October 4, 2024 • 30 mins
Dr. Tadia Diallo is the global health manager for Medical Bridges. We discuss how she came to Texas from Guinea and Medical Bridges' mission to bring medical supplies to healthcare workers across nations in need. These supplies are donated to Medical bridges by our hospital community and volunteers prepare them to for shipment. We also describe the awesome clinics on wheels built by students of A&M University. Go to: www.medicalbridges.org
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Speaker 1 (00:06):
Welcome to Houston, PA, Houston's public affairs show, an iHeartMedia broadcast.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Our list.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
Flamber says that the opinions express on the show do
not necessarily reflect those held by this radio station, its
management staff, or any of its advertisers. My name is
laurent I am the Texan from France and I get
to welcome another immigrant on the show where two today.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
Her name is doctor Tadia Diallo. She is the global
health manager for Medical Bridges. You've heard me interview Walter Ulrich,
their CEO, several times. He's also a US Marine Corps retired,
Always a Marine Corps member if you've become marine right.
He's been on the show several times to describe the
(00:51):
mission of the organization, which is to send medical aid
and medical supplies to parts of the world where they
are needed. They have a team of A and M
students whom every year build them an examination room inside
a shipping container. You can picture these big you know,
the big boats that travel across the world, and they've
(01:13):
got all these big rectangular shipping containers on them. Those
things fit on trucks. Well. The A and M, the
Texas A and M students grab one of these trucks
and one of these great containers, and they outfit the
inside with clean walls that can be cleaned, and they
basically install a medical examination room inside this trailer. And
(01:35):
I'm talking about air conditioning and all the facilities that
you would expect out of an examination room, including the tools.
They might set one up for dentistry, so it'll have
a dentist chair, and then the students. Once they're done
building this beautiful examination room, they put it on a truck,
they drive it over to Houston, and Medical Bridges dispatches
(01:56):
it to a place on the planet that is underserved.
Have They're one of those organizations that does this correctly too.
They don't just send gifts like this to the world.
They send people along or they make sure that if
the examination room is sent to a poorer country, that
there's somebody there to welcome it that can actually put
(02:16):
it to good use. And their program is so beautiful
and inspiring. That's the reason why I like to keep
talking about them. They're they're they're actually the perfect representation
of the Houston spirit. And doctor Tadiadiallo is their global
health manager. I have to ask you, doctor Diallo, what
does that mean what is a global health manager at
(02:36):
an organization like Medical Bridges. Well, I should say before
I let me interrupt you before you start speaking, and
say that Medical Bridges is online at medical bridges dot org.
Medical bridges dot org. You can volunteer. You can also
donate a little money or a lot if you can.
It makes a difference. And go ahead, doctor Yellow, tell
(02:58):
us a little bit about Medical Bridges. We want to
reintroduce it.
Speaker 3 (03:02):
Hi, Lauren, thank you for having me. You're welcome, be
happy to be here. Yes, So, as you mentioned, Medical
Bridges is an NGO that operates in the healthcare field.
So we provide medical equipment and supplies to undersolve communities
around the world. So my role as a global health
Manager is to support the health initiatives around the world
(03:24):
by providing medical equipment and supplies in these communities.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
So you're one of the people who determines where you're
going to send your precious supplies. We should explain how
you get your supplies because I love the mobile examination room.
That's something straight out of a James Bond movie in
a way. It's so cool, the technology and the way
they put it on the truck and move it around
(03:50):
the world is absolutely unbelievable. But there's something that's actually
bigger and even more impressive about medical bridges, and that
is that all the medical supplies that you and around
the world are actually donated to you by our enormous
medical community. Can you explain to us how that works?
Speaker 3 (04:08):
Right? So, absolutely so. We do collaborate with the hospitals
and clinics. The opportunity we have is that we are
located in Houston, and Houston hosts the largest medical center
in the world. So we work with hospitals like Texas
Children Hospital, Memorial Herman and so many other hospitals that
(04:29):
donate the medical equipment and supplies to us, and once
we get them, we have two trucks that go out
to the medical center every day to get these donations
and they bring it to us. We have a team
that will sort all the medical supplies, and we have
a biotechnician who's in place who will review all the
(04:51):
medical equipment to make sure it's working before we send
it out.
Speaker 2 (04:56):
And this guy, this medical technician, who makes sure that
all the dialysis machines, for instance, are working. He is
a self taught gentleman. He's a man who is just
gifted with mechanical and electronics, and I got to meet
him when I visited the facility, and he explained to
(05:17):
me that he just reads the notes on how the
machine functions and goes through the mechanical parts and the
electronic parks to make sure it's kind of amazing how
the whole thing works. We should also explain that the
reason you're getting all these donations from these hospitals is
because there's a tremendous amount of its waste. Essentially, it
(05:37):
is created by the medical community. And I guess the
easiest way to explain is that if you're going in
for an operation, let's say they're going to fix a hernia,
they're going to prepare all the tools, all the materials
that they need to fix your hernia. They're also going
to unwrap and prepare all the tools they may need
in the case of an emergency. If something goes wrong
(06:00):
during the operation, they'll be ready with the right tools,
which will most often not be used, but they've been unwrapped,
which means that they can't be used again front of
the patient. And as Walter always explained several times on
the show, it's just too expensive. You would need a
different building, a new facility for each hospital just to
(06:22):
recycle these materials, and they used to be thrown away.
They literally would just send them to the landfill.
Speaker 3 (06:28):
It's the medical curtcross, you know, and it costs it
will cost millions to recycle those, but it also even
wasting it costs millions. So as you mentioned that, in
an operation room, those will be the instruments, right we
send the supplies that we send are unused and unopened.
(06:48):
But with the medical with the instruments and those kind
of things that they open but they don't use, they
don't need to us, which can still be reused, you know.
And then with the medical equipmentlogy is evolving, you know,
and clinics and hospitals in developing countries like to be
on top of the game. So once they will have
some equipments for a few years and then want to
(07:11):
change them, and the equipment are still working and it's
still in good conditions. So instead of drawing those they
were rather donated to us and then get the new equipment.
