Ed O'Beirne traveled to Uganda to help schools, orphanages and clinics improve their management and impact. Learn about the inspiration for his trip, his experience and the memories he made.

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In July, Ed O'Beirne traveled to Uganda with a dozen others to serve and work alongside Ugandans through ThinSpace Africa.

"We were able to truly experience our destination on the most granular and intimate level, not bound by tourist attractions and scripted tours," says O'Beirne, senior director of Revenue Cycle and a former physician assistant. "Our mission was to meet the people where they are, to serve them in whatever way we could, and most importantly, to learn from them."

The News Center team caught up with O'Beirne to learn about the purpose and inspiration for his trip to Uganda and the memories he made there.

How did you hear about the work of ThinSpace Africa?

I first heard about ThinSpace Africa from my aunt, a businesswoman who had traveled with them to Uganda multiple times. Her stories about the work they were doing — helping schools, orphanages and clinics improve their management and impact — really inspired me. That led me to get involved.

What attracted me to ThinSpace Africa is their approach. Rather than try to impose solutions, they work alongside African leaders and communities, helping to build their capacity so they can lead their own transformation. The goal is to equip local people with the skills and resources they need so they themselves can create change. This focus on empowering communities from within is what makes ThinSpace's work so meaningful. 

What inspired you to work with the organization? 

I was drawn to join the trip in 2024 as I learned the good the organization was doing for people in need and the incredible investments they were making in the community, in particular orphans, to ensure that each person achieved their greatest potential through education and proper healthcare. 

The trip immersed me in many aspects of the community that I could not have gotten from an ordinary trip abroad. I shared meals and created true, long-lasting relationships with the Ugandans I met. We were given access to the beauty of the country and to the people who live there on a very personal level.

Why Uganda, and why now? 

Like much of sub-Saharan Africa, Uganda was greatly impacted by the HIV/AIDS epidemic and currently has an overall infection rate of 5.1% overall and 6.8% in women of childbearing age.

Antiretroviral drugs were slow to arrive in Uganda compared to the western world. Our sponsored clinic, Hope Again Medical Center, was founded in the village of Kaihura in 2000 expressly to provide antiretroviral drugs. Now that treatment is more available through this clinic, HIV/AIDS patients are able to live long, healthy and fruitful lives. But there is a generational aftershock from this epidemic, on the culture and society, and perhaps most importantly on the orphans who were created by this epidemic. ThinSpace Africa shelters, feeds, clothes and educates 500 of these orphans.

While I know that my time in Uganda impacted the community in some ways, it also changed me.

Ed O'Beirne

What kind of difference were you able to make in Uganda through this work?

I witnessed firsthand the challenges faced by the Ugandan people in the village, but I also saw their incredible persistence and drive, particularly from students. One of my most memorable experiences was being invited by the science faculty to dissect a goat for the students, showing them the organs and discussing their functions. It was a powerful moment of sharing knowledge and sparking their curiosity about medicine.

I also had the chance to assist the clinic's medical staff with a rural outreach program. We saw 784 patients in a single day, treating everything from UTIs to malaria, all free of charge. Many of these people wouldn't have been able to access healthcare otherwise. That experience made me realize just how meaningful our work was. On that one day, I felt like I made more of an impact than I ever could in a month working as a physician assistant at an American clinic.

Another highlight was meeting Joseph, a pharmacy school student who showed me around on a hike. We've kept in touch, and I've continued to support him as he pursues his education. Knowing I'm contributing to the future of someone who will give back to his community has been the most rewarding investment I've made.

How did the trip to Uganda make a difference in your life?  

While I know that my time in Uganda impacted the community in some ways, it also changed me. I learned that making a difference and impact goes both ways. It's not just about what we bring to Uganda — it's also about what Uganda brings to us and the relationships we build and the mutual growth that happens through these connections. The sense of purpose and fulfillment I've gained from these relationships and from seeing the incredible resilience of the Ugandan people has enriched my life in ways I never imagined. What I've received is far greater than what I have given.

I recently hosted two Uganda leaders in my home and introduced them to my closest friends and neighbors. Now, some of those friends and neighbors are hoping to get involved and may travel with me next year.

I can't wait to take my teenage daughter with me on my next trip and see how much helping and relating with others will impact her life. I hope she'll see that life is about partnership, friendship, and understanding that we're all working together to make a difference in the world.

Our RICH TIES values became vividly apparent to me while I was in Uganda.

Ed O'Beirne

What were some of your most memorable moments there? 

My peak moment was the humble activity of just sharing a meal with the children — sitting on a bench under a tree, eating with my hands, which I always enjoy. They were so kind, respectful and generous.  It was a very real experience. We were also able to see African animals — elephants, giraffes, chimpanzees, baboons, hippos, crocodiles, and more! 

What did you bring back with you to Mayo Clinic?

Mainly, I brought back the desire to share my story and to enlist others in our Mayo family to have their own version of this experience. It may be in your own community, with me in Uganda or in another place around the world.

How is your time in Uganda influencing your work at Mayo Clinic?

Our RICH TIES values became vividly apparent to me while I was in Uganda, working with people in roles similar to my own and providing direct patient care. It also refocused my insight that all of us at Mayo Clinic are here to truly do the right thing for our patients just like Hope Again Medical Center, even people like me who work in the business office. 

What do you want others at Mayo who are considering a similar experience to know?

This is a way for us to invest time in a way that is truly impactful and immensely gratifying. I want people to know that they can share this real experience, and contribute no matter what their occupation, even nonclinicians. 

Learn more

To learn more about ThinSpace Africa, contact O'Beirne at 602-405-6672.