Instead of spending Spring Break like other college students, a group of Nicholls nursing students went on a medical mission to Granada, Nicaragua April 12-18.The 11 nursing students were accompanied by Adrienne Bethancourt, associate professor of nursing, the Rev. Jim Morrison of the St. Thomas Aquinas Center and two students from the St. Thomas Aquinas Center. Also accompanying the group were a pediatrician, certified nurse midwife and a certified pediatric nurse practitioner serving as an interpreter.

Upon arriving in Granada, the students visited the hospital in the city. “We visited the hospital in Granada, which is a relatively new hospital, but it is very primitive by United State standards,” Bethancourt said. “They do well with what they have, but they have very few supplies.”

She said that all the patients, when admitted to the hospital, must purchase all the supplies that will be used on them during their stay in the hospital.

The students also held two open clinics. The first one was at Mother Teresa of Calcutta’s Home for abused girls, unwed mothers and soup kitchen. The group saw over 300 patients in seven hours in that one day. “It was wonderful and we helped a lot of people, but we were all real tired at the end of the day, hot and tired,” Bethancourt said.

The second clinic was at Hogar de Ninos de Cristo Sana, which is a home for street kids. The group saw between 50-75 patients that day. Some of the health problems the group treated the patients for were gastrointestinal worm infestations, upper respiratory infections, skin infections and malnutrition.

The group also had fun activities for the children at each clinic location. They played with kids who were waiting in line and had pi¤ata parties. At Mother Teresa of Calcutta’s Home, they had a pizza party and musical instruments.

They brought the kids from Hogar de Ninos de Cristo Sana to San Juan del Sur beach. The family of a Nicholls student who is from Nicaragua invited the group and the street kids to their home, where they had a pool party, went horseback riding and had Mass.

The students on the trip had a day of fun for themselves. The students went on a canopy tour, where they were able to see the countryside.

The unused supplies were donated to Mother Teresa of Calcutta’s Home, Hogar de Ninos de Cristo Sana and the hospital. The monetary donations, that the group did not use, went to build a house for a family of nine.

To prepare for the mission, the group held weekly meetings. One of the purposes of these meetings was to prepare the group for the conditions they would face. “We had talked a lot about how it was going to be way different, but I think still the extent of the poverty is just shocking to see,” Bethancourt said.

She described seeing 16 people occupying a one-room house without floors. “It is amazing how some people just survive day to day.”

One student told Bethancourt, “We are so spoiled in the United States.”

“The attitude in the U.S. is more entitlement, whereas (in Granada)… they are just grateful for another day on the planet,” Bethancourt said.

The people of Granada were appreciative of the group’s mission. One of their interpreters said he was grateful for the group coming to help his people, Bethancourt said.

“I think the students took away a lot of really positive memories,” Bethancourt said. “I do not think there was one single person that went whose heart was not touched by the people and what we saw.”

She said she would like to thank everyone who helped with the fundraisers or gave donations.

The group is planning to go back to Granada. Bethancourt explains that the program will likely expand from being only a medical mission, and allow others besides nursing students, to attend the mission.

“There were two guys that came with us that were from St. Thomas Aquinas, and they were not nursing students, but they just pitched right in and worked hard and did great,” she said. She also hopes that more faculty members will go on the next mission.

She said that the group accomplished far more than the initial goals they set before the trip.