This trip to Guatemala has been one of the best experiences of my life. It has provided me with an opportunity to not only improve my Spanish in order to better serve Latino populations in the United States, but also the opportunity to learn about another culture in an in-depth and comprehensive way. I will definitely be able to take everything that I have learned here and apply it to my daily life and future medical career in the United States

- Erin Shallcross

As the main goal of the Somos Hermanos Student Immersion Program is to address the disparity in health care access and quality for Latino patients in the U.S., implementation in the U.S. after the Guatemalan portion of the program is a crucial aspect of achieving this objective. Somos Hermanos works with health care centers in the U.S. that target underserved Latino populations in order to place our participants in a volunteer environment where they can keep their language skills sharp and put these skills to use while they continue their education as health care providers. After our participants return to the U.S., they are required to volunteer in such clinics to help bridge the language barrier and culture gap that often exists between patient and health care provider.