Teamwork, A Big Mountain & 700 Patients

Half the team (7 nursing students) was up at 3:30 am, out the door by 4:30 am and had a blast trekking up the 2,100 ft mountain in the dark. Thus began day 4 of Haiti Spring Break 2011. The terrain was very steep and rocky, and thankfully not muddy from the rainstorm during the night. While hiking up the mountain, we were surprised to see that so many Haitians were making the journey down the mountain so early with little footwear and heavy loads, many of which the women carried on their heads. A beautiful sunrise about halfway up the mountain and a breathtaking view greeted us upon reaching the top. We were in awe of the view of the Haitian countryside, which alone made the climb up the mountain entirely worthwhile. We made excellent time and reached the mountain top by 6:15 am and everyone was feeling exuberant and ready to take on our next challenge: treating the patients of Petit-Bois, the village situated in the mountains.

We were very surprised to learn that the people of Petit-Bois had not received any medical attention since August 2010, when the first batch of MSU nursing students had made the very same journey up the mountain. We assessed and treated over 500 patients of all ages with a variety of health disparities in the small church of Eclise Evancelique de Petit-Bois in the mountains. All of the people were very appreciative of the care they received, although it felt to us as if there was so much more we wanted to do for them. We have to mention how thankful we were for our translators, with whom we could never have accomplished as much as we did. It was an incredibly productive and rewarding day.

Meanwhile, back in La Digue Matheux, the other 7 nursing students traveled down the rocky dirt road into the village to a small church. It was there that we set up a clinic for the people of La Digue, where we too saw patients of all ages. The people of La Digue were a physiological paradox. Many of them had very little issues with some of the more acute health disparities we had seen in other areas, such as skin conditions. Conversely, they seemed to have more chronic conditions such as hypertension and gastroesophogeal reflux disease (GERD). By the end of our clinic, we had assessed and treated nearly 200 patients. Upon returning to the Lifeline Mission, we continued our work by organizing and taking inventory in the storage room of the Lifeline Clinic. We were amazed at the sheer amount of supplies and medications that people had donated, but also discovered that there is still a significant need for many other medical necessities, such as antifungal ointments, various pediatric medications (Tylenol, Motrin, antibiotics and oral rehydration supplements); Diflucan (fluconazole); and other basic medical supplies such as thermometers, and blood pressure cuffs of various sizes. If anyone would like to donate any of the above supplies, please visit the Children's International Lifeline website at http://www.childrenslifeline.com or call 606-663-3459.

After reflecting upon our days with the group re-combined, we both agreed that we have become much more proficient and have strengthened our team. We hope to continue this trend as the week continues to progress.

Please visit our Flickr account at http://www.flickr.com/photos/60783408@N02 to see our photos from today!

Written By: Connie Yan, Tonya Drake and Joseph Caldwell