Speaker 2 (07:22):
Yeah. So an example of that might be a dialysis machine,
for instance, or a dental X ray machine that sits
in the office. That's the kind of thing that can
be in this mobile examination room. It can be mounted
to the side of the trailer. And obviously it might
not be the most modern thing, it might be five
ten years old, but if it still works, it still works.
Speaker 3 (07:44):
Correct and thinking about the impact it does on the
other side. You know many doctors here you go on
medical missions and they see the lack in countries that
they go, so that motivates hospital to also put that
aside for those needs.
Speaker 2 (07:58):
And isn't that part of your job? So you identify
where the need is right.
Speaker 3 (08:02):
Right, right?
Speaker 2 (08:03):
So how do you do that?
Speaker 3 (08:05):
So I collaborate closely with partners. We have partners we
have at this point we have work. We have served
one hundred and six countries, so we have partners in
all those countries. So when there is a need or
we know that we know the countries that are under served,
communities that are on the SERF and developing countries, so
(08:26):
we work directly with those partners. And another way to
identify is when there is, for example, a war somewhere
or when there is a disaster somewhere, so we know
there is a need for medical equipment and supplies to
help healthcare workers take care of those in need. We
always make sure that there is a saying that Wealter
(08:48):
likes to remind that his mom said the road to
hell is paved with good intentions.
Speaker 2 (08:53):
That's right.
Speaker 3 (08:54):
So us having the medical equipment and supplies and just
sending it because we want to send it doesn't always help.
So that's why we want to make sure that we
work with people on the ground to know what they needs.
I mean, I am from a developing country and I
went to medical school.
Speaker 2 (09:11):
Should tell us where you're from? I forgot to ask Guinea.
Speaker 3 (09:14):
Yes, I'm from Guinea, which is a developing country, and
that's where I completed my medical degree. So I understand
the healthcare system and the lack of essential medical resources.
But that might not be exactly the same everywhere else,
although it's similar. So we have I still have to
talk to people on the ground there to know what
(09:35):
their needs are and that what we are doing is
meeting their needs instead of just sending things.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
So it sounds like you spend a lot of time
in conversation with people over the internet or on the phone.
You must have a lot of friends in every corner
of the planet.
Speaker 3 (09:51):
I feel like I've traveled in an office.
Speaker 2 (09:54):
Do you have the opportunity to travel with Did you
go on some of these missions?
Speaker 3 (09:58):
I haven't. I've been. I joined Medical Bridges in it's
about a year and now.
Speaker 2 (10:04):
Oh okay, so you're new, you're kind of new.
Speaker 3 (10:08):
Yeah, yeah, but I do. We have visits people from
with government officials, you know, with the healthcare workers. So
I really meet people at the office or at the event,
or talk to people on the phone or through emails
all over the world.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
Yeah, we'll talk a little bit about why that's so
important that they have all these connections. My name is Laurent.
You are listening to Houston, PA, Houston's Public Affairs Show,
and my guest is doctor Tadia Diallo. She is the
global health manager for Medical Bridges. Medical Bridges is online
at medical bridges dot or org. Medical bridges dot org
(10:48):
a call out to all your medical professionals. It doesn't
matter what your position is. You may be in contact
with an office which is about to divest itself of
some machine, maybe an old radio, an X ray machine.
We say radio in French, so it's just it's confusing,
but x ray, X ray, X ray, or an old
dialysis machine and you don't know what you're going to
(11:10):
do with it. You might even be planning on just
throwing it away. You can donate it to Medical Bridges.
They will refurbish it and put it in service and
somewhere in the world where it is needed. And I
mean honestly, if you're not going to make any money
getting rid of that equipment, might as well donate it
because the good you do is almost a measurable actually
you know it is measurable, which is awesome. It helps
(11:32):
a whole lot. So you can go to Medical Bridges
dot org if you'd like to donate any of your materials. Also,
you might want to volunteer and go on one of
these missions. This is how they do it and tad
Yet you spend a colossal amount of time to make
sure that when you send a ship of supplies it
gets to someone who is qualified and knows what to
(11:53):
do with them. And that's the antithesis. It is the
opposite of how our government works. Our government the great
intention in paving the world full of roads to hell
by just sending stuff over and oh, just letting it
fall into the hands of someone who's maybe not all
that qualified or downright corrupt, and that's why the US
(12:16):
has started programs as far as governmental aid is concerned,
they stop sending money to corrupt countries in a great
way to allow for the actual exportation of goods. Like basically,
you send them the goods and you try to make
sure that it gets to the right person. And most
of the time, well not most of the time, but
they fail so often. And since you're a nonprofit and
(12:37):
you're pinching every penny, you can't afford to do that,
which means that you have to do the work and
have it prepared on the ground. You mentioned that you
try to identify places that have a need. Can you
describe the process, like how would it work? Would somebody
give you a call? Or did you see how if
you saw it, how do you see it? Where do
(12:58):
you look to find and candidates? I mean that's pretty
much what it is.
Speaker 3 (13:03):
Yeah, many different ways, right, So we have an application online.
Sometimes when people learn about medical bridges, they go on
our website to check it out and there is a process.
We have our process and the application is online, which
is the first step. So they put in an application
and once I receive it, I'll review the application and
if I have additional questions, I'll reach out to them. Otherwise,
(13:26):
once I review the application and then I move on
to the next step, I contact them and we start
the communication from there. And sometimes it's at this event
where I meet people and they tell me in a
discussion it comes up and I tell them I explained
the process to them, which again comes back to an application.
And again when there is a disaster somewhere, I reach
(13:49):
out to people that are interested in and serve in
those countries and we start collaborating. As you may know,
since they were started in Ukraine, we have shit around
over seventy containers of medical equipment and supplies. Seventy seventy yeah,
seven zero, it's seventy four from the last uptate I got,
(14:10):
and five clinics in a continuous those clinics that you
were talking about. So this is of medical equipment and supplies.
