Student from SUNY Upstate Medical University to join Heart to Heart International and Welch Allyn on Humanitarian Service Trip to Haiti

Kathleen Iles, a first-year medical student at SUNY Upstate Medical University, won’t have to wait to finish medical school before she will start making a difference in the lives of real people. Iles was announced as the second winner of the 2014 Ripple Effect Contest, a joint initiative created by Heart to Heart International and Welch Allyn designed to inspire medical students to “change the world by giving back to their communities.” Iles is a graduate of Skaneateles High School, and she received her Bachelor of Science degree in Biological Sciences from Le Moyne College while claiming Summa Cum Laude honors.

Iles, along with three other medical students to win the humanitarian service trip, will work alongside physicians and aid workers in impoverished communities in Haiti this summer. She will join inaugural 2013 Ripple Effect winners Oluwatoni Aluko, from Meharry Medical College, and Meghan Meghpara, from Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine on the trip, as well as the other 2014 winner Matthew Schilling, from Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine. A panel of judges from Heart to Heart International, Welch Allyn and the American Medical Student Association (AMSA) evaluated Iles’ short video and tabbed it superior for its personality, passion, creativity, sincerity and quality of expression.

“We are pleased that Ms. Iles will be joining the Welch Allyn team to volunteer in Haiti with us this summer,” said Jim Mitchum, CEO, Heart to Heart International. “Her moving video exemplifies what the Ripple Effect Contest is all about. Engaging volunteers is key to our mission to strengthen communities by improving health access. We hope her volunteer experience will inspire and encourage others to share their time and talents with those in need. She is well on her way to creating her own ripple effect in the world today.”

The Ripple Effect Contest encourages medical students to use social media to share how they will create their own “ripple effect” of good in their community or globally. Entrants were asked to ‘like’ the Ripple Effect program page on Facebook and share a picture with a short essay or a short video showcasing their “ripple effect” – a brief narrative about how they would “change the world” by using their training to help those in greatest need.

“We are privileged that our very own Kathleen Iles has been selected as a 2014 Ripple Effect Contest winner,” said David Duggan, MD, dean of the College of Medicine at SUNY Upstate Medical University. “Ms. Iles entered an engaging and heartening video that describes giving back to others the type of care she received in keeping with our mission to improve the health of the communities we serve through of education, research and compassionate health care.”

Under Ripple Effect, Welch Allyn, a leading medical diagnostic device company that delivers pragmatic innovation at the point of care, provides up to $125 in merchandise credits to Heart to Heart International when a student purchases select Welch Allyn diagnostic instruments*. Heart to Heart International, a nonprofit medical aid organization, uses the credits to acquire Welch Allyn devices for use in its global humanitarian programs, disaster relief, and health professional training for underserved populations. In 2014, the program raised credits valued at more than $1 million that Heart to Heart International applied to purchases of medical equipment from Welch Allyn for use in its worldwide humanitarian programs.

Reliable medical instruments play a critical role in helping physicians make key assessments, which informs diagnosis and helps improve care for patients. When physicians are equipped with the proper medical instruments, their ability to assess, diagnose, treat, and manage a wide variety of illnesses and diseases, and care for more patients, increases. In many places, medical providers do not have access to even basic diagnostic equipment, limiting their ability to provide quality care.

“Welch Allyn is proud to partner with Heart to Heart International to offer a way for medical students to start making a difference in people’s lives long before their first residency,” said David Allyn, Director of Corporate Social Responsibility at Welch Allyn. “By simply participating in the Ripple Effect Contest four lucky med students have been given the opportunity to participate in a life-changing humanitarian service trip to support people in need. As we celebrate our 100th anniversary in 2015, it is only fitting that we continue to uphold our core value-‘be always kind and true’, as W.G. Allyn, the son of our founder, embraced, by sending four reputable students on a humanitarian trip of a lifetime. Further, Welch Allyn is honored to be able to provide some of the equipment the students, physicians and aid workers will use on the trip to improve care in places where it is needed most.”

Since the establishment of the Welch Allyn and Heart to Heart International relationship back in 1998, Welch Allyn has provided more than $12 million worth of medical equipment to Heart to Heart International to help clinicians deliver vital patient care in the places that need it most. Welch Allyn employees have also contributed many hours of volunteer time both at home and abroad.

About Welch Allyn, Inc.

Since 1915 Welch Allyn has brought a unique perspective to developing diagnostic solutions by combining pragmatic knowledge with a visionary spirit of innovation and ongoing improvement. As a leading global manufacturer of physical examination instruments and accessories and EMR-connected vital signs and cardiac monitoring solutions, the company has a steadfast commitment to delivering superlative medical products, services and solutions that help healthcare professionals provide better care for their patients. Welch Allyn is headquartered in Skaneateles Falls, N.Y. (USA) and employs more than 2,600 people in 26 different countries. Visit www.welchallyn.com for more information. Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn.

About Heart to Heart International

Heart to Heart International is a nonprofit international health organization. Since its founding in 1992, HHI has delivered medical aid and supplies worth nearly $1.3 billion to more than 150 countries, including the United States. HHI responds to crises and natural disasters both domestically and internationally by supplying medical relief and mobilizing volunteers. HHI broadens access to healthcare with medical education opportunities and lab standards training in the U.S. and in Haiti, and also works with U.S. safety-net clinics to increase their capacity by providing medical equipment, supplies and volunteers that are vital to operations. The organization is a Charity Navigator 4-Star charity seven years in a row, a BBB Accredited Charity, and is on the “Philanthropy 400”. HHI is also a founding member of the Partnership for Quality Medical Donations (PQMD), and is a member of National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD). For more information on programs and ways to get involved, visit hearttoheart.org & find HHI on Facebook.

About SUNY Upstate Medical University

SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, NY, is the only academic medical center in Central New York. It is also the region’s largest employer with 9,000 employees. Affiliated with the State University of New York, SUNY Upstate’s mission is to improve the health of the community through education, biomedical research and health care. Upstate Medical University’s educational mission is anchored by its four colleges-Medicine, Nursing, Health Professions and Graduate Studies (biomedical sciences). As a biomedical research enterprise, Upstate focuses on the most prevalent human diseases, including cancer, diabetes, heart disease, nervous system disorders, vision, and infectious diseases. The quest for treatments and cures is built upon expertise in structural, molecular and systems biology. Upstate also offers many clinical trials for patients. The Upstate University Health System serves 1.8 million people, often the most seriously ill and injured, and includes Upstate University Hospital, Upstate University Hospital at Community Campus, Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital, and numerous satellite sites.

*Medical students in all accredited MD, DO, PA, NP, ND and DC schools in the 50 United States and District of Columbia are eligible to participate in Ripple Effect. For each sale of select diagnostic sets, blood pressure gauges, and stethoscopes purchased during each school’s annual organized medical equipment “sale day,” Welch Allyn will provide a designated merchandise credit to Heart to Heart International. Heart to Heart applies these credits toward acquisition of Welch Allyn devices for use in its programs around the world.