Kimberly Cox ’22DPT and Shannon Hawke ’22DPT recently returned from an international opportunity to practice their skills in Belize.

Joined by mentor Kathleen Fortier, PT, DPT, MBA, they participated in a four-week partnership with Hillside Health Care International in the country’s Toledo District. Hillside is an interdisciplinary organization that serves the surrounding community in outpatient, home health, and mobile clinic contexts. Hillside also provides a comprehensive didactic curriculum while in-country including case presentations, review of the local cultures (Mayan, Creole, Garifuna, East Indian, Chinese), and discussion of the community-based rehabilitation model.

When Drs. Cox and Hawke were not treating patients or attending classes, they had ample opportunities to immerse themselves in the local culture with visits to nearby Mayan ruins and lessons from a local business owner on how to make chocolate.

This was Arcadia DPT’s second in-country partnership with Hillside. Two groups of Arcadia students from both the residential and hybrid pathways will head there for two- and four-week experiences in 2023.