The support was really great. We're seeing it lower down
down because of the economy, the elections, you know, and
(14:30):
the logistics happening right now. But yeah, when a country
is in war, like countries in the Middle East, countries,
we don't have a position. We are an NGO and
we serve everybody who's in need. So sometimes that's that's
how we connect that how I connect with the people
(14:51):
who are in need?
Speaker 2 (14:52):
How do people find out about you?
Speaker 3 (14:54):
Advertisement? Like our website, social media, when events happen, you know,
it's mediatized.
Speaker 2 (15:01):
I have to ask you, how did you get from
Guinea to Houston, Texas? Like, how how is it you?
You became a doctor over there? So obviously you have
a vocation. You want to help people, You want to
be you want to be in the middle of your community.
But how what brought you to Houston, Texas school? Yeah? Yes, okay, So.
Speaker 3 (15:23):
I've always liked learning English, and I always knew that
I wanted to work in public health. So I wanted
to get my education to continue education in public health.
So English and public health. So the United States, right,
So that's why I came here. I did my masters
in epidemiology at the UT Health School of Public Health.
Speaker 2 (15:46):
We should explain what epidemology is epedemology, I can't even
say it. What is it? Is? A science that studies academics, Yeah.
Speaker 3 (15:57):
Diseases, yes, and how it goes how to prevent manage
diseases at a large scale?
Speaker 2 (16:07):
How did you get interested in that just at a
time when the world would be faced with several pandemics
that would actually change our lives.
Speaker 3 (16:16):
So actually I was admitted to the School of Public
Health during the pandemic.
Speaker 2 (16:22):
We need help get over here.
Speaker 3 (16:24):
Yes, yes, so we've seen the importance of public health,
of epidemiology during this pandemic. Right, So the health officials
on TV was public health specialists, epidemiologists and I mean
doctors as well, but you know they always they often
combine it so it really helps to I mean it's
(16:45):
like public health. We look at diseases on a global scale,
and we have a global perspective of diseases, and then
the doctor sees patient, yeah, one patient at the time,
and the public help professional try to prevent diseases. It's
really trying to put measures in place in order for
(17:08):
the patient not to go to the doctor. But then
once the patient gets to go to the doctor, the
doctor is there to treat the patient.
Speaker 2 (17:15):
But it seems to me that you may have strayed
from your original vocation though, because what you're doing with
medical bridges, I don't does it directly address the spread
of diseases. You're you're really more in the business of
preventing them or fixing or fixing problems that are existing.
Speaker 3 (17:34):
You know, it seems like it, but it does. For example,
if you think about it, what a glove does. It
prevents infections, right, so we send gloves. All these medical
supplies and equipment we send. It's really in places where
there is a huge gap, there is a need, and
there is a burden of common diseases, you know, simple things.
(17:56):
Preventing infections in care of a patient properly requires some
equipment and some supplies. So it's really preventing diseases from happening,
and if the disease is already there, trying to help
take care of that disease.
Speaker 2 (18:12):
Also, I want to talk a little bit about the
different cultures that you deal with, because depending on the culture,
some medical examinations may be forbidden or frowned upon. It's
usually because there are unknown to that particular culture. We
are talking about places that may have never been touched
by by a lot of modern technology. No electricity is
(18:34):
very common, so that's another thing is that this ship
and container that has been transformed into an examination room,
it is outfitted with a generator, correct, so that they
can produce electricity and electricity.
Speaker 3 (18:46):
Yes, and again to your question that goes back to
we cannot know all the cultures that we work with exactly,
but the people that are in there know the culture.
So we have a space in the application where we
ask people, is there something that's not allowed for some reason,
(19:07):
for any cultural reason or any political reason in your country.
We want to make sure we identify those things so
there are no bad surprises at the end. Right, So
it's important to communicate with the people on the ground
and to understand we might not learn our culture, but
we can understand basics in order to be able to
(19:29):
communicate with them and serve them respectfully.
Speaker 2 (19:32):
Yeah, I think it's especially important when it comes to
taking care of children, because obviously that's a sensitive subject.
Every parents are going to be very worried about their child,
and obviously if they don't have any custom or any
inclination as to how medical examinations work, this can look
(19:53):
really invasive. Just even just listening to someone's heart, where
you might have to open the blouse, make you take
your shirt off, but you might have to crack open
your blouse so that the doctor can use the stethoscope
on the body. This is something that we take for
granted here in America we're used to it, but in
some places in the world, it'll be the first time
(20:14):
that the parent will see anything like this happen, and
maybe the first time they've ever seen all the equipment
in the in the truck. It's I think it's the
most interesting part of what you do, because it's the
hardest one to define. You're not just sending medical supplies.
(20:34):
You have to establish a good service.
Speaker 3 (20:38):
Right, right, because what we don't want is for these
equipment to go and sit there without without somebody being
able to use them, right, So we want to make
sure that the hospital or the clinic this is going
to they have the capacity to be able to use
these equipment, you know, and put them in good use.
Speaker 2 (20:58):
A lot of these medical proceedus just can look really
invasive and culturally forbidden, and I wonder, I mean, do
you have stories about misunderstandings between a parent, for instance,
or just you know, the patient and the doctor because
of culture. Is that something that y'all are able to
avoid or is that something that sometimes you have to
deal with when they're in the in the examination room.
Speaker 3 (21:22):
You know, that's a good question and in the current
job that I'm doing, I don't see the interaction of
patient doctors because I interact with patients. I mean, we
interact with doctors. But I have worked, you know, in
rural hospitals where I see that. I mean how the culture,
(21:42):
you know, the and even the healthcare systems affects of
people on a daily basis. Like I've seen a story
that I think about every time is one of a
a nineteen year old pregnant, young lady who.
Speaker 2 (22:03):
Died.
Speaker 3 (22:05):
She was seven months pregnant, and it was she died
of a clampsia.
Speaker 2 (22:10):
What is that?
Speaker 3 (22:11):
It's she had, it's you have had your blood pressure
increase and it can cause a risk of a clampsia.
