This is the beautiful entrance to the hospital! It is a quick 5 minute walk from the hotel which is incredibly convenient. On the way we obviously get to see the authenticity of this beautiful city of Antigua. I promise more photos will come of this amazing area! I can't wait to take many more pictures of it; the quaintness of the city is really something else.
The hospital is beautiful, clean, and organized. It is full of gorgeous courtyards and gardens and a lot of open air waiting areas and facilities which is very unique in comparison to other hospitals on other missions I have been on. It makes being in the hospital very pleasant! Below is a picture of our phenomenal team!
As we got a tour of the hospital, we got to see all of the permanent habitants. This hospital is impressive because it has about 250 individuals, who are all orphans, that live there full time. We got to see all of the facilities where they stayed which were well taken care of like the rest of the hospital. Most of them were disabled which was hard to see knowing they were abandoned by their family or were not able to be taken care of. It was heart wrenching to see the children in the nursery, especially the ones with cleft lips. However, these children and adults are being taken care of possibly more than they ever would be with their own families or on their own. It is really wonderful what this hospital does for their people. Pictures were not allowed on that part of the tour, so I don't have anything documenting all of the facilities for the orphans.
Today was used for setting up and screening. I believe we are doing about 15-20 patients although I am not sure of the exact number. This is nice because we have a smaller team and it is the maiden mission which makes it easier and less stressful for everyone. Before we all started off on our daily tasks, Dr. Tessa gave an information session with Q&A for the families.
Today I helped Dr. Cheney, one of the doctors from Boston, take photos and measure the ears of the children. Of course, most of the children were to die for adorable and were so sweet. It is special to be able to interact with them in little bits in their language. We are able to do most of the patients, but some of them are a little too young but can be operated on when they are older. 5 years is usually the youngest that can be operated on.
The little boy on the right was one who was only 10 months, which is obviously too young, but I thought it was really unique how he and his mother both had the same mole on their faces! He was an adorable kid - one of those who was incredibly amused and giggly about the fact that he could see himself on the digital camera after I took it. : ) It's the simple things that make your day on these missions.
The little girl with the pigtails is one who came into the screening room and gave all of us a hug and a kiss on the cheek. Really too cute. They are truly the sweetest children.
Since we only had a half day everyone went and did various fun activities for the remainder of the day. Tomorrow is the first full day! Exciting and nerve wracking at the same time. I will start my interviews with the families tomorrow. I have been tweaking my interview questions in my downtime and now that I have had some experience the past few days refreshing my Spanish, I am feeling more confident.
More pictures to come! It was difficult to take a lot today, but I will definitely get some more of the patients and the hospital soon. This has been a great mission thus far with a truly awesome and talented team. Wish us luck on our first official day tomorrow!
Ola, Katie!! You write as beautifully as you perceive the ambience around you! The team is fortunate to have such an astute and caring and devoted team member that I know that you are. You absorb the delicacy of the moment!
ReplyDeleteEnjoy and take care of you, too! Love you, Fanny