CSU PAs Care for 1,000+ Patients in Seven Days

As National PA Week comes to a close, Charleston Southern University PAs reflect on a service trip to the Dominican Republic in August. Over seven days, the CSU team of students, faculty, staff, and an alumnus worked alongside two Dominican physicians to provide care to more than 1,000 patients.

Zack Wulbecker, associate professor of physician assistant studies and director of didactic education, said, “Trips like this give our students an opportunity to grow as clinicians while putting into practice the values of service, compassion, and caring for others.”

The PAs split into two teams, one setting up mobile medical clinics at local churches, and the other providing medical care to those who could not leave their homes.

An experience that stood out was holding a clinic in a remote village at a new church plant. The pastor shared they were facing significant opposition. “Through tears, this pastor told us that seeing more than 120 people from the community come through the doors to receive medical care was an answer to prayer,” said Wulbecker. 

Another team on a home visit gave a donated walker to an elderly man with limited mobility who had been unable to leave his house for some time. Wulbecker said, “With a wide smile, he told the team that it was going to change everything for him.”

The Charleston Southern PA Studies program is in the College of Health Sciences which is committed to providing students with an education based on contemporary scientific research, practical application, and the skill set to excel in their future professional endeavors.

The CSU College of Health Sciences offers bachelor’s degrees in kinesiology and public health, master’s degrees in athletic training, clinical counseling, and physician assistant studies, and a doctorate in physical therapy.