impacted me big time." 

Resourcefulness was a necessity, she said, describing how the team pushed school desks together to make exam tables and use a curtain as an improvised modesty drape for patients. 

"We were really challenged and had to think on our feet that way," Smith said. 

 

 

 


Share this news item
Physical Therapy
Map image of UT Health San Antonio location

UT Health San Antonio
School of Health Professions

7703 Floyd Curl Drive
San Antonio, TX 78229
Contact Us
Admissions: 210-567-6220

1-866-802-6288

Connect with us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Maps & directions

We make lives better ®

The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, also called UT Health San Antonio, is a leading academic health center with a mission to make lives better through excellence in advanced academics, life-saving research and comprehensive clinical care including health, dental and cancer services.

Web Privacy | Links from websites affiliated with UT Health's website (uthscsa.edu) to other websites do not constitute or imply university endorsement of those sites, their content, or products and services associated with those sites. The content on this website is intended to be used for informational purposes only. Health information on this site is not meant to be used to diagnose or treat conditions. Consult a health care provider if you are in need of treatment.