UQTR students will bring chiropractic to Bolivia

May 6, 2013 — Eight fourth year students from the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières (UQTR) chiropractic program will be heading to Cochabamba in Bolivia in August 2013 on a chiropractic humanitarian mission under the umbrellas of Chiropratique sans Frontièrs and Eclosïon.

Jessica Dallaire, David Rouleau, Pamela Mimeault, Alexandre Bellemare, Joliane Hivon, Stéphanie Deschênes, Catharine Savaria-Lachance, and Laura Benhaïm are interns at the university chiropractic clinic who consider their participation in this initiative as formative training as well as an inspiring experience that will give them the opportunity to share their knowledge and profit a destitute community.

Bolivia is a democratic republic with a poverty rate of about 60 percent. Bolivians are mainly involved in agriculture, forestry, and fishing, although textiles manufacturing, mining, and refined petroleum are also sources of income in some parts of the country. The tedious work involved in many of these occupations is a cause of the muscular and joint pain that much of the population suffers from. This quickly turns into chronic pain, affecting the society’s productivity and the lifestyles of many Bolivians.

Healthcare access is difficult, in Bolivia and the demand for specialists in muscle and joint pain issues is real and urgent. At present no permanent chiropractor is listed in Bolivia. Cochabamba is a very disadvantaged community in Bolivia. The presence of these students will contribute to improving the health of the local people while helping them to develop healthy living habits and invest more on the prevention of sickness. The mission, therefore, will include an educational component to complement the free health services that will be offered to the people of this community.

Chiropratique Sans Frontiers (www.chiropratiquesansfrontieres.ca) is an arm of Chiropractors without Borders (CWB), a project intended to provide voluntary chiropractic care to poorer populations of developing countries; to offer spinal hygiene advice; and to support the development of local competencies. All CWB interventions are overseen by Health without Borders (HWB) along with local partners.

The mission of Eclosïon (www.eclosion.ws) is to contribute to the humane development of disadvantaged countries through international cooperation and education. The organization facilitates the participation of university students in the development of the poorest world communities. This national cooperation movement helps to contribute to the achievement of the United Nations Milennium Goals for the development and globalization of superior education in Canada.

The students of the UQTR mission group are asking for financial support to help make their mission a success, not only for the people in Bolivia but also for Canadians who will benefit from the expertise these future chiropractors will gain from participation in this mission.

Source: Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, uqtr.ca