Tonight we have a special guest blogger, Laura the incredible internal medicine doctor turned ER physician and pediatrician.
"I am sick. With a cold. I have also lost my voice. I pushed myself too hard and kissed on the babies too much. Since I can't talk I don't know how useful I will be tomorrow, but one day at a time and definitely no whining after all the suffering I see day to day. We went to the beach today. I insisted on it. I cannot come to the Caribbean and not get in some kind of salt water. The driver charged us way to much to go out there ($150) but there was ten of us so no big deal. A Haitian sees an American and only sees dollar signs. Sad but true. Haitians on average make $2 a day. I am getting the boys to bring me bags of mangoes (yes....you should be jealous) and slipping them $2 a bag. So the first beach we stopped at was a mess. Rocks on
the beach, loud music, sewer looking water, dancing Haitians and I said "no"! The ugly American. But there is no way I am swimming in waters in Port-au-Prince. I don't want to die of some infectious disease so young in my life. I told the driver that the group wanted a quiet beach with very little people. This was a classic cultural screw up. The Haitians must enjoy going to the "party beach" and dancing and drinking beer. So we drove another hour away and found this isolated beach and did not get out of the water for another 2 hours. It was so healing. I cried a little. O.K. I felt like I cried a lot. For all the loss this country has endured. For the families that sit for 4 hours to be seen by a doctor. For the gratitude that flows out of them with every little thing you do. For the little old lady who lost her four sons in the earthquake and needs a transfusion but has no family to go get the blood for her. For the old lady I took care of yesterday who had scabies so bad on her head that there where open sores after she tried to dye it black. For the seizing little baby I transferred out of the hospital this morning with a punctured ear drum that he must have had for a few months. For the poor 23 year old nurse that we had to shock last night without sedation because of a fast heart rhythm. I still feel spent. I think there are many more days of tears. But one thing I know for sure is that the ocean will heal you. And sure enough it did. I sat on the beach and ate a sweet mango and talked to the Haitian translators and other volunteers. We also got a coconut and drank some of the water (I put it in the fridge here and will eat the meat for breakfast). I came back and crashed for a few hours and woke up to eat and then back to bed. We got news about three sick babies and one of my diabetic patients we have transferred to other facilities in Port-au-Prince in the last few
days. We transfer patients to two other hospitals. One is called Miami, near the airport which is a fancy tent facility manned by American doctors and currently has 14 pediatricians volunteering. The other is "General Hospital" which also has a ton of Americans. One baby is doing well after bowel surgery and one may have died. Another child has HIV. The diabetic man has died. Another day in Haiti. I love you guys, Laura"
Short note from Lynn. Everyday takes me deeper into this culture, the language and the babies in the pediatric ward. Today I shared some quiet moments with my Haitian nurse learning how to say, calm, tranquil and quiet in Creole. I took the picture of my baby with her new doll, she holds it and is smiling easily. I finally rounded with Dr. Simeon the Haitian Pediatrician after 9 pm. She speaks pretty good English, and thinks I talk too fast. (Ha, for anyone that knows me). She taught me so much in such a short time it was incredible. She is concerned about a possible HIV in one child, but she says my baby is getting well and I should not worry about HIV in her. A wonderful woman who volunteers her time here at the Hopital Adventiste and works full time taking care of mothers and baby's living with HIV/AIDS. We blessed and thanked each other for serving her "family". The administrator here, Nathan offered my husband Bob the general contractor a salaried position here at the Hopital. Are you surprised that I want to move here? I added a picture of Lin with her interpreter. Lin and Kathleen are in the OR all of the time and we rarely get a chance to see them. I will have to adventure into the OR for a photo shoot.
No comments:
Post a Comment