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A volunteer trip to Ecuador gave Decker College of Nursing and Health Sciences students Najalie Medina ’25 and Ashley Marmolejos ’25 a chance to practice their skills while helping rural residents with their healthcare needs.

In early January, the two senior nursing students traveled with the nonprofit organization MEDLIFE (Medicine, Education and Development for Low-Income Families Everywhere) to work in mobile clinics and maintain pharmacy services for the South American nation’s indigenous tribes.

Both students thanked Decker for teaching them professionalism, empathy and advocacy when treating patients, helping them “keep an open mind,” Marmolejos said.

The weeklong trip included mobile clinics that traveled to each community for a day of work. The first stop was a triage station, where the students registered each patient, took initial vital signs and prepared them for their visit. Next, there was an education station that showed videos about sexually transmitted infections, heart diseases and other common ailments.

Finally, at the doctor’s station, patients were offered three options: dental care, an OB/GYN exam or a general doctor. The general doctor was for patients who weren’t sure what to see a doctor for.

“They made every girl see the OB/GYN,” Medina said. She appreciated this because not every girl has the confidence to advocate for her health and this requirement eliminated any embarrassment for the female patients.

A nutritionist also created meal plans that were realistic and attainable, based on what each community had available and what the patients already had in their diets.

“She’s not going to tell somebody who’s been drinking coffee for 70 years to not drink coffee, but maybe only drink one cup versus two or three,” Medina said.

MEDLIFE travels to indigenous villages year-round, and Marmolejos and Medina helped them to establish running water. According to Medina, they hadn’t had running clean water for the last three to four years, so MEDLIFE established a pipeline.

To do this, the group split in two. The first group climbed up the mountain to cover the pipes that had been laid previously. The second group remained on the flat ground, planting potatoes, corn, carrots and other indigenous vegetables to create an irrigation-like system.

“Seeing how MEDLIFE brought that community together as a whole, even with the limited resources that they have, was really eye-opening, and I was very grateful for the experience,” Medina said.

The trip changed Medina and Marmolejos’ lives and the lives of those they helped. It allowed them to use the skills taught in their courses at Decker College, specifically the hands-on skills.

When thinking about nursing conduct, specifically patient confidentiality and general empathy, Medina said, “Decker does a really good job of engraving those things into you early.” Both felt this added to their level of professionalism and contributed to the gratitude that each patient expressed.

Marmolejos appreciated that she had the experience alongside Medina: “I’ve been with Najalie since freshman year; to see our growth was special to me.” She added, “[My] favorite day was the second med clinic with the kids because they are just generally so innocent.”

Medina echoed the sentiment. “Doing [the trip] with somebody who has watched me struggle through nursing school made my experience 10 times better. We started together and we’re finishing together.”

Marmolejos added: “Being a nursing major, my purpose is to help anyone who needs help.” With the help of Decker College and the MEDLIFE organization, she feels she helped people who truly needed it while also experiencing her own growth.