Hi everyone at home! Life in Haiti moves along, very busy and always rewarding. I'm almost through my first full week here. We have been working really hard, attacking all the tasks Gale has laid out for me. The pharmacy is getting really organized, I am so impressed with how quickly and efficiently we are getting it done. All the medicines have been inventoried, both in the pharmacy and in our overflow depot- complete with a system for replacing the clinic pharmacy when things get low. Now we have to enter all the information in the computer.
Unfortunately, a huge problem is that we have an abundance of certain medicines, and absolutely none of others. Thanks to Pearl, Milo, Sadie and many others, I hear Milo is bringing a grand supply of some of what we are missing. Bravo!!! We thank you all!! I so look forward to passing out those children's vitamins. We took an amazing ride out to Jacmel to the beach yesterday. The drive through the mountains was absolutely breathtaking, green lush farmland, mountaintops, the reminder of what an amazingly beautiful tropical paradise Haiti is. I felt bad for how much I enjoyed it because most of the group was really carsick from all the switchback turns, and all those (3 people) riding in the way back were close to vomiting most of the way through the mountains. We had a lot of fun swimming and splashing around singing in the ocean and there was a really competitive soccer game on the beach. I will never tire of the beautiful clear blue green and warm Caribbean ocean water.
We continue to see a lot of sick and malnourished children, families trying to provide and survive in very dificult situations. Today a very sad weak and thin girl arrived after suffering through cholera with her mother in one of the cholera camps. She was barely recovered, was with a neighbor and had to leave her mother still battling cholera behind. She was near tears and exhasution the entire time. I pray her mother lives through it. I continue to pass out lollipops, try to be an encouraging, and gently educating presence. Drink plenty of clean water, wash your hands. It's hard at times to believe the lack of education in the schools about basic things like health, sex education, sanitation, and to see the odd little array of beliefs the Haitians have. If you place a key around a child's neck, they will get better. If you wrap their neck with cloth and put cotton in their ears, it will help the mumps. I think the Haitian children are the most beautiful on earth.
Lionel leaves tomorrow after a week- four and a half days translating with me in the clinic and 2 days off. I think it has been a mixed experience for him, but you will have to ask him yourself. Today a couple times he got confused and was speaking English to the patients and creole to me! He said he is ready to go home. Milo, Emma, and Mackay arrive tomorrow and Showty said its like Jesus is arriving, they are so excited. I continue to support and mentor Benit who asks for my help more and more as she learns to trust me. She will be a fine manager- fair, yet not too lenient, and as soon as she earns the new respect she deserves, I think things will go really smoothly. We had an official meeting with the women who clean the clinic and talked about the importance of disinfecting, keeping things really clean, sterile etc. As soon as we talked about how this is all of our clininc, here for all of us to take care of, to serve our families, and keep germ free, they started clammering about all the new cleaning supplies and materials they needed to do a better job. I hope to purchase a lot of this tomorrow, as its also my job to keep cleaning morale up!!
Enough for now. I'm tired after staying up late last night on the roof with Adam and Dan. That's where the nicest breeze is and it was Adam's last night. Love and good-night from Haiti.
Unfortunately, a huge problem is that we have an abundance of certain medicines, and absolutely none of others. Thanks to Pearl, Milo, Sadie and many others, I hear Milo is bringing a grand supply of some of what we are missing. Bravo!!! We thank you all!! I so look forward to passing out those children's vitamins. We took an amazing ride out to Jacmel to the beach yesterday. The drive through the mountains was absolutely breathtaking, green lush farmland, mountaintops, the reminder of what an amazingly beautiful tropical paradise Haiti is. I felt bad for how much I enjoyed it because most of the group was really carsick from all the switchback turns, and all those (3 people) riding in the way back were close to vomiting most of the way through the mountains. We had a lot of fun swimming and splashing around singing in the ocean and there was a really competitive soccer game on the beach. I will never tire of the beautiful clear blue green and warm Caribbean ocean water.
We continue to see a lot of sick and malnourished children, families trying to provide and survive in very dificult situations. Today a very sad weak and thin girl arrived after suffering through cholera with her mother in one of the cholera camps. She was barely recovered, was with a neighbor and had to leave her mother still battling cholera behind. She was near tears and exhasution the entire time. I pray her mother lives through it. I continue to pass out lollipops, try to be an encouraging, and gently educating presence. Drink plenty of clean water, wash your hands. It's hard at times to believe the lack of education in the schools about basic things like health, sex education, sanitation, and to see the odd little array of beliefs the Haitians have. If you place a key around a child's neck, they will get better. If you wrap their neck with cloth and put cotton in their ears, it will help the mumps. I think the Haitian children are the most beautiful on earth.
Lionel leaves tomorrow after a week- four and a half days translating with me in the clinic and 2 days off. I think it has been a mixed experience for him, but you will have to ask him yourself. Today a couple times he got confused and was speaking English to the patients and creole to me! He said he is ready to go home. Milo, Emma, and Mackay arrive tomorrow and Showty said its like Jesus is arriving, they are so excited. I continue to support and mentor Benit who asks for my help more and more as she learns to trust me. She will be a fine manager- fair, yet not too lenient, and as soon as she earns the new respect she deserves, I think things will go really smoothly. We had an official meeting with the women who clean the clinic and talked about the importance of disinfecting, keeping things really clean, sterile etc. As soon as we talked about how this is all of our clininc, here for all of us to take care of, to serve our families, and keep germ free, they started clammering about all the new cleaning supplies and materials they needed to do a better job. I hope to purchase a lot of this tomorrow, as its also my job to keep cleaning morale up!!
Enough for now. I'm tired after staying up late last night on the roof with Adam and Dan. That's where the nicest breeze is and it was Adam's last night. Love and good-night from Haiti.