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VCU Pharmacy Joins RAM
In July 2008, 14 VCU pharmacy students joined a force of 1,584 Remote Area Medical volunteers in Wise, Va., as part of the RAM volunteer corps. 
This nonprofit, airborne relief organization is dedicated to serving mankind by providing free health care to people in remote areas of the world. The RAM expedition to the heart of Appalachia is believed to be one of the largest free medical events of its kind in the U.S. During the two-and-a-half day, 32-hour period, volunteers provided 5,475 services to 2,670 patients for a value of free care amounting to $1,725,418. The VCU pharmacy students’ eagerness to endure such long hours showed their compassion for a patient population that remains tremendously medically underserved.
For the students, this trip represented a wonderful opportunity to collaborate with other health care professionals, including physicians and dentists from VCU. The trip also allowed them to apply a variety of skills such as patient triage, diabetes screenings and blood glucose monitoring, blood pressure checks, bone mineral density testing, medication dispensing, and counseling. Ultimately, the opportunity showed students the incredible impact pharmacists can have when they collaborate across disciplines to achieve a common goal.
Get involved
To support this program or get involved as a volunteer, contact Evan Sisson at emsisson@vcu.edu.