So she starts having these seizures.
Speaker 2 (22:28):
Her body gets real stiff, her muscle is attract yes,
including her heart.
Speaker 3 (22:33):
Then because right because there was no equipment or supplies
or medication to take care of her properly, she ended
up losing her life, you know. And the issue, and
again this is coming back to your question of what
to do. You know, the parents are there, there are
certain things they don't want to be done, there are
(22:55):
certain things they want to be done, and you have
this culture of this girl was pregnant, living still with
her parents, so there is that stigma, she was a
very young girl and all those things. I mean, it
really affects the care how to take care of the patient. Yeah,
(23:15):
so unfortunately she couldn't be saved.
Speaker 2 (23:19):
So is it because the doctors couldn't see her or
they got to her too late?
Speaker 3 (23:23):
The doctors she was seen, but again it was a
rural hospital with very.
Speaker 2 (23:28):
Limited so they didn't have medication.
Speaker 3 (23:30):
Right, medication to take care of her. And then the
parents did not have resources to be able to help
her get the resources I mean the medication she needed,
I mean transporting her to a lot bigger hospital where
the resources might be better in order to be able
(23:51):
to take care of her. And then again with the
stigma and the culture differences, and then went in certain
things like you know, everybody wants things to be done
in a certain way and it might not always benefit
the patient. Right, So yeah, it's just it's sad, it's
it's it's a it's different you that's how you see
(24:13):
all these different parts playing a role in patients care,
Like you know, culture, social structures, healthcare systems, lack of infrastructure.
That's why the important.
Speaker 2 (24:29):
The lack thereof, I think is it's hard for US
Americans or even Europeans to imagine a country so bereft
of technology and riches. We just don't. It's it's hard
to relate to it. It's hard to imagine, and I
think the only way is really too experience is to
go see it somehow. I guess the documentary might be helpful,
but it's different when you're there. Are you telling me
(24:52):
that this young woman and her baby might have been
saved with the use of a pale rugs? So we're talking, Oh,
it's so cruel because you're talking about a situation that
we could fix this for sure. In other words, has
she been diagnosed in France or America? Be okay?
Speaker 3 (25:10):
And she would have definitely been okay. This this, you know,
it really emphasizes the need for the work that we're doing,
you know, providing that medical equipment and supplies and to
be able to assist people that are in communities where
they don't have access to that. You know, we were
(25:32):
every every dollar that's donated to us allow us to
serve three to four patients, and every dollar allows us
to provide eight dollars worth of medical equipment and supplies
to places that are otherwise and sometimes those places, even
if they have that money, they cannot locally source those
(25:53):
equipment and supplies.
Speaker 2 (25:55):
That's right. We're talking about lack of availability even if
you want to get it, and some of these places
you're basically dependent upon an organization like medical Bridges to
get in contact with you and bring it out. Do
you also send medication and pill Yeah, you send drugs too.
Speaker 3 (26:13):
No, we do not do medication pharmaceuticals. We do medical
equipment and supplies.
Speaker 2 (26:18):
Okay, we do have.
Speaker 3 (26:20):
Recently we started collaborating with Blessings International, which is one
of our partners. They do pharmaceuticals and on the bills
contain so once we outfit the content with medical equipment
and supplies, they'll provide two boxes of over the counter
medications that's included in the continent.
Speaker 1 (26:39):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (26:39):
But the over the counter medication, well, a lot of
them are powerful, right, but a lot of that stuff
is kind of the weaker version of So how do
you get around What if you're going to an area
of the country where you know there are a bunch
of people that have a certain disease, maybe it's spread
by mosquitoes, for instance, and you know that they're going
to need some serious drugs, something powerful. How do you
(27:04):
get the drugs to them? The medication it always sounds
so bad. How do you get the medications to them?
Speaker 3 (27:12):
And again with us directly, we are not certified to
provide medications, but we refer them to organizations that we
know can provide them, that does medications, and there might
be there is probably a way they can get prescriptions medications.
I just don't know if it's possible given the regulations,
(27:35):
you know, because those medications have some regulations that need
to be met. But I do know that over the
counter medications are easier to provide.
Speaker 2 (27:45):
Absolutely, and a lot of them are real helpful. I
think we've just scratched another piece of the surface here
to demonstrate just how complicated logistically all of this is.
Because while Medical Bridges sends all these precious medical equipment
to other countries, there are so many laws and regulations
in place that you need the proper licensing to carry
(28:05):
medication and to distribute medication. It goes to show just
how much of an effort is necessary to help all
these places. And I feel like the wave for the
future to be prosperous and safe for all of us,
if not most of us. Is for the rest of
the world to be prosperous. If we could eliminate the
(28:28):
need for people to leave their communities to be happy
and prosperous. I mean, you know, if you want to travel,
if you want to immigrate, awesome, But a lot of
people would just rather stay home and stay in their communities.
And it's difficult to watch these places stay behind technologically
and economically.
Speaker 3 (28:47):
Absolutely yes, In many developing countries, I mean, especially in Africa,
there is a myriad of healthcare issues, you know, public
health issues that impact the communities and prevent from having
access to healthcare, to appropriate healthcare.
Speaker 2 (29:03):
We've already mentioned this, folks. If you want to help
medical bridges, if you're a physician, you work with the
physician's office in a hospital or something. You might know
of materials and equipment that could be donated to medical bridges.
They'll take them off from you for free. Okay, it's
not going to cost you. They'll even come and pick
it up. It's really easy, and you're helping countless people.
(29:25):
It's hard to count the amount of people an old
dialysis machine which first perfectly can help. You're literally saving
lives on the other side of the planet. But for
those of us who are not physicians, who do not
possess a dialysis machine, we can donate small amounts. Even
if it's a small amount, it makes a difference because
of the community. So go to medical Bridges dot org
(29:46):
Medical bridges dot org and as usual, if you have
any questions related to Houston, PA, you can just send
me an email. Texan from France at gmail dot com.
