Today I was able to manage the 5:30 am wake up call & be ready to leave just after 6:30.As we drive to the hospital each morning I see many children in school uniforms walking to school & other children not in uniforms walking on the street or sitting outside "houses". I asked the local students today if all children can go to school or are these private schools. She said all children can go to school but the parents have to have the money for the uniforms & supplies. Some children do not go to school because either their families do not have the money to afford those items or else the parents need them to work - either option was pretty sad to me.
So I still don't understand the guard at the chain link fence around the hospital who lets us in each morning & locked me out that one day...there are literally families talking to other family members or friends thru the chain link fence & passing items back & forth - it is so perplexing - I need to figure that one out???
Before going to the PACU we went over to the Post Op ward to see the patients from yesterday. My sweet friend Yarlin & her mom were there & waved me over. I gave them both hugs & took some photos with them before they were discharged today. SO crazy to think I did not even know them 24 hours ago & that I will never see them again & yet I have such tender love for them. The ambassador from Nicaragua came bu to see us "in action" after being so moved by seeing the patients at the shelter that day - I did have a a photo op with her in the hallway!
Sadly each day we have to "re-set up" the recovery room because if we left out all of our supplies they would be gone by morning...we have a great system though..we put it all on a bakers rack kind of cart & wheel it into the locked storage then wheel it back in the morning & set it up.
As soon as we were set up we were told that a patient from Tues had returned with some bleeding & they were taking her right into the OR,,,she was in the PACU by 8:30 & was NOT happy, her IV came out & she was fussy etc. It was an ordeal to restart her IV - her poor mama was so patient. I don't think she got a dress before so with round 2 she got a dress & flip flops!!!
I also had one special dress made by a girl at my church & was waiting for just the right patient & today I gave it to a little 3 year old Maria Hernandez :)
We had our daily 90 min of chaos between 10:30 & noon when several palate patients came back all about the same time. We got 4 patients back within 30 min of each other & 3 were screamers - one baby would not be consoled by any of us, by mama, by eating etc - I really think that crying babies make other babies cry so she was stable enough I had the students take her to post op & they said she settled down en route. We are sharing the recovery room with the hospitals patients & this morning there was a 80 year old woman in there after some sort of surgery & she seemed quite ill -when she started to awaken to all the babies crying her eyes got SO BIG & she looked so distressed...they moved her out fairly quickly as well.
There is a young plastic surgeon here Jordan who has a full time clinical job at USC Keck School of Medicine (where Ryan is) but 50% of his clinical time is here in Nicaragua doing research on clefts. He & his wife & 2 1/2 year old moved here -that is quite an adventure! He did his undergrad at Harvard, Medical School at John Hopkins, Residency in Seattle, Fellowship in Philadelphia & now is at USC -he's a pretty smart guy & SUPER nice - you don't always get that in a plastic surgeon!
We had some more parents with tears of joy -one little boy had a very simple & small cleft lip & the repair was perfect!!! His mom was so so happy & overjoyed.
I am almost done giving out all the clothes - I tell the parents or children they need a new outfit for their new smiles!!!
Our very last patient today was a teenage boy & his dad was with him - his dad kept telling Alec over & over how grateful he was for us, what a blessing we were, how happy he was....we just said it was our pleasure & honor to be here & he tapped his chest & said we had large hearts & he would remember us & love us always...I am overwhelmed by their humble & sincere gratitude...we are in a 10x10 humid area with no running water, we have 4 gurneys as beds with old torn sheets (except the ones we bought) there are flies around at times, we have minimal "modern" medical equipment, the kids are having surgery sometimes in their own clothes with their shoes on, we don't speak the same language & can't talk to them very well, etc etc and yet to them we are providing them with AMAZING medical care & they appreciate every little thing.
Sometimes when we have much we still want or expect more - not that I am suggesting we need to have substandard medical or other conditions but just that perhaps people (including myself) could recognize & be grateful for all we do have & less critical when we don't get exactly what we want & not always want more....just a lesson I have learned from these sweet people.
We actually had only a 12 hour day today & were done at 7 -that was unexpected as today was supposedly our "heaviest surgery day hours wise". Everyone is pretty tired & a few are a bit under the weather so while some people went out to eat but we just ate at the hotel & it wasn't bad at all.
Yet again I cant believe that tomorrow is our last day of surgery then packing up & the final party. The last 9 days have gone quickly, as I have repeatedly said - while we are changing lives one smile at a time - I am being changed by these children and families one patient at a time. I always leave a mission a much different person that the one I was when I arrived - my life and my heart and my spirit are forever changed by these experiences with the patients and families, and here also with the members of the LDS church I met, with people I have briefly interacted with (like the taxi drivers etc). I cannot believe that I am able to use my gifts & talents as a nurse in this way. If you had asked me 10 years ago if this is what I thought I would be doing now I am sure I would have said no..but God often brings us to wonderful places we could have never planned on going ourselves.
