Riverside, Calif. (July 22, 2014) – A volunteer team from California Baptist University's College of Allied Health has returned from East Africa after working for three weeks providing healthcare. Three faculty and 10 students used their skills and training to help a fieldworker who is a physical therapist.

The team had a four-tiered strategy, said Dr. Sean Sullivan, chair of the department of kinesiology, who was a member of the team.  In addition to working with the fieldworker, giving rehabilitative care in a hospital, they also provided health education at the hospital, a physical education class at a school and worked in a fitness facility.

Although the patients were diverse, the primary group for rehabilitative care were women who were house workers with low-back injuries, Sullivan said and because the local infrastructure isn't the same as in the U.S., the group worked with a minimal amount of equipment.

"Students had to be creative in how they treated patients," Sullivan said. "Many of them realized how advanced the training is (at CBU and in the U.S.) and how privileged they are to have access to the types of tools that they have. I think many of them realized that they took for granted what most people didn't even have access to. That was part of the learning experience, as well as to see patients who were really grateful for any type of service that could be offered."

It was the second consecutive year that Sullivan helped lead a team to East Africa as CBU builds a relationship with the fieldworker.

"This was a great second step in an ongoing relationship for the college and for the university in Africa and God seems to be blessing it," he said. "It was confirmation from God that He can use me and other faculty in real ways as we lead students to integrate their faith in service to others in specific ways according to their training and it was also a reminder that we can serve others using our professional training anywhere."