Texan from France at gmail dot com. Expect to get
an answer within a couple of days at most. And
I thank you for listening and caring about the issues
I put on this show. Folks, my name is Laurent
(30:08):
I am the Texan from France and this has been
Houston PA, Houston's public affairs show, Houston Strong.
Welcome to Houston, PA, Houston's public affairs show, an iHeartMedia broadcast.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Our list.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
Flamber says that the opinions express on the show do
not necessarily reflect those held by this radio station, its
management staff, or any of its advertisers. My name is
laurent I am the Texan from France and I get
to welcome another immigrant on the show where two today.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
Her name is doctor Tadia Diallo. She is the global
health manager for Medical Bridges. You've heard me interview Walter Ulrich,
their CEO, several times. He's also a US Marine Corps retired,
Always a Marine Corps member if you've become marine right.
He's been on the show several times to describe the
(00:51):
mission of the organization, which is to send medical aid
and medical supplies to parts of the world where they
are needed. They have a team of A and M
students whom every year build them an examination room inside
a shipping container. You can picture these big you know,
the big boats that travel across the world, and they've
(01:13):
got all these big rectangular shipping containers on them. Those
things fit on trucks. Well. The A and M, the
Texas A and M students grab one of these trucks
and one of these great containers, and they outfit the
inside with clean walls that can be cleaned, and they
basically install a medical examination room inside this trailer. And
(01:35):
I'm talking about air conditioning and all the facilities that
you would expect out of an examination room, including the tools.
They might set one up for dentistry, so it'll have
a dentist chair, and then the students. Once they're done
building this beautiful examination room, they put it on a truck,
they drive it over to Houston, and Medical Bridges dispatches
(01:56):
it to a place on the planet that is underserved.
Have They're one of those organizations that does this correctly too.
They don't just send gifts like this to the world.
They send people along or they make sure that if
the examination room is sent to a poorer country, that
there's somebody there to welcome it that can actually put
(02:16):
it to good use. And their program is so beautiful
and inspiring. That's the reason why I like to keep
talking about them. They're they're they're actually the perfect representation
of the Houston spirit. And doctor Tadiadiallo is their global
health manager. I have to ask you, doctor Diallo, what
does that mean what is a global health manager at
(02:36):
an organization like Medical Bridges. Well, I should say before
I let me interrupt you before you start speaking, and
say that Medical Bridges is online at medical bridges dot org.
Medical bridges dot org. You can volunteer. You can also
donate a little money or a lot if you can.
It makes a difference. And go ahead, doctor Yellow, tell
(02:58):
us a little bit about Medical Bridges. We want to
reintroduce it.
Speaker 3 (03:02):
Hi, Lauren, thank you for having me. You're welcome, be
happy to be here. Yes, So, as you mentioned, Medical
Bridges is an NGO that operates in the healthcare field.
So we provide medical equipment and supplies to undersolve communities
around the world. So my role as a global health
Manager is to support the health initiatives around the world
(03:24):
by providing medical equipment and supplies in these communities.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
So you're one of the people who determines where you're
going to send your precious supplies. We should explain how
you get your supplies because I love the mobile examination room.
That's something straight out of a James Bond movie in
a way. It's so cool, the technology and the way
they put it on the truck and move it around
(03:50):
the world is absolutely unbelievable. But there's something that's actually
bigger and even more impressive about medical bridges, and that
is that all the medical supplies that you and around
the world are actually donated to you by our enormous
medical community. Can you explain to us how that works?
Speaker 3 (04:08):
Right? So, absolutely so. We do collaborate with the hospitals
and clinics. The opportunity we have is that we are
located in Houston, and Houston hosts the largest medical center
in the world. So we work with hospitals like Texas
Children Hospital, Memorial Herman and so many other hospitals that
(04:29):
donate the medical equipment and supplies to us, and once
we get them, we have two trucks that go out
to the medical center every day to get these donations
and they bring it to us. We have a team
that will sort all the medical supplies, and we have
a biotechnician who's in place who will review all the
(04:51):
medical equipment to make sure it's working before we send
it out.
Speaker 2 (04:56):
And this guy, this medical technician, who makes sure that
all the dialysis machines, for instance, are working. He is
a self taught gentleman. He's a man who is just
gifted with mechanical and electronics, and I got to meet
him when I visited the facility, and he explained to
(05:17):
me that he just reads the notes on how the
machine functions and goes through the mechanical parts and the
electronic parks to make sure it's kind of amazing how
the whole thing works. We should also explain that the
reason you're getting all these donations from these hospitals is
because there's a tremendous amount of its waste. Essentially, it
(05:37):
is created by the medical community. And I guess the
easiest way to explain is that if you're going in
for an operation, let's say they're going to fix a hernia,
they're going to prepare all the tools, all the materials
that they need to fix your hernia. They're also going
to unwrap and prepare all the tools they may need
in the case of an emergency. If something goes wrong
(06:00):
during the operation, they'll be ready with the right tools,
which will most often not be used, but they've been unwrapped,
which means that they can't be used again front of
the patient. And as Walter always explained several times on
the show, it's just too expensive. You would need a
different building, a new facility for each hospital just to
(06:22):
recycle these materials, and they used to be thrown away.
They literally would just send them to the landfill.
Speaker 3 (06:28):
It's the medical curtcross, you know, and it costs it
will cost millions to recycle those, but it also even
wasting it costs millions. So as you mentioned that, in
an operation room, those will be the instruments, right we
send the supplies that we send are unused and unopened.
(06:48):
But with the medical with the instruments and those kind
of things that they open but they don't use, they
don't need to us, which can still be reused, you know.
And then with the medical equipmentlogy is evolving, you know,
and clinics and hospitals in developing countries like to be
on top of the game. So once they will have
some equipments for a few years and then want to
(07:11):
change them, and the equipment are still working and it's
still in good conditions. So instead of drawing those they
were rather donated to us and then get the new equipment.
