Medical and Impact Mission Fundraiser
MeJo Liao
Join this fundraiser and help make an impact in the lives of families in need of surgical care.
Guatemala City, Guatemala
Population: 1 million
Language: Spanish
Living in Poverty: 60%
Poverty Defined: Earning less than $150 US a month
Mission Facts
Fundraising Goal:
$150,000
Volunteers:
Surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurses, and medical support staff
Impact: The Osborne Head & Neck Foundation (OHNF) delivers life-saving and life-changing surgical care to communities in need around the globe. Through our annual Medical Mission we connect expert volunteer surgeons with those suffering in remote areas of developing nations. Past missions have included Ethiopia, India and Peru.
Fundraiser Profile
Join Me And Change Lives In Ghana
In the summer of 2023, I had the privilege of receiving a scholarship for the MSP program. Subsequently, I became a Medical Intern, where I had the opportunity to interact with patients and their families, learn invaluable skills, and scrub into incredible surgeries. This summer, as the Medical Scholars Program Coordinator, I’ve been able to share my passion with a group of similarly minded students. During this time, I’ve come to recognize that the meaning of medicine extends far beyond the Operating Room. Besides technique and anatomy, medicine is the art of service, compassion, and connection.
This has become increasingly clear to me when I visited my cousins every summer in my mom’s village on the outskirts of China. My time there was a stark contrast to my life in the United States. When I was young, I was charmed by my cousins’ rural lifestyle. With each subsequent visit, however, I came to recognize their harsh realities, especially when it came to access to healthcare. I witnessed firsthand my cousin being unable to reach a doctor close enough for an infection, my uncle refusing to treat his pneumonia due to the cost of healthcare, and, finally, the passing of my grandmother from undiagnosed lung cancer. My experiences fuel my commitment to serve and resolve to make medical care accessible to all, a passion I will bring with me on this mission trip to Ghana.
Of the 33.8 million Ghanaians, there are only about 50 ENT doctors, most of whom are based in major cities. In more rural regions, access to specialized care is limited or nonexistent, leaving many patients with head and neck tumors to go untreated. Conditions that would be considered treatable in the U.S. often progress to life-threatening stages simply due to the lack of access. Because of this critical need, the Osborne Head & Neck Foundation will travel to Ghana in October to provide specialized medical care, offer surgical treatment, and support local healthcare providers.
In October, I will be assisting the Foundation with life-changing surgeries that serve a community in need on this mission. Your support plays a vital role in making my journey to Ghana possible, and I am sincerely grateful for anything that you are able to contribute.
Together we can change lives. Learn More about your impact.
I’ve committed to raising $15,000 towards Medical and Impact Missions in Ghana. With your support we can change lives.
You’re supporting communities with little to no access to medical care, and helping provide a wide array of medical services.
Your donation is…
- Providing clinical and surgical services, at no cost, to those living in extreme poverty in Ghana, Africa.
- Arranging and paying for transportation for patients living in remote villages
- Providing local language experts to eliminate language as a barrier to care
- Securing lodging for patients in the city during treatment and post op care
- Refreshing a orphanage and school with onsite community works
- Increasing access to educational opportunities for children
Fundraising
Make A Gift!
Your gift makes a major impact in the life of someone in need. By donating you are providing surgical care, shelter, food and transportation for families around Ghana who don’t have access to the critical medical attention they need. Thank you.
Ghana, Africa
Language: English and Akan
Living in Poverty: 24% of Ghanaians live below the poverty line.
Progress in Poverty Reduction:
Ghana has made significant strides in reducing poverty since the 1990s, halving the national poverty incidence from 51.7% in 1991
Poverty Defined: Earning less than $11 a day
Key barriers to healthcare access:
- More than half (53%) of Ghanaians or someone in their household experienced not having medicines or medical treatment at least once in the past year
- Geographic inaccessibility: poor road networks, and limited transport options are major obstacles
- Cost: High transportation costs and drug expenses
- Low spatial access to physicians and health facilities: Long travel distances for many to reach care.
- Inadequate distribution of health personnel: A significant disparity exists between urban and rural areas, with the majority of health personnel concentrated in urban centers.
Mission Facts
Volunteers: Surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurses, medical support staff, and concerned humanitarians like you.
Impact:
The Osborne Head & Neck Foundation (OHNF) provides life-saving and life-changing surgical care to communities in need around the globe.
Through annual Medical Missions we connect expert volunteer surgeons with those suffering in remote areas of developing nations. Impact Mission volunteers simultaneously work towards improving the lives of underserved children and those living in poverty in the same region.
Past missions have included Ethiopia, Belize, India, Peru, and Guatemala.
Ghana Impact Mission
Learn more about how your gift makes an impact.
Guatemala Impact Mission
Learn more about how your gift makes an impact
Donate & Change A Life
Your Gift Changes Lives
Thank you for your support!
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