Global REACH
Research, Education and Collaboration in Health

Students for Jamaica

Watch the video:

Who We Are:
Students for Jamaica is a humanitarian service group that works in the town of Hagley Gap, Jamaica, where about 3,000 people live. The group is comprised of medical students and engineering students—but we’re open to anybody joining and we’re currently looking to establish teams from other U-M schools. Our partnership with the College of Engineering team is organized through BLUELab, an engineering service group. Our medical teams include both pre-clinical students and fourth-year medical students, who participate as part of a clinical rotation run through the Department of Family Medicine.

In Jamaica we partner with the Blue Mountain Project, a U.S. 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that maintains a year-round health clinic in Hagley Gap.

What We Do:
We provide direct assistance to the community of Hagley Gap, where average wages are $100 USD per month and unemployment ranges from 25 – 50 percent. In 2006-2007, our first medical trip saw 160 patients, refurbished the health clinic with a new shelving system, and donated approximately $10,000 worth of medical supplies during our week-long trip.

Our medical students work directly with U-M physicians to provide direct medical care to members of the Hagley Gap community, and our engineering students design and implement projects to improve the standard of living in Hagley Gap. In 2007-2008, our program is expanding to a month-long health clinic run from February – March and the installation of the town’s only water purification system.

Our 2006-2007 trip report is available here

Where We Work:
Hagley Gap is located in St. Thomas Parish, in the Blue Mountains region of eastern Jamaica. It is about 3 hours from Kingston, the capital of Jamaica, by car.

How To Get Involved:
Just email us, talk to us, or come to a meeting! We can be reached at studentsforjamaica@gmail.com. We welcome students from all disciplines.

Applications:
Because only a limited number of people are able to join us in Jamaica, we require that interested students complete two application forms—one for the Blue Mountain Project, with whom we work, and one for our own records.

Blue Mountain Project forms: Guidelines / Application / Reference
Students for Jamaica form: Jamaica 2007 Application