Speaker 2 (07:22):
Yeah. So an example of that might be a dialysis machine,
for instance, or a dental X ray machine that sits
in the office. That's the kind of thing that can
be in this mobile examination room. It can be mounted
to the side of the trailer. And obviously it might
not be the most modern thing, it might be five
ten years old, but if it still works, it still works.
Speaker 3 (07:44):
Correct and thinking about the impact it does on the
other side. You know many doctors here you go on
medical missions and they see the lack in countries that
they go, so that motivates hospital to also put that
aside for those needs.
Speaker 2 (07:58):
And isn't that part of your job? So you identify
where the need is right.
Speaker 3 (08:02):
Right, right?
Speaker 2 (08:03):
So how do you do that?
Speaker 3 (08:05):
So I collaborate closely with partners. We have partners we
have at this point we have work. We have served
one hundred and six countries, so we have partners in
all those countries. So when there is a need or
we know that we know the countries that are under served,
communities that are on the SERF and developing countries, so
(08:26):
we work directly with those partners. And another way to
identify is when there is, for example, a war somewhere
or when there is a disaster somewhere, so we know
there is a need for medical equipment and supplies to
help healthcare workers take care of those in need. We
always make sure that there is a saying that Wealter
(08:48):
likes to remind that his mom said the road to
hell is paved with good intentions.
Speaker 2 (08:53):
That's right.
Speaker 3 (08:54):
So us having the medical equipment and supplies and just
sending it because we want to send it doesn't always help.
So that's why we want to make sure that we
work with people on the ground to know what they needs.
I mean, I am from a developing country and I
went to medical school.
Speaker 2 (09:11):
Should tell us where you're from? I forgot to ask Guinea.
Speaker 3 (09:14):
Yes, I'm from Guinea, which is a developing country, and
that's where I completed my medical degree. So I understand
the healthcare system and the lack of essential medical resources.
But that might not be exactly the same everywhere else,
although it's similar. So we have I still have to
talk to people on the ground there to know what
(09:35):
their needs are and that what we are doing is
meeting their needs instead of just sending things.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
So it sounds like you spend a lot of time
in conversation with people over the internet or on the phone.
You must have a lot of friends in every corner
of the planet.
Speaker 3 (09:51):
I feel like I've traveled in an office.
Speaker 2 (09:54):
Do you have the opportunity to travel with Did you
go on some of these missions?
Speaker 3 (09:58):
I haven't. I've been. I joined Medical Bridges in it's
about a year and now.
Speaker 2 (10:04):
Oh okay, so you're new, you're kind of new.
Speaker 3 (10:08):
Yeah, yeah, but I do. We have visits people from
with government officials, you know, with the healthcare workers. So
I really meet people at the office or at the event,
or talk to people on the phone or through emails
all over the world.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
Yeah, we'll talk a little bit about why that's so
important that they have all these connections. My name is Laurent.
You are listening to Houston, PA, Houston's Public Affairs Show,
and my guest is doctor Tadia Diallo. She is the
global health manager for Medical Bridges. Medical Bridges is online
at medical bridges dot or org. Medical bridges dot org
(10:48):
a call out to all your medical professionals. It doesn't
matter what your position is. You may be in contact
with an office which is about to divest itself of
some machine, maybe an old radio, an X ray machine.
We say radio in French, so it's just it's confusing,
but x ray, X ray, X ray, or an old
dialysis machine and you don't know what you're going to
(11:10):
do with it. You might even be planning on just
throwing it away. You can donate it to Medical Bridges.
They will refurbish it and put it in service and
somewhere in the world where it is needed. And I
mean honestly, if you're not going to make any money
getting rid of that equipment, might as well donate it
because the good you do is almost a measurable actually
you know it is measurable, which is awesome. It helps
(11:32):
a whole lot. So you can go to Medical Bridges
dot org if you'd like to donate any of your materials. Also,
you might want to volunteer and go on one of
these missions. This is how they do it and tad
Yet you spend a colossal amount of time to make
sure that when you send a ship of supplies it
gets to someone who is qualified and knows what to
(11:53):
do with them. And that's the antithesis. It is the
opposite of how our government works. Our government the great
intention in paving the world full of roads to hell
by just sending stuff over and oh, just letting it
fall into the hands of someone who's maybe not all
that qualified or downright corrupt, and that's why the US
(12:16):
has started programs as far as governmental aid is concerned,
they stop sending money to corrupt countries in a great
way to allow for the actual exportation of goods. Like basically,
you send them the goods and you try to make
sure that it gets to the right person. And most
of the time, well not most of the time, but
they fail so often. And since you're a nonprofit and
(12:37):
you're pinching every penny, you can't afford to do that,
which means that you have to do the work and
have it prepared on the ground. You mentioned that you
try to identify places that have a need. Can you
describe the process, like how would it work? Would somebody
give you a call? Or did you see how if
you saw it, how do you see it? Where do
(12:58):
you look to find and candidates? I mean that's pretty
much what it is.
Speaker 3 (13:03):
Yeah, many different ways, right, So we have an application online.
Sometimes when people learn about medical bridges, they go on
our website to check it out and there is a process.
We have our process and the application is online, which
is the first step. So they put in an application
and once I receive it, I'll review the application and
if I have additional questions, I'll reach out to them. Otherwise,
(13:26):
once I review the application and then I move on
to the next step, I contact them and we start
the communication from there. And sometimes it's at this event
where I meet people and they tell me in a
discussion it comes up and I tell them I explained
the process to them, which again comes back to an application.
And again when there is a disaster somewhere, I reach
(13:49):
out to people that are interested in and serve in
those countries and we start collaborating. As you may know,
since they were started in Ukraine, we have shit around
over seventy containers of medical equipment and supplies. Seventy seventy yeah,
seven zero, it's seventy four from the last uptate I got,
(14:10):
and five clinics in a continuous those clinics that you
were talking about. So this is of medical equipment and supplies.
The support was really great. We're seeing it lower down
down because of the economy, the elections, you know, and
(14:30):
the logistics happening right now. But yeah, when a country
is in war, like countries in the Middle East, countries,
we don't have a position. We are an NGO and
we serve everybody who's in need. So sometimes that's that's
how we connect that how I connect with the people
(14:51):
who are in need?