Well despite getting home early it is again almost midnight...time for bed & as much as I love what I get to do here I will be excited to be home & back with family be the end of the weekend....
So I still don't understand the guard at the chain link fence around the hospital who lets us in each morning & locked me out that one day...there are literally families talking to other family members or friends thru the chain link fence & passing items back & forth - it is so perplexing - I need to figure that one out???
Before going to the PACU we went over to the Post Op ward to see the patients from yesterday. My sweet friend Yarlin & her mom were there & waved me over. I gave them both hugs & took some photos with them before they were discharged today. SO crazy to think I did not even know them 24 hours ago & that I will never see them again & yet I have such tender love for them. The ambassador from Nicaragua came bu to see us "in action" after being so moved by seeing the patients at the shelter that day - I did have a a photo op with her in the hallway!
Sadly each day we have to "re-set up" the recovery room because if we left out all of our supplies they would be gone by morning...we have a great system though..we put it all on a bakers rack kind of cart & wheel it into the locked storage then wheel it back in the morning & set it up.
As soon as we were set up we were told that a patient from Tues had returned with some bleeding & they were taking her right into the OR,,,she was in the PACU by 8:30 & was NOT happy, her IV came out & she was fussy etc. It was an ordeal to restart her IV - her poor mama was so patient. I don't think she got a dress before so with round 2 she got a dress & flip flops!!!
I also had one special dress made by a girl at my church & was waiting for just the right patient & today I gave it to a little 3 year old Maria Hernandez :)
We had our daily 90 min of chaos between 10:30 & noon when several palate patients came back all about the same time. We got 4 patients back within 30 min of each other & 3 were screamers - one baby would not be consoled by any of us, by mama, by eating etc - I really think that crying babies make other babies cry so she was stable enough I had the students take her to post op & they said she settled down en route. We are sharing the recovery room with the hospitals patients & this morning there was a 80 year old woman in there after some sort of surgery & she seemed quite ill -when she started to awaken to all the babies crying her eyes got SO BIG & she looked so distressed...they moved her out fairly quickly as well.
There is a young plastic surgeon here Jordan who has a full time clinical job at USC Keck School of Medicine (where Ryan is) but 50% of his clinical time is here in Nicaragua doing research on clefts. He & his wife & 2 1/2 year old moved here -that is quite an adventure! He did his undergrad at Harvard, Medical School at John Hopkins, Residency in Seattle, Fellowship in Philadelphia & now is at USC -he's a pretty smart guy & SUPER nice - you don't always get that in a plastic surgeon!
We had some more parents with tears of joy -one little boy had a very simple & small cleft lip & the repair was perfect!!! His mom was so so happy & overjoyed.
I am almost done giving out all the clothes - I tell the parents or children they need a new outfit for their new smiles!!!
Our very last patient today was a teenage boy & his dad was with him - his dad kept telling Alec over & over how grateful he was for us, what a blessing we were, how happy he was....we just said it was our pleasure & honor to be here & he tapped his chest & said we had large hearts & he would remember us & love us always...I am overwhelmed by their humble & sincere gratitude...we are in a 10x10 humid area with no running water, we have 4 gurneys as beds with old torn sheets (except the ones we bought) there are flies around at times, we have minimal "modern" medical equipment, the kids are having surgery sometimes in their own clothes with their shoes on, we don't speak the same language & can't talk to them very well, etc etc and yet to them we are providing them with AMAZING medical care & they appreciate every little thing.
Sometimes when we have much we still want or expect more - not that I am suggesting we need to have substandard medical or other conditions but just that perhaps people (including myself) could recognize & be grateful for all we do have & less critical when we don't get exactly what we want & not always want more....just a lesson I have learned from these sweet people.
We actually had only a 12 hour day today & were done at 7 -that was unexpected as today was supposedly our "heaviest surgery day hours wise". Everyone is pretty tired & a few are a bit under the weather so while some people went out to eat but we just ate at the hotel & it wasn't bad at all.
Yet again I cant believe that tomorrow is our last day of surgery then packing up & the final party. The last 9 days have gone quickly, as I have repeatedly said - while we are changing lives one smile at a time - I am being changed by these children and families one patient at a time. I always leave a mission a much different person that the one I was when I arrived - my life and my heart and my spirit are forever changed by these experiences with the patients and families, and here also with the members of the LDS church I met, with people I have briefly interacted with (like the taxi drivers etc). I cannot believe that I am able to use my gifts & talents as a nurse in this way. If you had asked me 10 years ago if this is what I thought I would be doing now I am sure I would have said no..but God often brings us to wonderful places we could have never planned on going ourselves.
Well despite getting home early it is again almost midnight...time for bed & as much as I love what I get to do here I will be excited to be home & back with family be the end of the weekend....
I have loved reading your blog and living vicariously through you ~ that is so cool about the Plastic Surgeon from Keck. Knowing you, you will probably have him convinced to work at CHOC doing plastic surgery :-)
ReplyDeleteSafe Travels Home ~ xoxo