Lilian Mekhail, MD
Morristown Medical Center Pediatrics PGY3

They say you can leave Haiti but Haiti never leaves you. My January 2016 global health trip to Haiti taught me a lifetime of lessons that I will never forget. Secondary to a winter storm, our one-week trip was condensed to 5 days. We visited 4 clinics seeing many patients. The children line one by one in the hot sun in their Sunday best to come to clinic to see a doctor. I sit on a bench in the heat seeing one patient after another and I realize my true purpose. After 4 years of medical school and almost 3 years of residency, I have devoted a big portion of my life to my education. I took the Hippocratic Oath on graduation day. But what will I do with that responsibility? This global health trip to Haiti taught me my responsibility. Haiti, like so many other developing countries in the world, needs aid. Whether you are an educator, medical health professional, or want to offer a helping hand, Haiti is the place for you if you would like to see a world outside of yourself. I am grateful that I have the basic needs of life but I realize that I have a grave responsibility to give back to those who don't.