Caribbean Medical Mission (CMM) was founded 24 years ago by a group of physicians from Jamaica with the stated purpose of doing volunteer medical mission to Jamaica. However, over the years this mission has evolved to include the African diaspora in the Americas and as such our creed “Help the needy” entails providing services to other islands in the West Indies, countries in Central and South America. This has now included the needy in the mother continent. Members of CMM include a wide spectrum of nationalities and we keep a cosmopolitan outlook.
So far we have gone to Jamaica numerous times, Haiti twice, the first time was a few months after its devastating earthquake, Belize, Grenada, Dominica, St Vincent, Guyana, and twice over past 2 years, we have partnered with GAMA (Ghana Medical Mission) for medical mission in Ghana for 10 days each time. Each year we support financially a separate medical mission to Guyana sponsored by a group of Guyanese physicians and nurses.
CMM provides free health care and supplies to poor communities. A medical mission implies bringing hundreds of donated eyeglasses, purchased medications for diabetes, hypertension, arthritis, asthma, gastritis, peptic ulcer, common skin, pelvic or vaginal infections. Lately we have expanded our offerings by including dental extraction. This is made possible by volunteers who believe in helping others. A mission trip also means participants pay for their airfare and hotel fee. CMM provides transportation to and from airport both in the US and at our destination and 3 meals a day during the mission duration.
Besides providing free care, education about lifestyle changes becomes part and parcel of our work. We teach locals about healthy eating, exercise and all the simple measures that make a difference in addition to taking meds.
Mission trips are costly. Buying supplies, medications and paying for transportation cost as well meals do add up quickly. Again, we rely on our fund-raising activities to underwrite such expenses. We pay no salary and all money collected goes straight to our benevolent endeavors.
In the US, health fairs are organized. We are involved in either partnered events or as solely CMM-sponsored events.
