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Stacy McConkey
My Jamaican story starts in
June of 1993, with my honeymoon. My husband Jeff and
I were married after my third year of medical
school. We celebrated our honeymoon at a resort in
Negril for a week. Of course, we had a wonderful
time in Jamaica,
enjoying the beauty of the island as well as the
warm welcome from the Jamaican people we
encountered. During our honeymoon, Jeff and I took
several trips outside the resort for activities. I
was struck by the disparities between the resort and
the communities on the island. I distinctly remember
seeing the Jamaican children playing in the
communities surrounding our resort, and thinking “I
wonder who gives them medical care?” by this time in
my medical career, I had decided that Pediatrics was
the choice for me, and hoped that I could find an
opportunity to return to Jamaica to provide them
medical care in the future.
The next
few years were very busy, with
completion and graduation from
medical school, completion of
my pediatric residency and the
start of my family and a
private practice in general
pediatrics in my hometown of
Geneseo, Illinois. In 2002, I
returned to the
University
of Iowa
as a faculty member in General Pediatrics. I am
currently still a practicing academic pediatrician,
with a focus on education as the Program Director of
the Pediatrics residency program and Vice Chair of
Education for the department of Pediatrics. In 2008,
I was paging through emails and found a request for
volunteers for a medical mission to Jamaica. Remembering my promise to
myself, I responded that I was interested.
After the team was assembled, it became
apparent that a medical director was required of the
group, and though I had no experience, I agreed to
try.
That was 2 trips ago, and many
emails and phone calls with Diane Pollard, who was
very patient with my learning curve (which was
pretty steep). We are now getting our 3rd
team ready to go, and I feel confident that we will
have a fantastic mission trip with a great group of
volunteers.
I have
been blessed to work with
wonderful people here in
Iowa, in Jamaica and in
the Issa Trust Foundation. I am awed by their
generosity and kindness towards children in need.
Participating in this mission has been a
growth experience for me as a physician and a
person- and I am truly thankful that I have been
able to contribute to the children of Jamaica.
Stacy McConkey
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