Greetings from San Pedro Sula! Might be the shortest post ever but wanted to say 'hola' from San Pedro Sula! After Roatan, I took a ferry to La Ceiba and then a bus to San Pedro Sula (city I flew into). I met up with Dr. Schott and the 20+ people in his group!! OMG what an awesome group! We've been working our behinds off each day but it's been SO incredible. I'm so thankful that Dr. Schott let me tag along! We've held clinic each day and seen so many patients. Dr. Schott et al. function as a well oiled machine (is that the right idiom?). We've been seeing a few hundred patients each day, and today was a record in Puerto Cortes: 590+ patients!
We are staying in SPS and drive about 1-3 hours each day to a school, church or other community site where we set up our clinic. We work all day and then come home in the evening to a wonderful homemade dinner. Mirtsa and Dana are our wonderful hosts, and they have a beautiful home that fits all of us! After dinner we count pills, label bags, make "Miracle Cream" (cortisone, antifungal, antibiotic combo), and prepare other meds and supplies for the following day.
We've been going to bed around 9, which has been fantastic! We get up quite early around 6 or 630 but going to bed early is SO nice. I've got to do this more often. A friend told me that the quality of sleep goes up the earlier one goes to bed. Too right you are, dear friend! I've also had 3/4 a cup of coffee each day since I'm in the presence of Dr. Schott (usually drinks about 4 shots/day jeje). This combo of 9 hours of sleep and a fraction of a cup of coffee seems to be the winning combo. :)
It's been so awesome and special (sorry for the cheesy and generic words...my brain is tired....but these words are still accurate as far as how I feel) here. To connect with my gruop members, my patients, my interpretors....all of this has been such a gift, and I am so grateful! I'd like to write more in the future about the communities I've been visiting and a bit more about the sociopoliticoeconomic situation here.
More about clinic days. We have three people triaging patients. Once their vitals are measured and their chief complaint documented, the patients come to one of 6 stations. Liz, Karen, Kim, and Carla are 4 stellar nurses with whom I work. We each have a station at which we see individuals or families (usually a family of 2-4 people), and we're each joined by an interpretor. I've been able to use a lot of Spanish, but I've been so so thankful for the interpretors as there are times when I just can't understand or I just can't be understood. ;) And it seems that as the day goes on and my brain tires, the Spanish just doesn't seem to flow as smoothly--shoot!
It's been HOT. I've probably lost liters of fluid via sweat each day. Sorry if that's TMI, but it's true! It's been great though. I love heat and humidity. :)
Tomorrow we head to Aguas Calientes. I can't believe it's our second to last full day of clinic already! This week has flown by. This is the first time I've been able to get online since being in SPS, and it'll probably be my last. That's okay. It's good for my internet addiction. ;)
I am enjoying this group very much! It's fun to get to know everyone. Most are from Baker City, but there are a few from Portland and elsewhere. Everyone is super sweet, and there ain't nothing like road trips to get a group to bond! And what a fun group this is. I can't wait to keep in touch with everyone and return to Honduras together!! We've each taken hundreds of photos....combined I think we'll have thousands. It's also fun to grow as a group in terms of how we run clinic....I think we've got a pretty good system going. :)
Well, thank you, Dana for letting me use your computer and internet! Readers, sorry this entry's kind of all over the place...wanted to write as much as possible in the shortest time possible. ;)
So long for now, buckaroos! Hasta pronto! Actually, will not have internet until I get back to the States. So 'Hasta next week!"
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