Speaker 2 (14:52):
How do people find out about you?
Speaker 3 (14:54):
Advertisement? Like our website, social media, when events happen, you know,
it's mediatized.
Speaker 2 (15:01):
I have to ask you, how did you get from
Guinea to Houston, Texas? Like, how how is it you?
You became a doctor over there? So obviously you have
a vocation. You want to help people, You want to
be you want to be in the middle of your community.
But how what brought you to Houston, Texas school? Yeah? Yes, okay, So.
Speaker 3 (15:23):
I've always liked learning English, and I always knew that
I wanted to work in public health. So I wanted
to get my education to continue education in public health.
So English and public health. So the United States, right,
So that's why I came here. I did my masters
in epidemiology at the UT Health School of Public Health.
Speaker 2 (15:46):
We should explain what epidemology is epedemology, I can't even
say it. What is it? Is? A science that studies academics, Yeah.
Speaker 3 (15:57):
Diseases, yes, and how it goes how to prevent manage
diseases at a large scale?
Speaker 2 (16:07):
How did you get interested in that just at a
time when the world would be faced with several pandemics
that would actually change our lives.
Speaker 3 (16:16):
So actually I was admitted to the School of Public
Health during the pandemic.
Speaker 2 (16:22):
We need help get over here.
Speaker 3 (16:24):
Yes, yes, so we've seen the importance of public health,
of epidemiology during this pandemic. Right, So the health officials
on TV was public health specialists, epidemiologists and I mean
doctors as well, but you know they always they often
combine it so it really helps to I mean it's
(16:45):
like public health. We look at diseases on a global scale,
and we have a global perspective of diseases, and then
the doctor sees patient, yeah, one patient at the time,
and the public help professional try to prevent diseases. It's
really trying to put measures in place in order for
(17:08):
the patient not to go to the doctor. But then
once the patient gets to go to the doctor, the
doctor is there to treat the patient.
Speaker 2 (17:15):
But it seems to me that you may have strayed
from your original vocation though, because what you're doing with
medical bridges, I don't does it directly address the spread
of diseases. You're you're really more in the business of
preventing them or fixing or fixing problems that are existing.
Speaker 3 (17:34):
You know, it seems like it, but it does. For example,
if you think about it, what a glove does. It
prevents infections, right, so we send gloves. All these medical
supplies and equipment we send. It's really in places where
there is a huge gap, there is a need, and
there is a burden of common diseases, you know, simple things.
(17:56):
Preventing infections in care of a patient properly requires some
equipment and some supplies. So it's really preventing diseases from happening,
and if the disease is already there, trying to help
take care of that disease.
Speaker 2 (18:12):
Also, I want to talk a little bit about the
different cultures that you deal with, because depending on the culture,
some medical examinations may be forbidden or frowned upon. It's
usually because there are unknown to that particular culture. We
are talking about places that may have never been touched
by by a lot of modern technology. No electricity is
(18:34):
very common, so that's another thing is that this ship
and container that has been transformed into an examination room,
it is outfitted with a generator, correct, so that they
can produce electricity and electricity.
Speaker 3 (18:46):
Yes, and again to your question that goes back to
we cannot know all the cultures that we work with exactly,
but the people that are in there know the culture.
So we have a space in the application where we
ask people, is there something that's not allowed for some reason,
(19:07):
for any cultural reason or any political reason in your country.
We want to make sure we identify those things so
there are no bad surprises at the end. Right, So
it's important to communicate with the people on the ground
and to understand we might not learn our culture, but
we can understand basics in order to be able to
(19:29):
communicate with them and serve them respectfully.
Speaker 2 (19:32):
Yeah, I think it's especially important when it comes to
taking care of children, because obviously that's a sensitive subject.
Every parents are going to be very worried about their child,
and obviously if they don't have any custom or any
inclination as to how medical examinations work, this can look
(19:53):
really invasive. Just even just listening to someone's heart, where
you might have to open the blouse, make you take
your shirt off, but you might have to crack open
your blouse so that the doctor can use the stethoscope
on the body. This is something that we take for
granted here in America we're used to it, but in
some places in the world, it'll be the first time
(20:14):
that the parent will see anything like this happen, and
maybe the first time they've ever seen all the equipment
in the in the truck. It's I think it's the
most interesting part of what you do, because it's the
hardest one to define. You're not just sending medical supplies.
(20:34):
You have to establish a good service.
Speaker 3 (20:38):
Right, right, because what we don't want is for these
equipment to go and sit there without without somebody being
able to use them, right, So we want to make
sure that the hospital or the clinic this is going
to they have the capacity to be able to use
these equipment, you know, and put them in good use.
Speaker 2 (20:58):
A lot of these medical proceedus just can look really
invasive and culturally forbidden, and I wonder, I mean, do
you have stories about misunderstandings between a parent, for instance,
or just you know, the patient and the doctor because
of culture. Is that something that y'all are able to
avoid or is that something that sometimes you have to
deal with when they're in the in the examination room.
Speaker 3 (21:22):
You know, that's a good question and in the current
job that I'm doing, I don't see the interaction of
patient doctors because I interact with patients. I mean, we
interact with doctors. But I have worked, you know, in
rural hospitals where I see that. I mean how the culture,
(21:42):
you know, the and even the healthcare systems affects of
people on a daily basis. Like I've seen a story
that I think about every time is one of a
a nineteen year old pregnant, young lady who.
Speaker 2 (22:03):
Died.
Speaker 3 (22:05):
She was seven months pregnant, and it was she died
of a clampsia.
Speaker 2 (22:10):
What is that?
Speaker 3 (22:11):
It's she had, it's you have had your blood pressure
increase and it can cause a risk of a clampsia.
So she starts having these seizures.
Speaker 2 (22:28):
Her body gets real stiff, her muscle is attract yes,
including her heart.
