Haiti Update June 25, 2010

I got an email and several pics today! Here they are:

Hi! Things are well but Laura and I have been so busy in clinic that I have hardly had time to stop for meals. I swear I am getting good at this medical stuff. I know a lot of info on symptoms and meds and all kinds of stuff. Feeling like my next project to tackle needs to be medical school -lol- can you imagine? Anyway things have been busy but good. We are enjoying the work we are doing.

We have gone out into the community a few times and those are the experiences I love. Getting to see the reality of Haiti and experience the people first hand has been awesome. It's hard to see but good to experience.

Today Laura and I went to the home of a old woman who had a stroke and can't walk and lays in bed all day and her daughters care for her. We were told about her and that we would have to change her catheter and clean her huge bedsores so you can imagine how freaked out I was with that idea. All my worst nightmares wrapped in one. Well I am happy to report it was not too bad. The smell was fine and it was amazing how clean they kept their little tent. The sores were pretty bad- like spoonfuls of flesh taken out with sores all around the missing flesh. It was gross but not as bad as I thought. It stretched me a bit but I'm glad about that. Laura was amazing. She is such an amazingly loving and skilled doctor. I am continually impressed with her graciousness and loving heart. Will put the patients above her needs constantly. Completely impressed. (Laura says "Awwwww how sweet of her to say that!")

Kev and our construction team are doing great work. It's been really hard to adjust to the heat but they are working hard - Kev especially! Kev is such an amazing worker. Kev has also taken up watching the women in the kitchen cook. It takes hours for them to prepare the food, as they cook on charcoal and have no running water or anything. They do a great job and Kev has started taking down what they cook and how they cook. He is captivated, but the women laugh at him because only the women cook in Haiti. Our male translators think Kevin is crazy for cooking. They just laugh but Kev is in heaven in the kitchen watching them. The kitchen is attached to our clinic so we get to watch them cook everyday but the others don't so our team has taken up watching them cook and asking questions. It really makes the women proud!

It's been even hotter today if that's possible. There has not been any rain so the sun is out and bright. We are wet pretty much 100% of the time - dripping- shirts with sweat drips all over - just wet. Hard to get use to. Still not use to it.

Other than that we are good. Another team is joining us tomorrow and we are told there are 2 nurses with them so we are looking forward to sharing the clinic responsibilities. It's overwhelming the steady stream of people waiting for Laura and I to help. Glad to have others helping.

We miss everyone but happy doing the work here. I will write again soon.

Love tons,

Christy

Pic of Kev with little local kids who latched onto the group and really wanted their picture taken as the group was walking to the pharmacy:

Christy with the same little ones:

On the way to the pharmacy:

The ladies cooking for the group:

Kev and others watching the women cook:

One last thing - Laura texted me today and described the pharmacy to me - it is a tiny cement room with literally no working light (Laura used her cell phone for light and had to get really close to the meds to see anything). You walk in and it's almost completely dark and there is only one tiny little window that offers no circulation. They bought some hydrocortisone cream today, which again was ridiculously expensive for the Haitian people. She also described just how limited their supplies are once again. Really sounds like there is a great need there in Grand Goave, although I'm sure they will describe all of this more in detail when they get home.

I will hopefully post another update tomorrow as I get new pics and information:)!

Laila