January – Dept of Surgery Teaching Labs
Several cartons of expired and/or specialized surplus items that were not suitable for global health donation were repurposed for teaching procedures to our medical professional students, residents and fellows. These donations help reduce waste while also reducing purchasing costs for our teaching labs.
February – Philippines
A donation of 6 shipping totes of miscellaneous medical and surgical supplies was made to Mercy House of the Philippines with the help of Brianna Lareau, and EMT who has volunteered for several years with this organization that provides medical outreach to children living on the streets of Manila.
March – Turkey
With the help of Duke Engineering graduate student, Mert Gokduman, we organized 4 pallets of medical supplies for donation to his home country of Turkey following the devastating earthquake that occurred on February 6. Three pallets were distributed by the Turkish Ministries of Health and the fourth by medical faculty at Inonu University.
April – Guatemala
For several years, Duke Nursing School students have brought supplies to maternal care facilities in the mountains of Guatemala with the cooperation of Curamericas Global. In partnership with the Guatemalan Ministry of Health, Curamericas supports five community-operated or owned Casas Maternas (birthing homes), which are open 24-hours a day, seven days a week, throughout the rural highlands of northwestern Guatemala. Curamericas’ Casa Maternas are culturally-adapted birthing facilities that provide Mayan women with medical care and support during their pregnancy, delivery and after the birth. https://giving.dukehealth.org/why-give/meet-medical-nursing-students/duke-nursing-students-make-a-difference-in-guatemala
May – Sierra Leone
KDU North Carolina is a chapter of Krio Descendants Union, which was founded to unite the Creole people and the Oku people of Sierra Leone during the decolonization era. The NC Chapter has been active for several years to provide medical supplies to Connaught hospital in the capital, Freetown. This year we donated 45 cartons of surplus medical, surgical and orthopedic supplies, coordinated with help of Duke nurse, Edna Taylor.
May – Durham, NC
Several first-year Duke medical students began volunteering to provide hygiene kits to one of Durham’s homeless shelters and are working with our REMEDY program to help supply toiletries and other personal care items to stock these kits.
August – Guatemala
We provided 3 cartons of supplies for another Duke School of Nursing student learning and service trip to Huehhuetenango, Guatemala in conjunction with Curamericas.
September – Ukraine
Six shipping pallets (about 120 boxes), 2 wheelchairs and 3 pairs of crutches were donated to Ukrainians in the Carolinas, a non-profit group who has been working for several years to assist with the treatment and rehabilitation of victims of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
October – Gaza, Palestine
Duke medical student, Anna Gnaedinger, with the help of classmates and friends, flew 6 extra-large bags of medical supplies to Cairo, Egypt for distribution to victims of the war in Gaza. Anna was able to coordinate this donation through the non-profit MedGlobal and the Egyptian Red Crescent.
December 2, 2023 – Durham Rescue Mission
Duke Medical and PA students volunteered to serve meals and offered free toiletry items at the Durham Rescue Mission’s shelter for men.
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TOTAL VOLUNTEER HOURS FOR 2023 : 226
