Volunteer Reflection: The Plurad Family – Uganda II, 2024
David Plurad, MD and Hong Yoon Plurad, MD, both general surgeons and their son Parker participated in the Uganda II medical mission. Here is their reflection.
Reflections on our first mission trip with Mission to Heal – Hong Yoon Plurad
In August 2024, my family and I went on our first surgical mission with Mission to Heal to Uganda, Africa. My husband and I are both surgeons and our son is 16y old. We chose this mission after looking into many different options because we felt the philosophy and goals were aligned with our values. M2H was also very accommodating of our schedule and embraced our decision to bring our high school son. We had some anxiety about the travel and safety as we have never done anything like this as a family.
From the beginning, M2H was reassuring, organized and clear in their communication with us. From the day we landed in Rwanda to the day we flew out, we found the execution of the plans to be consistent with everything we were told. Except for unpredictable road conditions and the usual delays of travelling internationally, the trip was orchestrated with the highest level of organization we could ask for. We are truly amazed! The most reassurance came from the local groups, travel guides and partners that M2H have worked with. The local Ugandan guides and drivers we worked with were reliable, trustworthy and turned into friends. My son considers them his friends and will keep in touch with them.
The work we did as surgeons on the trip was in line with the mission’s philosophy of teaching local health practitioners basic surgical skills. My husband and I taught surgical techniques to the Ugandan doctors, medical students and the travelling RN FA student that was with us. We often ran 2 rooms, with one of us operating in the mobile surgical unit and the other one using the operating theater at the level 4 facility we were at. We took the doctors through multiple hernias, hydroceles, lipoma excisions and other lumps and bumps. My husband helped them through a toe amputation. We both learned a lot since we did these cases under straight local, except for the occasional ketamine infusion for a child, and we practiced our non-mesh repair techniques for hernias. As much as we were there to teach others, we both learned a lot about how to operate without the comforts of a modern day operating room! Needless to say we found the work personally gratifying and challenging. We were tired at the end of a long day.
My son was fully engaged in the daily life of the mission. He shadowed us while we screened patients in the clinic, helped with documentation then watched surgeries. He was also a valuable runner, going back and forth for supplies when we needed them from the truck to the operating theater. For him however, the best part of the trip included helping with the mobile surgical unit, or the truck. He loved being in the truck, learning how everything works, riding in the truck and going with them for the black water dump. The members of the team also kept him engaged with activities, calling on him for help in various situations, like getting on the wifi!
We were fortunate enough to be on the trip with Dr. Glenn and Kristin Alcorn. We cannot say enough about the value of both of them and for Kristin in guiding us daily. As much as we loved being in Africa, getting to know the people on the trip was equally rewarding. We enjoyed their company, Dr. Glenn’s lectures and his stories as well as their vision and incredible dedication to this cause.
For our weekend outing, we had the opportunity to go on a safari to the Queen Elizabeth National Park and a river cruise down the Kazinga Channel. It was a once in a lifetime trip with incredible views into life on the African savannah. We saw every form of wildlife there is – except the lion who was probably sleeping. We are so grateful to have experienced this trip and it surpassed our expectations.
We feel lucky to have found Mission To Heal and lucky to have been a part of this trip. We plan to go again as a family and my son states he will go again as an adult, “once I have enough experience as a surgeon”. Thanks to all and especially to Dr Glenn for dedicating his life to bringing surgical education to the most remote places on the planet and for allowing us to be a part of it.
Sincerely,
Hong Yoon, David and Parker Plurad