Speaker 3 (22:33):
Then because right because there was no equipment or supplies
or medication to take care of her properly, she ended
up losing her life, you know. And the issue, and
again this is coming back to your question of what
to do. You know, the parents are there, there are
certain things they don't want to be done, there are
(22:55):
certain things they want to be done, and you have
this culture of this girl was pregnant, living still with
her parents, so there is that stigma, she was a
very young girl and all those things. I mean, it
really affects the care how to take care of the patient. Yeah,
(23:15):
so unfortunately she couldn't be saved.
Speaker 2 (23:19):
So is it because the doctors couldn't see her or
they got to her too late?
Speaker 3 (23:23):
The doctors she was seen, but again it was a
rural hospital with very.
Speaker 2 (23:28):
Limited so they didn't have medication.
Speaker 3 (23:30):
Right, medication to take care of her. And then the
parents did not have resources to be able to help
her get the resources I mean the medication she needed,
I mean transporting her to a lot bigger hospital where
the resources might be better in order to be able
(23:51):
to take care of her. And then again with the
stigma and the culture differences, and then went in certain
things like you know, everybody wants things to be done
in a certain way and it might not always benefit
the patient. Right, So yeah, it's just it's sad, it's
it's it's a it's different you that's how you see
(24:13):
all these different parts playing a role in patients care,
Like you know, culture, social structures, healthcare systems, lack of infrastructure.
That's why the important.
Speaker 2 (24:29):
The lack thereof, I think is it's hard for US
Americans or even Europeans to imagine a country so bereft
of technology and riches. We just don't. It's it's hard
to relate to it. It's hard to imagine, and I
think the only way is really too experience is to
go see it somehow. I guess the documentary might be helpful,
but it's different when you're there. Are you telling me
(24:52):
that this young woman and her baby might have been
saved with the use of a pale rugs? So we're talking, Oh,
it's so cruel because you're talking about a situation that
we could fix this for sure. In other words, has
she been diagnosed in France or America? Be okay?
Speaker 3 (25:10):
And she would have definitely been okay. This this, you know,
it really emphasizes the need for the work that we're doing,
you know, providing that medical equipment and supplies and to
be able to assist people that are in communities where
they don't have access to that. You know, we were
(25:32):
every every dollar that's donated to us allow us to
serve three to four patients, and every dollar allows us
to provide eight dollars worth of medical equipment and supplies
to places that are otherwise and sometimes those places, even
if they have that money, they cannot locally source those
(25:53):
equipment and supplies.
Speaker 2 (25:55):
That's right. We're talking about lack of availability even if
you want to get it, and some of these places
you're basically dependent upon an organization like medical Bridges to
get in contact with you and bring it out. Do
you also send medication and pill Yeah, you send drugs too.
Speaker 3 (26:13):
No, we do not do medication pharmaceuticals. We do medical
equipment and supplies.
Speaker 2 (26:18):
Okay, we do have.
Speaker 3 (26:20):
Recently we started collaborating with Blessings International, which is one
of our partners. They do pharmaceuticals and on the bills
contain so once we outfit the content with medical equipment
and supplies, they'll provide two boxes of over the counter
medications that's included in the continent.
Speaker 1 (26:39):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (26:39):
But the over the counter medication, well, a lot of
them are powerful, right, but a lot of that stuff
is kind of the weaker version of So how do
you get around What if you're going to an area
of the country where you know there are a bunch
of people that have a certain disease, maybe it's spread
by mosquitoes, for instance, and you know that they're going
to need some serious drugs, something powerful. How do you
(27:04):
get the drugs to them? The medication it always sounds
so bad. How do you get the medications to them?
Speaker 3 (27:12):
And again with us directly, we are not certified to
provide medications, but we refer them to organizations that we
know can provide them, that does medications, and there might
be there is probably a way they can get prescriptions medications.
I just don't know if it's possible given the regulations,
(27:35):
you know, because those medications have some regulations that need
to be met. But I do know that over the
counter medications are easier to provide.
Speaker 2 (27:45):
Absolutely, and a lot of them are real helpful. I
think we've just scratched another piece of the surface here
to demonstrate just how complicated logistically all of this is.
Because while Medical Bridges sends all these precious medical equipment
to other countries, there are so many laws and regulations
in place that you need the proper licensing to carry
(28:05):
medication and to distribute medication. It goes to show just
how much of an effort is necessary to help all
these places. And I feel like the wave for the
future to be prosperous and safe for all of us,
if not most of us. Is for the rest of
the world to be prosperous. If we could eliminate the
(28:28):
need for people to leave their communities to be happy
and prosperous. I mean, you know, if you want to travel,
if you want to immigrate, awesome, But a lot of
people would just rather stay home and stay in their communities.
And it's difficult to watch these places stay behind technologically
and economically.
Speaker 3 (28:47):
Absolutely yes, In many developing countries, I mean, especially in Africa,
there is a myriad of healthcare issues, you know, public
health issues that impact the communities and prevent from having
access to healthcare, to appropriate healthcare.
Speaker 2 (29:03):
We've already mentioned this, folks. If you want to help
medical bridges, if you're a physician, you work with the
physician's office in a hospital or something. You might know
of materials and equipment that could be donated to medical bridges.
They'll take them off from you for free. Okay, it's
not going to cost you. They'll even come and pick
it up. It's really easy, and you're helping countless people.
(29:25):
It's hard to count the amount of people an old
dialysis machine which first perfectly can help. You're literally saving
lives on the other side of the planet. But for
those of us who are not physicians, who do not
possess a dialysis machine, we can donate small amounts. Even
if it's a small amount, it makes a difference because
of the community. So go to medical Bridges dot org
(29:46):
Medical bridges dot org and as usual, if you have
any questions related to Houston, PA, you can just send
me an email. Texan from France at gmail dot com.
Texan from France at gmail dot com. Expect to get
an answer within a couple of days at most. And
I thank you for listening and caring about the issues
I put on this show. Folks, my name is Laurent
(30:08):
I am the Texan from France and this has been
Houston PA, Houston's public affairs show, Houston Strong.
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On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!