MedLife
MEDLIFE is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that runs week-long volunteer Service Learning Trips combining mobile medical clinics and community development projects across Latin America and Tanzania, sourcing volunteers through hundreds of university and high school chapters worldwide.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2004
- HeadquartersWhite River Junction, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What MedLife does
MEDLIFE is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2004 by Nick Ellis, headquartered in Lima, Peru, with a US operations office in Bangor, Maine, and active programs in Peru, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and Tanzania. The organization delivers a portfolio of week-long Service Learning Trips (SLTs) — including Classic, High School, Dental, Nursing, Virtual, Custom Educational, and Development Corps variants — that combine mobile medical clinic volunteering with infrastructure development projects (e.g., staircases, water systems, school construction) and health education workshops. A core differentiator is the year-round Patient Follow-Up Care Program, staffed by in-country nurses and doctors, which provides 24/7/365 continuity of treatment for patients identified during mobile clinics, supported by local hires who provide language and cultural fluency. Permanent physical assets include the MED Dental clinic in Lima and the MED Center for Primary Education.
MEDLIFE's go-to-market relies on a grassroots chapter model: hundreds of student-led chapters at universities and high schools worldwide act as the primary customer acquisition channel, supplemented by testimonial-driven social media (YouTube, Instagram), advisor-led consultations, and a WeTravel-powered direct booking platform. The organization segments horizontally across college students (primary), high school students, educators and faculty advisors, parents, healthcare professionals, and graduate/professional students, with custom-trip offerings tailored to specific disciplines (PA programs, social-justice curricula, engineering/architectural Development Corps).
Revenue is generated primarily through one-time volunteer trip donations (a $200 non-refundable deposit plus a destination-variable donation goal covering trip costs and operating budget), supplemented by a recurring monthly giving program (Moving Mountains), medical supply donations, and ancillary revenue from tourism extensions. The organization has no disclosed funding rounds, operates without PE/VC ownership, and maintains a portfolio of wholly-owned sub-brands (Smiles Movement, Safe Homes Movement, Engaged Education, Goodlife Expeditions) to segment its offerings by service vertical.
MedLife firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- MedLife
- Legal name
- MEDLIFE
- Website
- https://medlifemovement.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2004
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- MEDLIFE is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that runs week-long volunteer Service Learning Trips combining mobile medical clinics and community development projects across Latin America and Tanzania, sourcing volunteers through hundreds of university and high school chapters worldwide.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
MedLife industry classification
Industry- Product category
- International Volunteer Healthcare and Community Development Services
- NAICS
- Voluntary Health Organizations (813212), Social Assistance (624), Offices of Physicians (6211)
- SIC
- Services-Health Services (8000), Services-Offices & Clinics Of Doctors Of Medicine (8011)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Medical Missions & Global Health NGOs (BPAGACAI)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Public Health & Medical Volunteering Programs (EDAIAGAC), Mobile & Street Medicine Primary Care Programs (HLAFAGAH)
Keywords
Where MedLife is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- White River Junction
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices9 records
Markets served
MedLife business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Service Learning Trip Donations: Volunteers pay a donation goal to participate in Service Learning Trips. The donation covers trip costs (meals, accommodation, in-country transportation) and funds all aspects of MEDLIFE's operating budget including staff salaries, office equipment, medical supplies, and patient follow-up care. A $200 non-refundable deposit is required at registration.
- Moving Mountains Monthly Giving Program: A recurring donation program where donors contribute monthly to support MEDLIFE's work. The program ensures that 100% of donations are allocated to fund educational workshops, development projects, and medical treatments for patients.
- Medical Supply Donations: Volunteers on Service Learning Trips can bring medical donations (medications, medical supplies) which reduce MEDLIFE's costs for supplies, allowing funds to be redirected to more advanced medicine and specialists such as gynecologists and dentists.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Week-long Service Learning Trip donation goal |
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Emergency Medical Insurance |
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Volunteer Spending Money |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
MedLife product offering
Product offeringCore offering
MEDLIFE operates week-long volunteer Service Learning Trips to Peru, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and Tanzania, during which participants shadow local medical staff at mobile clinics and contribute to community development projects. The organization runs year-round mobile medical clinics, a Patient Follow-Up Care Program, Health Education Workshops, and a permanent dental clinic (MED Dental) in Lima, with operations funded by volunteer trip donations and the Moving Mountains monthly giving program.
Product overview
MEDLIFE is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization offering a comprehensive portfolio of volunteer and humanitarian service programs centered on Medicine, Education, and Development (MED). The core offering is Service Learning Trips (SLTs) - week-long volunteer programs that include Classic SLTs, High School SLTs, Dental SLTs, Nursing SLTs, Virtual SLTs, Custom Educational Trips, and Development Corps. Supporting services include Mobile Clinics providing direct healthcare, the Patient Follow-Up Care Program for ongoing support, Health Education Workshops, and MED Dental (a permanent dental clinic in Lima). The organization operates through branded divisions including Smiles Movement (dental focus), Safe Homes Movement (infrastructure), Engaged Education (educational travel), and Goodlife Expeditions (tourism extensions), all unified under the Moving Mountains fundraising program that directs 100% of donations to community projects.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Smiles Movement: Focuses directly on dental Service Learning Trips, bringing essential oral healthcare to communities in need.
