NOTE: Our Mission Volunteers on the ground in Guatemala would love to hear your feedback and encouragement. Please, consider posting a comment at the bottom of this post.
Our second day at Hospital Parroquia San Lucas was as eventful as it was successful! We saw close to 100 patients in the clinic (on Monday we saw close to 60, sorry for the misinformation!) and performed 18 successful surgeries. Most of these cases were hernia or gall bladder removals. A few surgeries stand out in particular. The first was a rhinoplasty, or nasal reconstructive surgery. The patient is a 19 year-old boy who had broken his nose by falling in a river and landing on a rock when he was only 12. Our team was able to reconstruct his severely collapsed nose. This surgery enabled him to breathe through his nose once again and dramatically improved its cosmetic appearance.
Doctors also performed two ear tube surgeries for orphans from the Fundacion Futuro de los Niños (Foundation for the Children´s Future) which is located in Queztaltenango - about 2 ½ hours away. This orphanage does great work and we are thankful for the chance to partner with them. Heidi, a 3 year-old girl, and Nelson, a 6 year-old boy were both removed from their homes due to their parents alcohol abuse. These ear tube surgeries accomplish two things. They improve patients´ hearing and cure chronic infection. This type of surgery is very common in the United States, but here in Guatemala they do not have the personnel or supplies to perform them as needed.
In the clinics we have been seeing mostly amoeba and parasite infections. We also discovered a breast lump in a woman who will be having surgery for its removal later this week. In other news a member of FUNCAFE came to visit the hospital today. FUNCAFE is the coffee growers association here in Guatemala. They helped us get our shipping container (on which we sent most of our medical supplies for the trip and the hospital via sea) into the country and to the town of San Lucas Toliman. The Foundation has established 20 health clinics across the country for the coffee pickers who work in rural areas, most of which are Mayans. MMF is donating exam tables and many medical supplies to these clinics.
Today we also received a visit from Prensa Libre, the national newspaper. A reporter spoke to Carmen Gramajo at length and will be running a story on our trip either Friday or Saturday.
The health clinic we are working in has come a long way. It began as a small facility with only 10 beds 45 years ago on site at the parish. Ten years ago the clinic was moved to the current, larger site, with 33 beds. The hospital has recently seen renovations. They added a ramp from the first floor, which functions as a clinic and in-patient rooms to the second floor which has a dental clinic and operating rooms. The operating rooms have recently been tiled, sealed, equipped with power, air conditioning, emergency power and operating lights. Our team has donated operating tables, gurneys, I.V. poles, a surgical microscope and other medical supplies to the hospital. We are happy to say now local surgeons as well as other visiting specialty teams will be able to perform many more successful surgeries at this clinic.
A little about our hosts: The Catholic parish that is hosting us is La Parroquia San Lucas. The parish is very involved in the community here. In addition to the work they do in the church and the hospital, the parish also has a local land redistribution program, a community coffee farm, an education program and a housing program. Their work helps meet every family´s needs to the best of the community´s ability. They have brought us lunch at the hospital everyday and have been so helpful during our stay here.
Dr. Rafael Tun is the doctor at Hospital La Parroquia San Lucas and has been working closely with us. Dr. Benjamin Maldonado is a general surgeon who lives and practices in Guatemala City, but was born and raised in San Lucas Toliman. For this reason he is another great local addition to our team on the ground here. Pablo Benedicto Santiz Molina has been helping us with all of the logistics in the hospital during our stay. Pablo is another San Lucas native and works closely with the parish. He has been working in the health clinic for 17 years!
This week we also have had Dr. Andrea Cifuentes and Dr. Christian Rodriguez who both practice in Quetzaltenango. Dr. Will Boegel who is an American, but now lives here in San Lucas, has also been helping the team. His organization, Opal House, operates in this community as a Montessori bible school as well as a domestic violence shelter for women and children. We also have translator volunteers from Rice University in Texas with us for the week.
It is obvious that this mission would not be as successful or as well received without all of the hard work from our community partners on the ground here in Guatemala. From our hearts to yours, thank you.
A little more about the area: San Lucas Toliman is on the southeast side of Lake Atitlan, which is in the Western Highlands of Guatemala. The altitude is roughly 5,000 feet above sea level and in between 15,000 and 30,000 people live in town, with an additional 10,000 people living in the äldeas¨, or small surrounding areas.
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