Site Visit: Bicol University, Philippines

Written by: Anastasia Zholud

At the end of June, Dr. Mariah McNamara, Associate Director for Global Health at the University of Vermont Larner College of Medicine, and Anastasia Zholud, Global Health Electives Coordinator, traveled to Legazpi City in the Bicol Region of the Philippines to visit our valued partners at Bicol University College of Medicine.

The trip was planned to coincide with the start of the Global Health Elective (GHE) for two first-year UVM LCOM students, (names), who are undergoing their elective rotations at Bicol University — making this both a site visit and a meaningful opportunity to support students on the ground from day one.

During the ten-day stay, we met with the BUCM leadership team — including University President Dr. Baby Boy Benjamin D. Nebres III, Dean of the College of Medicine Dr. Ofelia Samar-Sy, Associate Dean Dr. Jerelyn Adviento, College Secretary Dr. Karen Gregorio, and Dr. Ricardo Isip, Chair of Internationalization — to review the current GHE curriculum and explore opportunities to consolidate and expand the experience for future participants. We were also delighted to visit the Bicol University College of Nursing, which offered an inspiring look at the breadth of health professions education the university provides.

Dr. McNamara, whose dedication to global health education has long been central to this partnership, also delivered two lectures for BU students and faculty during the visit, adding an invaluable academic dimension to the trip.

A highlight of the visit was participating in the BU Floating Clinic mission — a program that delivers essential healthcare services to geographically isolated coastal communities that would otherwise have limited access to care. What was anticipated to serve around 170 patients drew nearly twice that number, speaking powerfully to the need and the reach of this initiative. For GHE participants, the floating clinic experience remains one of the most distinctive and memorable components of the Global Health Elective in the Philippines.

This was our team's third visit to Bicol, and it is heartwarming to see how the partnership has grown with each return — how the conversations go deeper, the trust grows stronger, and the shared vision becomes clearer. The warmth, dedication, and hospitality of our Bicol colleagues continue to inspire us, and we left Legazpi grateful and energized for what lies ahead.