- Safe Homes Movement
- Engaged Education
- Goodlife Expeditions
- MED Center for Primary Education
- MED Dental
Products and services
- Classic Service Learning Trips
- High School Service Learning Trips
- Dental Service Learning Trips
- Nursing Service Learning Trips
- Custom Educational Trips
- Virtual Service Learning Trips
- Development Corps
- Moving Mountains Monthly Giving Program
- Smiles Movement (Dental SLTs Brand)
- Safe Homes Movement (Development SLTs Brand)
- Engaged Education (Educational Travel Brand)
- Goodlife Expeditions (Travel Extensions Brand)
Quantifiable outcome
- 330,000+ medical consultations provided to underserved communities
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use MedLife
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
MedLife technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration3 records
Feature3 records
MedLife partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, notable and minor.
- Movimiento SonrisascoreLocal dental practitioner organization that staffs MEDLIFE Dental Service Learning Trips. These local dentists and assistants provide free, high-quality dental care to communities lacking access to basic dental services, working alongside volunteer participants.
- Arcadia University Physician Assistant ProgramnotableCustom Service Learning Trip developed for PA students with strong medical and global health backgrounds. MEDLIFE worked with the Director of Clinical Education to develop a program allowing students to apply academic knowledge in real-life contexts.
- Drexel University Center for Black CulturenotablePartnership to develop a custom social justice-focused educational trip to Tena, Ecuador, as part of a summer course for students with strong social justice backgrounds.
- Smiles MovementcoreA MEDLIFE brand focused on dental Service Learning Trips, bringing essential oral healthcare to communities in need. Works in collaboration with Movimiento Sonrisas for dental services.
- Safe Homes MovementcoreA MEDLIFE brand focused on creating safer, more sustainable living environments for partner communities through development and infrastructure Service Learning Trips.
- Engaged EducationminorA MEDLIFE brand focused on providing culturally immersive travel-based service trips for volunteers looking to combine service and travel experiences.
- Goodlife ExpeditionsminorTravel partner providing optional touristic services and extensions for MEDLIFE volunteers who wish to extend their stay or add travel experiences before/after Service Learning Trips.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves4 records
Expansion highlights6 records
MedLife competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Global Brigades: Largest direct peer: a 501(c)(3) that mobilizes university student volunteer brigades to Latin America and Africa for medical, dental, public health, and development work. Operates the same student-chapter flywheel, mobile-clinic delivery model, and partnership with universities that MEDLIFE relies on.
- Child Family Health International (CFHI): Nonprofit offering global health education and service-learning programs for pre-health and health-professional students, with a comparable focus on ethical engagement, university partnerships, and longitudinal community health outcomes rather than episodic voluntourism.
- International Medical Relief (IMR): Provides short-term medical mission trips staffed by volunteer healthcare professionals and students to underserved communities worldwide. Closely matches MEDLIFE's mobile-clinic model and student/professional volunteer base.
- International Service Learning (ISL): Nonprofit organizing service-learning trips for university and high school student groups in Latin America, Africa, and Asia, with a strong medical and dental volunteer component and similar university-partnership sales motion.
- Volunteers Around the World (VAW Global): Student-led nonprofit running medical, dental, and public-health volunteer trips in Latin America and Asia, with a chapter-based model and pre-health student focus that directly parallels MEDLIFE's pipeline.
Broad incumbents
- Projects Abroad: Large, well-capitalized international volunteer placement organization with a much broader destination and program catalog (medicine, dentistry, public health among many). Competes for the same student volunteer demand pool with a more generalist offering.
- International Volunteer HQ (IVHQ): One of the world's largest volunteer-abroad platforms with affordable, short-duration programs in 50+ destinations. A scaled incumbent in the broader category where MEDLIFE competes for first-time international volunteers.
- Cross-Cultural Solutions: Established nonprofit running international volunteer programs with a focus on sustainable community development and ethical engagement. Comparable in mission framing and target audience of students and young professionals.
- G Venture (by G Adventures): Travel company with a dedicated volunteer-immersed program line spanning multiple continents. Represents the convergence of mainstream adventure travel and service learning, an adjacent competitive vector to MEDLIFE's educational-trip offerings.
Emerging players
- Plan My Gap Year: International volunteer travel provider focused on gap-year and short-term experiences including medical, dental, and community programs. Competes for the same student demographic with a digitally-led, lower-price positioning.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
MedLife social profiles
Digital presenceMedLife financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
MedLife leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
MedLife subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries4 records
MedLife funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
MedLife M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about MedLife
What does MedLife do?
MEDLIFE operates week-long volunteer Service Learning Trips to Peru, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and Tanzania, during which participants shadow local medical staff at mobile clinics and contribute to community development projects. The organization runs year-round mobile medical clinics, a Patient Follow-Up Care Program, Health Education Workshops, and a permanent dental clinic (MED Dental) in Lima, with operations funded by volunteer trip donations and the Moving Mountains monthly giving program.
Is MedLife a public or private company?
MedLife is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was MedLife founded?
MedLife was founded in 2004. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is MedLife based?
MedLife is headquartered in White River Junction, United States, in the North America region.
How does MedLife make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Service Learning Trip Donations are the primary driver. The others are moving Mountains Monthly Giving Program and medical Supply Donations.
Who are MedLife's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Global Brigades, Child Family Health International (CFHI), International Medical Relief (IMR), International Service Learning (ISL) and Volunteers Around the World (VAW Global). Broad incumbents are Projects Abroad, International Volunteer HQ (IVHQ), Cross-Cultural Solutions and G Venture (by G Adventures). Plan My Gap Year is listed as an emerging player.
Does MedLife have an API?
No public API is recorded for MedLife.
What industry is MedLife in?
MedLife's product category is International Volunteer Healthcare and Community Development Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGACAI, Medical Missions & Global Health NGOs, with a secondary code of EDAIAGAC, Public Health & Medical Volunteering Programs. Its NAICS code is 813212 and its SIC code is 8000.