Well Baby/Child Clinic

On this past Monday we did a well baby/child clinic. We went to two different villages and saw almost 100 children in the course of only a few hours. We took height and weight measurements of every child and then plotted them on a graph was exactly like the one in the picture.

This was a learning experience for us all. You would think getting to piece of information on a sheet of paper would be pretty simple. BUT... when you add a language barrier, fussy children, impatient parents and 90+ degree weather, everything seems more challenging! 

Even with the environment working against us we all got into a groove... After seeing almost 50 children we were finished and were able to eat our lunch packed by the hotel's owner's wife, Marta. (by the way... ALL the food we had was delicious. Everything was SO fresh and flavorful it was hard to stop eating at meals) We also were able to see the stoves that Rivers of the World provide for families. They are ventilated and much more efficient which improves the families health (because they aren't constantly breathing smoke) and environmentally friendly (because each family goes from burning 28 trees a year to 8!). Also instead of the stove heating the entire house the heat is contained much better to the area of the stove. 

At our second village for well baby/child we set up and got moving quickly. As a result we were done much quicker as well. With a grow chart doctor's and primary care providers are looking to see a trend over time. If a child is the the 5% percentile but continues to stay within that range for 5 years there is nothing to worry about they are just smaller and lighter than most, but developing WNL (nursing term: within normal limits). So it was difficult to provide parents with an accurate assessment of their children's development because we were only measuring a single point in time. 

The other thing we saw at our second village was a teenage boy that had been kicked by a horse a few days prior to our clinic. He had about a two inch laceration above his right eye. Elaine, the ASN coordinator saw him but because it had been two days since the incident we could not suture the wound; it would have to heal on it's own. The wound itself was inflamed and he had a black eye. When we returned on Friday (four days later) with anti-biotics and dressing supplies the improvement was remarkable! The swelling and inflammation at almost disappeared and his black was gone. Take a look! 

Gringas In Shorts

Last Sunday we went to an orphanage place that houses children from 10 months up to 21 years. These children might be orphans or they might have parents that can't or won't take care of them. It was a sad situation. We enjoyed spending time with the younger children. We brought bubbles, bouncy balls, stickers etc. It was a blast to see how happy they were to have some extra love & attention. We were also able to see where they were housed. It was by no means fancy, but it was clean which is encouraging. There are also dorms for the older children.

They go to a 7th Day Adventist school for both primary and secondary school. Also often they are able to receive technical training so that when they leave each person can support themselves.

As we were leaving the orphanage a boy in a Nissan truck pulled in with 6 armed guards and about 10 other friends piled into the bed of the vehicle. We came to find out that this guy was one of the richest children in the area and his father owned dozens of hardware stores. The reason he had armed is in the past he was kidnapped and ransomed. SO as they were pulling out, I lifted my camera to a "un photo" and they all started whooping and hollering. Then Sara (the hotel owner's daughter and one of our translators) said "Yeah.... they LOVE gringas (white women) in shorts!"

This moment was funny but then all of us students started realizing that all the natives don't wear shorts. The women are in dresses or skirts. The men are always in pants. The only people who at anytime wear shorts are children, both boys and girls. But even then the girls are usually in skirts, and the boys have shorts that are longer than Bermudas. It's just one of those cultural things that you don't anticipate.  

A few pics

Hello from Honduras

Hello fellow students, friends, and family!
We are broadcasting from our hotel in Honduras. Seeing how it's a balmy 90+ here we are enjoying the porch and three hammocks over looking beautiful Lake Yojoa. Everyone has safely arrived here including Dr. Regena Spratling (she graduated on Saturday) and Dr. Britt Boyd, MD. (The physician from River of the World).

We are currently uploading pictures to shutterfly and I'm sure your nursing student will let you take a look at them at the end of the week.

Yesterday we traveled to two different villages and did a well baby/child day. All the children we weighed, measured and then the information was plotted on the CDC's world growth chart to see if the children fell within the normal limits. Most fell near the bottom in both height and weight but were usually within normal ranges for BMI. One of the saddest things was that most of the children had horrible oral hygiene, and this might be due to the lack of calcium in the diet. Most had visible tooth decay if they hadn't already lost teeth (baby or permanent).

Today we were at a village further up a mountain instead of right on the lake. We did a full clinic with both adults and children. Most people complained of ear nose & throat problems, respiratory issues, GI distress, headaches, pain, and skin issues. We had many different stations to make things run smoothly: intake, triage, doctor, and pharmacy. We also are handing out eye glasses and toys for the children. We arrived at the village and set up at the school around 9am and we were done at 12pm. In total we saw about 75 people. So it was a busy day!