11/27/23
Gadsden State instructors, student take mission trip to Malawi
Gadsden, Ala. — In the heart of southeastern Africa lies Malawi, a landlocked country known for its warm-hearted people, breathtaking landscapes and the challenges that come with being one of the world’s least developed countries. This is the backdrop for a story about a group from Gadsden State Community College who embarked on a life-changing mission trip to a country in need of hope and compassion.
“Everyone on this trip was positively affected,” said Ashley Crusey, director of the Radiography Program at Gadsden State. “We grew as people – personally, spiritually and in ways we didn’t expect to grow. It was a very moving experience.”
Crusey was joined on the trip by her husband, Trey; coworker, Rebecca Southern, director of Gadsden State’s Diagnostic Medical Sonography Program; and Macy Taylor, a DMS student on track to graduate in December. This is Southern’s second mission trip this year. In July, she volunteered at East African Christian College in Rwanda, where she taught students and instructors how to utilize donated ultrasound equipment.
Upon her return to the U.S., Southern learned that the Chikondi Health Foundation in Wetumpka was going to take an imagery mission trip to Malawi in the fall. The organization received a donation of medical equipment funded by Rotary Clubs in Indiana and California through the Giving Tree Medical Charity. The donation included portable digital x-ray equipment, an ultrasound machine, EKG machine, two IV pumps and ventilator. Experts were needed to go on the trip to install the equipment and teach health professionals how to use it. Southern quickly reached out to Crusey to see if she could help.
“Why would I say no? I knew it was going to be a wonderful experience,” said Crusey, whose husband agreed to go on the trip to assist with building projects at the hospital and around the campus. “I’m so thankful that my husband was able to make the trip. I’m happy that I was able to share this experience with him. He was so useful in so many ways. He never stopped working. He was always doing something to help.”
In Malawi, Crusey installed the x-ray equipment and trained medical staff on how to use it. She took 60 x-rays of 30 patients during the trip.
“Because Blessings Hospital didn’t have x-ray equipment, they were having to refer their patients to other hospitals,” she said. “This delayed patient care. Now they have their own equipment so they can serve their patients in a timely manner at their facility.”
Southern and Taylor spent their time setting up the ultrasound and instructing a doctor and three medical officers how to do bedside abdomen, pelvic and obstetric ultrasound.
“They were very interested and receptive to learning,” Taylor said. “They were like sponges. They wanted to soak it all in and know about how everything works.”
They saw 75 patients that week with Southern performing echocardiograms on 15 patients. Taylor said she was introduced by a cook at the hospital to his pregnant daughter, who she scanned and determined to be in need of a c-section. The baby was born four hours later.
Another woman was pregnant with her fourth child and was told she was 34 weeks into her pregnancy. After Taylor scanned her, it was realized that the woman was dilated and the baby was expected in just a few days.
“It goes to show the importance of ultrasound,” she said. “A woman needs to know what’s going on with her body and when to expect a big life-changing moment like giving birth.”
During their time in Malawi, the group got to experience the culture and the people in villages.
“It was very eye-opening when we saw their living conditions,” Crusey said. “They have nothing but four walls for a house. They have one well that provides water for an entire community. Babies, who were maybe 2 or 3 years old, were doing chores and walking around without shoes.”
Taylor said the interaction with the Malawian people changed her life.
“Being with them gave me a new perspective about how lucky we are to have the healthcare we have in the United States,” she said “The people of Malawi are so kind and grateful. They just take joy in the simple things. They really do the best they can with very limited resources.”
The group also took time to go on a once-in-a-lifetime safari by land and water in the Liwonde National Park. There, they saw lions, elephants, baboons, bush deer, hippos and crocodiles.
“It was amazing to be so close to the wildlife,” Southern said. “We didn’t just see wild animals in the national park. One morning, I walked out of the hut I was staying in, and there was a hippo in the water right in front of me. It was a very unique experience.”
At the conclusion of their two-week trip, Southern said she is grateful that she was able to expose a student to international travel and the opportunity to serve in a third world country.
“It was a dream come true to be able to take Macy on this trip,” she said. “She was phenomenal. She did everything at the hospital. I was just there to support her.
“Seeing all of this through Macy’s eyes was the best part for me. It’s like taking your kid to Disney World. You know you’re going to enjoy it but it’s a whole new level of fun when you get to see your kid enjoy it.”
Taylor said going on the trip with her instructor and mentor was a blessing.
“The coolest thing to me was getting to know Mrs. Southern as a human. She’s more than an instructor,” she said. “I got to know her on my level; as an equal. She knows a lot, which can be intimidating but I saw firsthand how nice and loving she is to everyone she meets.”
Southern and Crusey said they’d like to go on more mission trips with students and instructors from all of Gadsden State’s Health Science Programs.
“Medical mission work is an opportunity to grow stronger connections, to collaborate and to share ideas,” Southern said. “It’s very rewarding work. I get as much out of these trips as the people we serve.”
See some photos from the trip in this album:
