Experience in Ecuador

Short-Term Programs
Experience in Ecuador

IPE 505: Interprofessional Education Experience in Ecuador

Course Description:

This interprofessional practice experience is dedicated to preparing students of the health professions at Utica University for interprofessional, collaborative practice of patient care through innovative (nationally and internationally recognized) practice experience. It is a zero to one credit hour experience that is composed of 15 hours of interaction in interprofessional practice setting with peers of different health professions to achieve appropriate patient/client care.

In Ecuador, participants will visit public, private, and nonprofit health facilities in two urban areas. The program starts in Quito, working in partnership with a local university with patient contact in a small private clinic and a large public hospital. Then the program moves to Santo Domingo, where a local nonprofit will facilitate patient contact hours in a marginalized neighborhood. In both locations, students will work in small interprofessional teams guided by a local medical practitioner and their Utica University professors. Students will also have time to experience the wonder and beauty of Ecuador’s natural attractions.

Course Objectives

Students will:

Learn about healthcare in Ecuador from faculty presentations and conversations with medical students and health professionals in Quito and a traditional healer in a rural community.
Gain firsthand experience working in small interprofessional teams with patients in a variety of settings.
Appreciate the unique strengths of modern and ancestral medicine and how they can be used jointly in a cross-cultural setting.

Fast Facts:

Next Cohort:
January 2024 (Tentative)

Eligibility:
All health-related majors welcome.

Pre-Requisites:
IPE 102 or IPE 504 (or permission of the instructor)

Faculty Leaders:
Colleen Sunderlin, PhD
Associate Professor of Occupational Therapy
Molly Hickey, DPT
Associate Professor of Physical Therapy
Janice Cecucci, DNP, FNP-BC
Assistant Professor of Nursing

Enrollment & Payment Schedule

Application & Deposit Deadline: September 1 with $500 deposit
Acceptance Notification: by October 1
Balance will be charged to student’s account for Spring semester
Payment of balance required before travel on December 30

Cancellation Policy
Utica University reserves the right to cancel this course for any reason, without penalty. If the course is cancelled, Utica University will make a full refund to applicants including the deposit.

Program Details

Ecuador is a country of staggering diversity and contrast, comprising an area smaller than the state of Colorado. Less than a day of travel in Ecuador can bring someone from the beaches of the Pacific Ocean high into the Andes Mountains staring at snow-capped peaks and then down into the jungles of the Amazon basin. In addition to a large mestizo population, Ecuador has 14 indigenous groups, each with its own language and traditions that often include ancestral medicine and spiritual healing.

Due to the high degree of economic disparity, access to healthcare in Ecuador is often inequitable. Ecuador has two primary healthcare platforms: a public healthcare system providing outpatient care to the general population, and the Social Security healthcare service providing care only to those formally employed. The latter is well equipped. The former is largely under-resourced. Despite these problems, Ecuador has come a long way over the last two decades. The country ranks 20th among most efficient healthcare countries of the world, compared to its ranking at 111th in the year 2000. Much of the progress is due to healthcare policy reform, yet inequalities in access and quality of care persist, affecting minority groups and rural populations in particular. Recent efforts have seen a fusion of Ecuador’s modern medicine with traditional, indigenous medicine. We will explore this idea during the proposed program.

Day 1:	Arrive in Quito in the evening
Day 2:	Orientation, Tour of Old Town Quito and Itchimbia Park
Day 3:	Learn about healthcare in Ecuador; meet medical students; IPE at a private health clinic
Day 4:	IPE at a large public health center; learn about mental health issues in Ecuador
Day 5:	Travel to Santo Domingo de los Tsa’chilas; IPE at family & community health center
Day 6:	Continue IPE; visit rural indigenous village; learn history and cultural heritage of Tsa’chilas people; IPE with indigenous healer during walk through rainforest
Day 7:	Continue IPE in community health center; visit cloud forest of Mindo & hike to waterfall
Day 8:	Stand on the Equator, visit hot springs in mountains near Quito; depart late evening

$2,500 (estimated) maximum per student depending on final enrollment numbers*; includes:

Ground transportation by private bus
Lodging in double rooms in budget hotels in Quito and Santo Domingo de los Tsa’Chilas
Breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day in Ecuador
Activities – all academic and cultural activities and excursions
International health & evacuation insurance
Guide and translator
Carbon offset for air travel

Program fee does NOT include round-trip airfare from Syracuse to Quito; airfare is estimated to be $1000-$1200 per person. Tuition for one credit (if desired) is included in the Spring 2023 tuition bill. Spring 2023 Financial Aid can be used for Program Fee.

Enrollment & Payment Schedule:

Application & Deposit Deadline: October 1, 2022 with $500 deposit
Acceptance Notification: rolling, within two weeks of application.
Balance will be charged to student’s account for Spring 2023.

* Twelve or more students must enroll for program fee to be reduced. Sixteen or more participants will reduce the program fee to $2000 per student.

Utica University reserves the right to cancel this course for any reason, without penalty. If the course is cancelled, Utica University will make a full refund to applicants including the deposit.

After admission into the program, the student is responsible for the full program fee. The deposit is nonrefundable. Should the student wish to withdraw from the program for any reason after admission, only recoverable expenses may be refunded. Utica University withdrawal/drop/add deadlines do not apply. The student must submit his/her intention to withdraw in writing.

Utica University will not be liable for any costs incurred by a participant in preparation for the trip, including nonrefundable or restricted airline tickets connecting to the course’s flights. Participants who miss any flights during the trip are responsible for their own costs to continue in the course or to return home.

Utica University does NOT provide travel insurance and recommends that each individual consider purchasing their own travel insurance policy in the event that the participant cannot attend the course.

Learn From Travel

Learn from Travel is a social enterprise founded by Roman Yavich, an expert in sustainable academic travel, with more than a decade of experience in community development and study abroad in Latin America. With a mission to enrich the traveler and the host, Learn from Travel provides life-changing global learning experiences to students while making a positive economic impact on the host community. We don’t just show your students the sights of the destination country. We arrange engaging discussions with community leaders, professionals, directors of nonprofit organizations, and other local experts from whom your students will gain invaluable insight. Our programs are culturally immersive to the greatest extent possible, resulting in strong connections between your students and host country nationals.

Routine vaccines are required. For more information, see the CDC page for Ecuador.
All participants will have international health insurance coverage provided by UHC which provides medical care and repatriation, if needed, in case of illness or accident.
Learn from Travel has a comprehensive Emergency Response Plan and program specific emergency risk analysis and plan. All vendors are fully vetted.