Hey Hey!  The Missouri/New York crew is still hard at work here at the OSAPO clinic.  Our Gynecology surgery team has been working day and night on some pretty complicated cases, and each one has presented its own unforeseen challenges and surprises....  Apparently uterine fibroids are very common here.. and they mean business.
  Meanwhile, clinic has been bustling as well. Tuesday was a little slower because it was "Market Day" around here, so people had other things they had to tend to. But Monday and Wednesday made up for it. With the help of my trusty nurse/translator, I've been able to see over 60 people in clinic.  And I have to say, my Family Practice skills are being maxed out. I've seen a range from 1 month old to 80-somethings, and their illnesses are even more varied.  I've seen congenital malformations, tetanus, and lots of pregnant ladies getting their first prenatal visit - some of them are about to deliver!   I"ve seen a testicular hydrocele that I considered to be HUGE, so I got to go to the OR to assist in that procedure, and he went home today. I've seen male infertility, GERD, STDs, sickle cell, malaria, and lots of other fun stuff.  There are a lot of kids with acute little infections, and adults with chronic conditions. The tricky part is finding out what has already been done for them, and what I can add to help them out.  Luckily, there are a lot of great people working here, and we are able to provide some high-quality care to a very grateful population.
  The dedication that so many people are putting into this clinic is very inspiring, and I'm so glad to be a small part of it. I really didn't know what to expect when I came down here. I had heard great things from our trip organizer, Sandra Beldor, but she didn't even do it justice. It's something that is hard to explain from the inside, and hard to totally comprehend from the outside.  I guess everyone will just have to come down here and find out for themselves. They won't be disappointed.

Rookie

This is my first trip to Haiti, actually, it is my first real trip outside of the US.  I had absolutely no idea what to expect on our arrival.  I know that during my sleepless night before we left I was just hoping to get to Haiti with everything and everyone.  All I really knew about international travel was what I had seen in movies.  Once we landed in Port au Prince, my nerves actually calmed down, in hindsight, that was when they really should have started to act up.  It truly is a different world compared to mid Missouri, or anywhere else I have lived or visited.  First and most notably, is the weather. It is not as hot or humid as I had anticipated, but much hotter than St. Louis had been at 4 am.  We (all 10 team members) make it through customs (I am guessing that it was customs) and climb into the back an ambulance to begin the journey to the OSAPO clinic. This trip too was unlike anything I have ever experienced, its seems as though there is no rhyme or reason to the traffic.  The only thing I know for sure at this point is that we are following our luggage and driving as though its trying to get away.

The trip to the clinic is the my first real experience of Haiti.  I see how people are living both in and out of the city.  We see the tent cities built after the earthquake, but what really surprised me was the landscape.  During the 90 minute ambulance ride to the clinic, we have seen everything from cacti to palm trees, beaches, rivers, and  large mountain ranges. I did not expect that at all. 

We arrive at the clinic and are greeted by a fantastic feast. As soon as we have eaten, we feel like we should be working.  I am non-medical personnel and I know that I will be getting off easy for the next  week.  Technically I am here for research and teaching but I really hope that I can help out as much as possible.

Following our tour of the clinic we  unpack and attempt to organize the medications we brought along with us.  We do our best to keep things organized and out of the pharmacists way.  The following morning I realize that we stacked all of the medications underneath the distribution window.  The pharmacists and her assistants however are not phased, and get right to work in morning, people are already showing up with their prescriptions.  I assist the best I can with only one person in the pharmacy who speaks English.  I did manage to stay busy and finish feeling like I was somewhat helpful.



The Need for an Autoclave
In the afternoon I hear an interesting story about how the cook was so concerned with feeding the team she removed the sterilizer from the burner.  This held things up in the clinic as they were waiting for the speculums that were being sterilized to continue seeing patients.  Sandra our team leader from Columbia pointed out specifically that we need to hunt an automatic autoclave down when we return to Missouri.




There are so many more stories to tell.  Hopefully some of the others on the trip will be able to share their experiences.