We are back in Antigua and it's still pissing down rain. This may have something to do with the dissolution of Hurricane Mathew which was headed this way last week but fell apart before it could do any real damage in this region. So we are spending a lot of time in little coffee shops and bars and that is not a bad thing. Current favorites are Cafe No Se and Ocelot, so if you're in the area check them out.Last week I planned to blog during a medical mission I volunteered for. It was my first medical mission of any kind and I found myself exhausted at the end of each day, overwhelmed by what I had seen and experienced, craving alcohol, and not feeling like blogging. So I didn't.
But now I have had the chance to process the week a bit amongst my synapses and here is the result:This was a fantastic opportunity and I'm glad I took it. Yes, there were times when I questioned what and how we were doing something but I think if you walk into any hospital or clinic in the world you will find moments of profound joy, sadness and frustration. For better or worse you are changing peoples' lives and that comes with consequences.
Some of our female patients suffered from a prolapsed uterus and from what I saw that is not a pleasant thing. Others had incontinence from numerous childbirths and needed muscle and tissue repair to stop the problem. Also not pleasant. We had a number of children come in with terribly disfigured cleft lips and palettes. One girl was 30 years old with a mouth that was cleft all the way to the top of her nose and virtually no palette. So any improvement on these conditions is a good thing. We were very limited in our recuperative narcotics and for that I was ashamed. Granted, I have been raised in country with a drug for everything, but it is difficult to watch a woman walk out of a clinic 24 hours after an abdominal hysterectomy with a handful of acetaminophen and ibuprofen. That is a world of pain I have never visited and cannot imagine. But it was the best we could do.
My greatest joy during the clinic was spending time with the patients in their 24 hours after surgery. I enjoyed making them more comfortable and talking to them about their work and lives.
1 comment:
Sounds like you have the making to be a nurse Johnny! Maybe you and Narnar can go to Anchorage together... Great to hear that everything is going well, and that you two are enjoying the experience for what it is. I can't wait to hear it firsthand here in SF. Nara had to roll back to Fairbanks for her Pops, as his recent hernia repair didnt go so well, and he is currently in the icu with a perforated diverticuli...for which teslow took out a foot of colon, complicated by acute renal failure due to increased pressure from gas/stool in his belly. Not so good. He's in the Icu today, due to some post op atrial fibrillation...and should be out of the woods soon. Continue to have a great experience, and keep your blog updated for the homies. Mattson
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