I Found My Career in Guatemala!

-By Peter (Pedro) Hasiakos-

"Okay Pedro, this is the area of the hospital you'll be working in for the next six weeks," explained Ana Francis as she dropped me off at the maternity ward of Clínica Periférica for my first day at my volunteer placement as part of an Intern Abroad program with Cross-Cultural Solutions. I entered the mint green room and was greeted by a group of smiling nurses. I then looked over at the other side of the room to see several very pregnant mothers who, to say the least, were slightly less chipper.

The nurses nonchalantly offered to order me some tortillas and beans if I was hungry. Food?! At a time like this? I didn't understand how they were so calm and collected. Women were screaming, babies were trying to make their escapes, and the doctors were somewhere off in other parts of the hospital. All I could think to myself was "Am I going to be able to handle six weeks of this?"

It turns out I was able to handle it. By the end of the program, I had helped deliver three babies, clipped several umbilical cords, performed an episiotomy, and had a Guatemalan mother squeeze my arm so hard during her contractions that I saw my life flash before my eyes. My volunteer placement was a rare treasure, although at first I may not have realized it. Not all of the interns had a chance to do what I did, and I probably still don't truly appreciate just how lucky I was.

There were two main reasons I became interested in doing a Cross-Cultural Solutions internship in Guatemala. First, I wanted to have a chance to immerse myself in the culture and language. Second, I wanted to get exposure to the medical field because deadlines for decisions about coursework and MCAT registration were approaching. I really needed a boost of confidence to answer some personal questions: Did I want to deal with the responsibility of a medical career? Could I adjust to a medical setting?

To put it simply, my time as an intern in Guatemala gave me the perspective and confidence I needed to begin pursuing a medical career. At the clinic, I was able to adjust to a completely new (and often hectic) medical setting. The physicians taught me a holistic perspective of healing and about the needs of patients. I was able to practice and improve my Spanish, interact with patients and hence get a small taste of the responsibility of a physician. Our regular intern meetings with the CCS Intern Supervisor helped put all of these new experiences in context. The personal relationships I developed over the six weeks, both with the people at the clinic and with my fellow interns, are things I will always cherish.

I arrived in Guatemala with high hopes but not rigid expectations, and I think that was the most important preparation of all. My internship was ideal, but that was, in a sense, the icing on the cake. While there, I was treated with love and care by not only my internship mentors but by the local people. Maybe I shouldn't have been so surprised, then, to feel so emotional walking through the Guatemala City departure terminal when it was time to leave. I was leaving one new home and family, to go back to another.

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