Bridging Gaps in Healthcare: Health Sciences Faculty Joins Mission to Cape Verde

The new year brought an unexpected opportunity for Joseph Whitton, clinical assistant professor and program director of Radiologic Technology / MRI in the School of Health Professions at Stony Brook University.

On New Year’s Eve, Whitton received a phone call from the team leader for a RAD-AID International mission to Cape Verde, Africa, inviting him to join their team — and that he would need to be ready to go in two weeks.

Whitton answered the call without hesitation. As a faculty member in Radiologic Technology, he understood the urgent need for medical imaging in underserved communities. Radiology (spanning X-ray, CT, ultrasound, MRI and more) is a cornerstone of modern healthcare, yet over half the world lacks access to these essential services. Without proper imaging, diagnosing and treating conditions like cancer, heart disease, infections, trauma and maternal-infant complications becomes exponentially more difficult.

RAD-AID, a nonprofit organization dedicated to expanding radiology services in low-resource areas, works to bridge this gap by providing education, equipment, infrastructure and long-term support. In 2024 alone, RAD-AID deployed 210 volunteers to more than 20 countries, bringing life-saving imaging technology and training to regions in need.

Cape Verde is an archipelago off the coast of West Africa that faces a critical shortage of trained radiographers and limited access to modern imaging equipment. The goal of this mission was to equip local students with the knowledge and skills needed to provide safe and effective radiographic imaging services.

Despite the challenges, Whitton found himself moved by the dedication of the students.

“We found that their greatest resource was their people,” he said. “These students were very eager to learn and so dedicated to becoming competent in performing general X-ray procedures, that it was truly inspiring to me as an educator.”

For Whitton, it was rewarding to empower individuals to strengthen their own healthcare system, ensuring that the knowledge shared would continue to benefit communities after the volunteers were gone.

“It gave me a profound sense of joy to help people develop the skills needed so that they could, in turn, provide improved essential healthcare to the people of their own community,” he shared.

— Beth Squire