Medical Mission Question IVHQ

Nurses Activism

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Hey there,

I hope I am in the right place. I am a new grad nurse looking to do a medical mission. I have been hearing great things and bad things about IVHQ. It mostly seems like it is area dependent where each good or bad review is. I was told to steer clear of orphanages.

I am wanting to know if anyone has done a medical mission in Vietnam through this company? Are the medical missions done through a hospital or medical clinic and if not, where? Is there anything I should be doing now to prepare? What is the best overseas health insurance? And lastly, do you recommend a rental car?

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Hi, I just came across your post. I don't currently live in Vietnam, but I was an English teacher there for a year and I've been back multiple times (I'm also an RN in the USA).

You say you're a new grad nurse, but how new? Medical missions are great, but it's been my experience in researching them that they usually want experienced people because they won't have time to hold your hand and nursing roles on medical missions (depending on the organization) are often more of a supervisory role.

Regarding that company, I don't know much about them specifically, but I took a look at the website and it doesn't seem like you're really doing anything in an actual nursing capacity. You would be shadowing actual physicians and nurses, maybe helping out, maybe just getting in the way. I'm notorious for side-eying a lot of voluntourism organizations though.

As for your other questions, for insurance when I travel I have the DAN insurance associated with my scuba diving membership and if needed, I also get a policy with World Nomads. When I'm in Vietnam, I rent a motorbike to use, but I would recommend against that unless you know how to drive one and feel comfortable in Vietnamese traffic (it has it's own rules). Same for renting a car. You may even technically need a Vietnamese drivers license to rent a car, which isn't worth obtaining unless you're going to be there for a significant amount of time. Cabs and motorbikes are everywhere, and there's even an app called "Grab" which is like Uber or Lyft.

But I do recommend visiting Vietnam, even if you don't volunteer. It's a lovely place and one of the few places I've repeatedly returned to.

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