The Kind of Care That Goes Beyond the Classroom

For students in the physician assistant program at Hardin-Simmons University, the mission trip to Peru is a meaningful part of their training. It offers the opportunity to step outside the classroom and into real patient care while serving communities in need.

Over spring break, PA students spent nearly two weeks working in mobile medical clinics, seeing 763 patients and impacting more than 900 lives through care, education and ministry.

For both first-year student Allison Nelson and second-year student Kaylee Billstone, the experience was not just about what they learned clinically, but how their perspective on patients began to change.

“It reminds you of your why,” Nelson said. “Sometimes it’s hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel, but these patients truly were my light.”

Each day, students rotated through clinical stations including triage, patient care, pharmacy, eyeglasses and hygiene, working alongside faculty and providers while stepping into hands-on roles with patients.

“It made everything click,” Nelson said. “You can study all day, but when you’re actually with a patient, talking to them and examining them, that’s when it sticks.”

For Billstone, who returned to Peru for a second year, the experience brought a deeper understanding of both her abilities and her limitations.

“You realize quickly that you can’t fix everything,” Billstone said. “We didn’t have all the medications or resources patients needed.”

But what stood out to both students was how patients responded in those moments.

“They were just so grateful,” Nelson said. “The amount of hugs and tears, everyone was just so thankful.”

Even in difficult circumstances, that response began to reshape how students understood care.

“They just had so much joy, and it wasn’t from their circumstances,” Nelson said.

For Billstone, those interactions reinforced something deeper.

“We could still connect with them and care for them in that moment,” she said. “Even if you’re not speaking the same language, you can still share a lot of things in common.”

Both students described a common theme throughout the trip. While their clinical skills were growing, their understanding of patients was changing.

“Every patient has a story,” Nelson said. “They have a life and loved ones, so don’t treat them as a number.”

That perspective is something students say is reinforced throughout both the program and their work in Peru through a partnership with Joni and Friends.

“It is easy to focus on the numbers,” said Shawn Thornton, President and Chief Ministry Officer, Joni and Friends. “But let us not forget that behind every number is a person. Behind every person is a story. And every story matters deeply to God.”

“They tell us every patient is the most important patient you’ll see that day,” Billstone said. “Whoever is in front of you is there for a reason.”

Those lessons often came through simple but powerful moments.

For Nelson, it was the joy of patients despite their circumstances.

She also recalled a young boy receiving a pair of sunglasses.

“His face just lit up,” she said. “Something we might overlook here became his prized possession in that moment.”

Billstone experienced a similar moment during a routine visit with a young girl.

“She told me she wanted to be a doctor like me,” Billstone said. “She had been learning English so she could go to medical school, and I showed her I was learning Spanish for patients like her. We both just wanted to help people.”

Even in situations where students felt limited in what they could provide, patients offered encouragement in return.

“He told us, ‘It’s a beautiful thing that you want to help,’” Billstone said.

That perspective is something both students say they will carry with them moving forward.

“Sometimes patients just need someone to listen,” Nelson said. “You want to be that person for them.”

For both students, the experience reinforced what it means to care for patients well, not just medically, but personally.

“It filled our cups to the brim,” Nelson said. “It reminded me of my why.”