Infectious Diseases fellows get chance at rotation in Bolivia in 2025

The Division of Infectious Diseases and the Graduate Medical Education Office of the U of A College of Medicine – Tucson have signed a letter of agreement with the Hospital Clínico Viedma in Cochabamba, Bolivia, to host the division’s fellows for an annual rotation abroad for four weeks beginning this February, according to the division’s Monica Hinestroza Jordan, MD.

Terms of the agreement, signed this past August, run from Feb. 1, 2025, to Jan. 31, 2030. See a Q&A with Dr. Hinestroza and a mini-photo gallery below. Apply today!

Dr. Hinestroza, a clinical assistant professor, will accompany the fellows to Bolivia as rotation director this February. There’s currently a second-year ID fellow signed up for the trip, Varun Kaushal, MD. Others interested in applying can contact Dr. Hinestroza (hinestrozajordan@arizona.edu) or division coordinators, Richelle Clemente (rclemente@arizona.edu) and Carolyn Bothwell (cbothwell@arizona.edu).

“The ID Fellowship program is thrilled to establish an elective rotation with the Viedma Hospital in Cochabamba, Bolivia, as it expands the opportunities for our fellows to be engaged in global health,” said Elizabeth Connick, MD, professor and chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases.

Dr. Kaushal, who grew up in Las Vegas, said he’s excited about the rotation. He’s never been to Bolivia, although he has vacationed in Peru, Argentina and Brazil on two prior trips to South America. He’s simply looking to gain “experience and knowledge – that’s really it,” he said. “For sure, I’ll see a lot more tropical diseases that you don’t see here.”

Cochabamba is a city of about 630,000 people, the fourth largest in Bolivia, and lies southeast of the capital of La Paz in a valley along the Andes Mountains. It’s known as the “City of Eternal Spring” due to spring-like temperatures year-round.

Dr. Hinestroza was inspired to arrange this opportunity because she did a rotation herself at the Hospital Clínico Viedma in February 2023 (see photos below). Her interest in doing that rotation comes from her commitment to serving the underserved, particularly as someone who comes from a rural area of Latin America that was itself underserved.

A native of Pereira, Colombia, Dr. Hinestroza completed her medical degree at the Universidad Tecnológica de Pereira, which is on the Pacific or western side of that country east of the capitol of Bogotá. Afterward, she worked with a mobile health unit of the Colombian Red Cross in the nearby state of Chocó south of Panama before coming to the U.S. for her internal medicine and fellowship training in Philadelphia and the Boston area.

MINI-PHOTO GALLERY
Some photos of the Hospital Clínico Viedma and from Dr. Hinestroza’s rotation in Cochabamba, courtesy of the hospital and her (mouseover images for captions; click to enlarge):

   

   

(Photos courtesy of Monica Hinestroza Jordan, MD, and the Hospital Clínico Viedma)

Q&A ON NEW ROTATION
And a few more of Dr. Hinestroza's thoughts on creating this opportunity for trainees and students here:

How did you get involved with the Hospital Clínico Viedma in Cochabamba?
Dr. Hinestroza: I did an elective rotation in my second year as a fellow in the Infectious Diseases Fellowship at UMass – Worcester and have kept the relationship with the ID team at the hospital since then by participation on webinars and this year’s international infectious diseases conference remotely (via zoom).

Have you done any medical missions elsewhere?
Dr. Hinestroza: This was my first Global Health rotation while in training in the USA. But after medical school in Colombia, I was part of a mobile hospital with the Colombian Red Cross that brought primary care services to several communities along the Atrato River on the Pacific side of Colombia.

Was there an organization through which you were working in Cochabamba?
Dr. Hinestroza: I’m working directly with the Infectious Disease department of the hospital.

What can you tell us about the clinic and the area that it serves?
Dr. Hinestroza: The Viedma Hospital is a 3rd level university hospital with medical students and residents. It serves as a referral center for Cochabamba and surrounding cities.

What inspired you to do this?
Dr. Hinestroza: Coming from Latin America, I have always found it important to give back to my roots and share all the knowledge that I’m privileged to obtain by training and practicing in the USA.

What do you hope to share with fellows who take you up on this offer to work there?
Dr. Hinestroza: First, I’d like them to see how exciting it is to evaluate, diagnose and treat infectious diseases in low-resources settings. Secondly, this will give them exposure to some infections that are extremely infrequent in the USA and possibly some extreme forms of other communicable infections.

How many people can you take with you on this rotation?
Dr. Hinestroza: This academic year, one of the second-year fellows, Varum Kaushal, MD, is taking this elective. The number of trainees we take will likely depend on interest expressed. As of right now the PLA approval is limited to ID fellows, but we are open to extend this opportunity to residents and medical students in the following academic years.

ALSO SEE:
“Modest turnout for DOM DEI Mixer with great talk, sim lab experience” | Posted Nov. 7, 2024
“Fulfilling Hippocratic Oath includes sharing career advice to aspiring, other physicians” | Posted Oct. 4, 2024