By Connie Evashwick, ScD, CAE, CPH
HVO aspires to offer its partner organizations and its volunteers more than just one-time clinical teaching. The informal HVO network extends education on culture, geography, history, economics, industry, culinary arts, and visual arts to other volunteers. Sharing with others helps each of us build our own knowledge and ability to teach across place, time, and position. This HVO spirit was exemplified by a recent experience in Cambodia.
A team of six HVO volunteers from San Diego State University (SDSU) in San Diego, California, went to Kampot, Cambodia, in January 2026 to assist Sonja Kill Memorial Hospital with their preparations for accreditation. As specialists in public health and health care management, none on the team had previous experience with HVO sites in Cambodia. One of the team leaders, long-term HVO volunteer Connie Evashwick, asked HVO if she could contact others who were familiar with the country and the hospital. Four other HVO volunteers, all physicians but in different specialties, offered support, guidance, and fun. The interaction among the new and experienced volunteers enriched the visits of all!
The physicians included Peter Rice, project director for HVO’s internal medicine project in Cambodia; David Horne, a dermatologist working at a national referral hospital in Phnom Phen; David Roesel, an internist doing a repeat visit to SKMH; and Tamara Helfer, an OB-GYN bringing a suitcase of MCH equipment on her first visit to SKMH. Each one helped the SDSU team get oriented to the Cambodian culture, explore fascinating sites, select local restaurants, and understand the hospital’s policies, procedures, and practices.
Tanya Penn, one of the SDSU volunteers, praised the HVO network: “The experienced HVO volunteers were incredibly supportive. Their first-hand knowledge of the hospital and the local context helped us quickly get oriented. With just two weeks to learn the complexities of the hospital setting and carry out our work, their guidance made an enormous difference.” Mahbubur Rahman, another of the volunteers, commented over dinner, “Those who have been here before know lots of great spots—restaurants, resorts, hiking trails, and pop-up bakeries with great croissants! They have learned how to interact with the local community and are enthusiastic in sharing their relationships with us.”
Angela Soto and Jordan Penn, the other SDSU team members, also reported both enlightening and rewarding experiences. Three of the six SDSU volunteers are experienced mid-career professionals who are students in a new doctorate of public health (DrPH) program recently started by SDSU. Each had a specific project to contribute to SKMH as one of their curriculum requirements. HVO and SDSU worked out a process whereby HVO can accept students as volunteers and act as the supervisor for required academic coursework. Both organizations are hoping that more mid-career students will volunteer for HVO opportunities focused on public health and healthcare management.
When asked about her experience with HVO and SKMH, Ms. Virpi Teinila, RN, the co-leader of the SDSU team, responded, “It was great! The other HVO volunteers and the staff at the hospital made us feel so welcome! I would come back in a heartbeat!”