International: Haiti
As a Yale surgical resident in the 1970's, Ralph Greco rotated at the Hôpital Albert Schweitzer in Haiti . He fell in love with the experience and has returned almost every year since.In April 2001, five Stanford surgical residents joined Dr. Greco in a visit to the Schweitzer Hospital and since that time an elective rotation for General Surgery Residents has been developed. "
Haiti is a magical place, a mysterious place. Medically it forces you to draw on everything you know - and to use your instincts and resourcefulness to treat patients". It opened his eyes to what it meant to practice medicine in a nation with severe health problems - and without the comforts of modern technology. "It forces you to draw on everything you know - and to use your instincts and resourcefulness to treat patients." Greco says of his trips to Haiti . "And it instills a sense of service; it deepens your respect for what medicine can accomplish."
