How One Nurse Used Her Skills to Serve the World

What drives someone to keep searching for deeper meaning in service? For Global Volunteers alumna Laurie Hanly, it wasn’t just about travel or cultural exchange—it was about using her nursing background to make a real impact. A seasoned volunteer across Africa, the U.S., and Central America, she often felt her nursing skills weren’t fully utilized. That changed when she joined the Reaching Children’s Potential (RCP) program in Peru and Tanzania, where she found deeper purpose through home visits, clinic work, and unexpected moments of connection. This is her story.  

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Searching for Purpose as a Healthcare Volunteer 

After multiple volunteer projects in Africa, the U.S., and Central America with organizations varying from those with religious affiliation to a university involved in medical research, I found myself feeling like my time and expertise hadn’t been utilized to the extent I had expected.  My cultural experiences had been vast and life-changing, but I was looking for more.  I’d heard about Global Volunteers and thought the Reaching Children’s Potential (RCP) might just be the program I was looking for.   

“It was the most fulfilling volunteer experience I’d ever had, and it left me wanting more.”  

Laurie Hanly, Emergency Room RN & Two-Time Global Volunteers Alumna

I spent two weeks in Peru in 2024 making home visits with an RCP Caregiver, checking on the physical and emotional health of pregnant moms and moms with babies under 2.  Stethoscope around my neck, I climbed the hills of northern Lima.  I found the moms struggling to decide whether the issues that concerned them were worthy of the trip and the expense to a clinic.  My experience as an Emergency Room RN made me comfortable in offering at-home suggestions to relieve minor issues, particularly since the caregiver and I would be visiting the same moms the following week, and the mom could be in touch with the caregiver by phone.    

I also spent time teaching the moms about any changes they needed to look for that would warrant a trip to the clinic or hospital.  It was the first time I felt my expertise had been of real value to those I’d hoped to serve.  It was the most fulfilling volunteer experience I’d ever had, and it left me wanting more.    

  

Saying Yes: Stories She Will Never Forget from Tanzania 

I wasn’t home for more than a short while, so I decided to sign up for the RCP program in Tanzania.  I’d been to Niger and Uganda on prior service projects, so I did not expect the comforts I enjoyed in Peru.  Yet, the guest house accommodations at the RCP center exceeded all expectations.  The RCP Center was literally in the middle of nowhere-about 2 hours south of Iringa, in the middle of the country, and thus functioned as its small community.  I spent 3 weeks at the Ipalamwa RCP center, and given the sense of fulfilment I felt, I would happily have stayed longer.    

The opportunity to serve in the clinic was as varied as the skills with which one might arrive. My mornings were spent in the clinic with Dr. Silas. While most of what I did was assist with the enormous burden of recording each patient’s visit in government registers, Dr. Silas was eager to collaborate and as eager to learn about treatments used in the U.S. as I was to learn. The clinic also employs two midwives who, as part of the First 1000 Days program, see women through their pregnancy, delivery, and monitor newborns through age 2, to prevent childhood stunting. The House for New Moms at the RCP Center allows for moms to stay prior to delivery and postpartum until both mom and baby are stable to go home. More to my speed was the infant check-in, where babies part of the RCP program are brought to the clinic monthly, weighed, and measured to be sure they are on a healthy growth track. 

My afternoons were spent visiting pregnant and new moms. Like Peru, I walked the trails to homes with a caregiver, however, the contrast was stark. In Tanzania, however, food insufficiency, malaria, typhoid, skin infections, and parasites were commonplace. The early recognition of conditions requiring care at the clinic made home visits medically important. It wasn’t only the infants who needed care, however. Sadly, I saw more women who suffered from domestic violence than I expected. In Tanzania, situations of domestic violence are handled by the village chief and council. Recognition of abuse during home visits allowed me to encourage the women to come to the clinic, be evaluated, and report the violence, which in turn is reported to the village chief. 

“While many agencies welcome both doctors and nurses, I’ve found that most primarily need doctors. Global Volunteers is the only organization where I’ve truly felt my nursing skills were valued and put to good use.” 

Laurie Hanly

Global Volunteers Awaits Your Healing Hands  

When asked about her extensive experience volunteering globally in medical roles with impactful organizations focused on human development and emergency response, Laurie shared, “While many agencies welcome both doctors and nurses, I’ve found that most primarily need doctors. Global Volunteers is the only organization where I’ve truly felt my nursing skills were valued and put to good use,” and continued, “While my professional experience is in the ER, there are opportunities for nurses and medical professionals of all specialties to find fulfillment in serving in both Peru and Tanzania.  If you took the time to read this, I can only assume you are looking for something beyond your normal life.  Maybe you just want to see how another culture medically serves its population, or maybe you want to experience another aspect of healthcare; regardless, Global Volunteers’ RCP program can change your life both personally and professionally.”    

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