The More Robust Our Worth Becomes
Joan Pellegrini, MD, St. Joseph General Surgery and Urology
In 2023, Joan Pellegrini, MD, made her first medical mission trip to Chad in north-central Africa. She worked at Béré Adventist Hospital as a general surgeon for one month and was profoundly impacted by the experience. In January 2025, Pellegrini took her second trip. These are her reflections:
Why did you volunteer for a second medical mission trip to the same hospital in Chad?
Networking in the physician community is what originally brought the opportunity in Chad to my attention. I was intrigued by the need for surgical care and volunteered a second time because I enjoy developing relationships, I like commitment and my sincere goal was to effect lasting change.
How did your first and second mission trips differ?
My first visit was the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. I was challenged physically as the heat was intense, intellectually as I was striving to learn French to communicate with my patients and spiritually because I was more than 5,000 miles from my support system.
When I returned in 2025, I was confident. This time I was not the only surgeon on site, there was now a team of seven surgeons. Therefore, I was able to do more complicated hernia surgeries. I also performed procedures to care for women experiencing fetal demise as well as provided burn and wound care to children. In addition, because my French had improved, I began training local nursing students, which was rewarding. My second trip solidified the fact that the more you go back the more helpful you are because you know how things work.
How did your most recent trip experience impact you?
Volunteering in a country like Chad, where people live in mud huts, have no electricity and no running water put my life in the U.S. into perspective. I do know how blessed I am. However, while volunteering in Chad, I did not have control over much. I learned I needed to simply do was my best and hope for the best.
Working alongside other surgeons who were like minded and had a global point of view was wonderful. In my opinion, any experience that makes you think more broadly is valuable. Personally, I appreciated having the opportunity to contemplate what my role is in this world.
What advice would you give others who would like to give back to the world or their local community?
After reflecting on my experiences, I’m wholeheartedly convinced that everyone should get out of their comfort zone and do whatever they can to help other people. The more connected each one of us becomes to our world the more we learn, the more robust our worth becomes. If we don’t push ourselves to do new and hard things, we don’t grow. You will be helping someone else and positively impacting their life, however at the very same time, you’re becoming a better person and that’s a wonderful thing for our world.