IMR is a family-friendly organization!  We love to have families, friends, and professional groups join together to share this experience.

• Medical professionals – physicians, dentists PAs, NPs, nurses, EMTs, MAs, CNAs, etc.
• Specialists – chiropractors, acupuncturists, physical therapists, mental health professionals, etc.
• Students – professional students (medical, nursing, dental, public health, etc.), undergraduate students, high school students
• Non-medical volunteers – all professions and levels of experience

A typical day on an IMR mission may resemble this:

• Breakfast at the hotel or guest house followed by a short team briefing
• Travel by bus, boat, or other transportation to a different community each day
• Set up the mobile acute care clinic in the community using a pre-arranged facility or location (school, church, community center, open area using tarps, etc.)
• Provide medical care, well-patient checkups, dental care, and community health education classes to 100-500 patients depending on the team size
• Lunch at the clinic site
• Return to the team lodging for dinner
• Debriefing meeting
• Prepare for the next day of clinic

We welcome student participation on all of our missions. Students work alongside the medical staff, have direct patient contact every day, and perform many functions of clinic, including:

• Taking vital signs and assisting patients waiting to be seen
• Shadowing providers and nursing staff, depending on interest
• Assisting in the dental clinic
• Developing skills in wound care and with laboratory testing under direction from nursing
• Assisting in pharmacy preparing medications and other tasks
• Providing community education in small classes on basic topics
• Capturing statistics and pre-packing medications for clinic (evening)

Many schools offer community service credit hours for medical mission participation, and we can certainly verify the hours that you worked. Let us know how we can help you receive credit for your experience.

At least half of our volunteers have no medical background, yet their services are critical to the successful operation of our clinics. As a non-medical volunteer, you will work side by side with the medical team throughout the clinics, interacting with patients every day, as well as building relationships with members of the community. Community health education is a critical component for all short-term medical mission missions because it allows us to leave a lasting footprint on the community.

Some common roles for non-medical volunteers:

• Community health education – we provide you with a variety of topics or you can choose your own topic to teach a class to the local residents that will help build and strengthen their community through health and wellness
• Patient registration and intake, taking vital signs and starting patient charts
• Assisting in the pharmacy
• Assisting in the dental clinic
• Patient escort services to the different departments in clinic
• Mission historian – take pictures of patients and the clinic site, gather stories, and interview community members
• Clinic set-up and breakdown
• Capturing statistics and pre-packing medications for the next day’s clinic (evening)
• Shadowing providers as desired

Nurses have many roles in IMR clinics working within their scope and comfort level.  We encourage you to discuss your specific skills with your team leader and providers on the team.

• Well Care: Assessing our well and mostly well patients and recommending over-the-counter medications.  You will be part of a care team with a physician or mid-level provider who will oversee you and act in an advisement and teaching capacity as you assess patients.  
• Triage: Directing patients to sick or well care based on their vital signs and a very rapid assessment.
• Wound care:  Treating major and minor wounds and teaching self-care to patients.
• Minor procedures: Assisting other providers with minor procedures and teaching home care for those patients.
• Laboratory, IV therapy, injections, and respiratory therapy:  IMR provides IVs, nebulizer treatments, laboratory testing, and injectable medications to our patients as required.  Nursing is responsible for providing these therapies and for overseeing other staff in the delivery of these treatments.  Nurses will work within their scope and comfort level in providing this care.
• Community Health Education: Nurses will have the opportunity to contribute to our patients’ knowledge by educating them on specific complaints at their stations.  For example, you may teach about new baby care, asthma triggers and inhalant use, female infections, preventing sexually transmitted diseases and family planning, hypertension, diabetes, etc.
• Patient transports and home care: You may have the opportunity to help transport patients to hospitals or do home care during the mission.
• Pharmacy: You may be asked to organize and dispense medication and provide patient education on how to take and store medications appropriately and safely if we don’t have a clinical pharmacist on the team.

IMR is not a faith-based organization. We have volunteers, team leaders, in-country ground crew members, and patients from all faith backgrounds. Our focus is on improving the overall health of the communities that we serve.

IMR does not have the ability to recommend vaccinations for you personally, so you will need to consult with your healthcare provider. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has the most up-to-date recommendations for vaccinations. When you begin the vaccination process, your healthcare provider will pull up the CDC website at www.cdc.gov.

Your safety and security is the number-one priority of IMR. We have many protocols and policies in place to help ensure a smooth and uneventful mission, with the team’s safety and security always in the forefront. IMR staff will always monitor the situation and make arrangements for the safety and security of the team. There are things that IMR does to keep you safe in the field and things that YOU can do to keep yourself safe and healthy in the field.

Taken together, the following protocols, guidelines, and tips will help you have a safe and healthy journey.  We want you to feel 100% comfortable on every IMR mission mission; however, IMR cannot and does not guarantee your safety. There are inherent risks to travel and participating on medical and dental mission teams.  

IMR selects areas that:

1.  Are not active conflict zones
2.  We feel are safe
3.  We have long standing relationships with
4.  Are family friendly and where children are welcome
5.  You would want to visit!

We:

1. Go the extra mile to have local security support for our team
2. Provide a photo credential for each team member with U.S. Embassy contact information for your location on the back
3. Disclose mission specifics including the itinerary only with our team members
4. Provide business cards with an IMR email address for you to give to local people you meet on your journey
5. Ensure the current ground situation is monitored by our Security Committee
6. Register your team with U.S. Department of State

We are listed in Guidestar and our tax returns are public. You can print them from there. You may also see our most recent annual report on our Fiscal Accountability page on our website.

IMR’s team is registered with the United States Embassy and with the United States State Department. The U.S. Embassy maintains a list of physicians and other health care professionals who may see U.S. citizen patients when traveling outside the U.S. The Embassy does not guarantee their services or recommend any of the physicians. Medical facilities in rural areas are often limited.

It is very rare that a team member must be evacuated either to the U.S. or the closest most appropriate medical facility, which may be in a neighboring country. The cost incurred for this emergency service can be enormous. Protect yourself by having insurance that will cover the costs and get you out emergently if needed.

For international medical and evacuation insurance, you can obtain a quote from www.insuremymission.com for various medical insurance companies. Large carriers include the two below – please spend some time searching for the company and program that fits your needs. IMR does not endorse any companies listed – these are only a suggestion.

International SOS

Medjet Assist

IMR requires all licensed medical providers (doctors, dentists, nurses, EMTs, CNAs)  AND nursing, physician assistant, and medical/dental/nursing school students to carry malpractice insurance that covers them internationally. This will cover you in the event that a malpractice lawsuit is filed against you personally or against the team.

You have options for your malpractice insurance:

1. Your current malpractice insurance carrier. Check to make sure your current insurance coverage will cover you internationally. Please provide IMR with a copy of your policy.
2. Third-party insurance. As a convenience to you, you can purchase insurance through Global Development and Relief. All claims will need to be filed directly through the insurance carrier. International Medical Relief is not affiliated with the insurer and the insurance company is a third party.

Malpractice insurance is REQUIRED for all medical volunteers and is RECOMMENDED for all non-medical volunteers. Undergrads are considered non-medical volunteers.

YES. Malpractice insurance is REQUIRED for all medical volunteers and is RECOMMENDED for all non-medical volunteers. CNAs are considered medical volunteers because they have direct patient contact.