PCOM South Georgia Shares Lifesaving Lessons Across Languages

October 12, 2026

PCOM South Georgia’s Osteopathic Medicine student doctors are helping protect the people who power the region's agricultural industry through bilingual CPR and emergency response training.

For student doctor Mauricio Soto (DO '28), this project has personal roots. A native of Coffee County, Georgia, Soto spent his childhood summers picking blueberries and blackberries in the fields. This experience inspired his interest in serving agricultural workers and led to his initial meeting with Thomas J. Last, PhD, professor of biochemistry, cell biology, and genetics, and Stacie Fairley, PhD, associate professor of microbiology and immunology at PCOM South Georgia.

“I saw firsthand how quickly medical emergencies can happen,” he said. “I witnessed a woman faint from heat exhaustion and dehydration, and a teenage coworker get bitten by a snake. Those experiences stayed with me and inspired our team to create a program that gives farmworkers practical skills so they can respond confidently in emergencies.”

Using Spanish-language materials from the American Heart Association, more than 30 student volunteers from the Latino Medical Student Association (LMSA) were trained to teach hands-only CPR and first aid for bee stings, allergic reactions, heat stroke, and other life-threatening emergencies. They also received cultural competency training to help prevent misunderstandings and support effective communication with farmworkers.

“Even though the student doctors may be Spanish-speaking, one word may mean different things to different Latino groups,” said Sharon Lackwood (DO '28). “Understanding those differences is important when communicating with patients, and we've received specialized training in this area.”

The students then took the training to farmworkers at Southern Valley Fruit & Vegetable, Inc. in Norman Park, Georgia.

“Southern Valley has greatly valued our partnership with PCOM South Georgia,” said Courtney H. Griffin, Director of Operational Support at Southern Valley. “We take pride in ensuring our employees are trained in CPR and other essential medical skills, and the PCOM staff and students have been wonderful to work with, delivering that training with excellence.”

At Southern Valley, PCOM South Georgia students have led four hands-only CPR training sessions using manikins.

“As a first-year medical student, it was a new experience. We are used to being taught, not being the teacher,” said Valerie Yepez (DO '28).

Soto recently presented some of the farmworkers' responses in post-evaluations at the National Rural Health Association conference in San Diego, CA.

“Hearing people thank us after the training sessions helped me realize that we did make a difference in the community,” he shared.

Yepez, who presented at last year’s American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM) conference in Las Vegas, hopes the program inspires other medical schools to address the unique healthcare needs in their communities.

“I have gotten advice from my peers that there’s nothing better than speaking Spanish to a patient and seeing them light up,” she said. “To know that I contributed to a project like this is so rewarding. That’s why PCOM came to South Georgia, right? To make a difference in rural communities for all who live and work here.”

New funding from AACOM will support a pilot program to expand the pool of certified bilingual CPR instructors in South Georgia by training farmworkers, community members, and student physicians who plan to remain engaged in the region. By certifying more local instructors, the program hopes to increase health literacy in the communities they serve.

Lackwood is one of two people to become a certified CPR instructor as part of the project’s second phase. She also presented at the International Association of Medical Educators conference in Augusta, encouraging other medical schools to consider similar programs.

“This training doesn’t have to be hard,” Lackwood said. “Even with just basic manikins, anyone can do this.”

PCOM South Georgia students will highlight the program at this year’s Sunbelt Ag Expo in Moultrie, sharing information about bilingual CPR and emergency response training at the College’s Rural Health Initiative Building. 

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