Friday May 11:

Today we woke up in beautiful Antigua!  Its safe to say we all got an amazing night of sleep after a hard day of work yesterday in Tecpan!  I was part of the team that spent the day at the JT Children’s Foundation and it was such a rewarding experience! We saw 5 patients in the morning and 4 patients in the afternoon.  It was amazing to see the teamwork between us and the clinicians there in Tecpan.  The parents of the patients we saw were so open and wanting to understand how they could help their children out even more at home. We started out by assessing their children and ended each session with educating the parents on exercises and strengthening techniques they needed to do at home.  We stressed to the parents that most of their children will not get better unless they continue doing their exercises at home.  Overall, the teams had a very rewarding experience at the JT Foundation and felt very blessed for the opportunity to work with such beautiful children.

After our team finished at the JT Foundation, we got on the bus and headed over to the where the other team had spent the day building steps and installing a rope.  I was completely in awe when we pulled up and saw the numerous amounts of kids that lived in this part of the village! They were SO loving and immediately hugged and greeted us as we got out of the van.  After talking with the other team for a while, I was told that the kids were very eager to help out with their project and were an integral part in helping build the steps.  It warmed my heart to know and see how hardworking these children are… that isn’t something I am used to seeing every day.   It was a very humbling experience to see how grateful these children were for all the work we did.

I can’t believe how fast this week has gone by! I feel like I have learned and grown so much in such a short amount of time. My heart is completely on fire for this beautiful country and I cannot wait for future opportunities to come back and hopefully continue these projects we have started here this past week.  Today is zip lining and shopping in the market and we are all very excited to explore the market and get some good shopping in (including the delicious coffee!!)

Allison Toole

Thursday May 10:

Feliz Dia de Madre!  Today is Mother’s Day in Guatemala.  We all got this message at 4 am with a 5 minute blast of fire crackers in the courtyard!

The team headed to Tecpan – a rural farming village about 2 hours west of the city.  We teamed up with JT Childrens Foundation – an organization that provided physical and occupational therapy for kids. 1/2 of the team stayed at the foundation assisting with therapy and the nurses gave CPR training.

The other half went out into a community in the mountains. We were at Melvin’s home. Melvin is a 14 yr old kid with CP. His home is on top of a steep incline – maybe 200 meters from the main road. Melvin walks down the stairs to the main road to get to therapy.  The stairs have been washed smooth over time. His handrail….barb wire! Yikes.

We spent the day cutting out new stairs and installed a rope for a hand rail.  Pretty good day of manual labor.  We did of course find time to play with all the kids.  Spanish is the 2nd language in this area. the main language is a Mayan dialect of Q’eqchi.  Super nice folks.

After work we headed into Antigua were we will be for the next 2 nights. Friday is our day off – zip lining and shopping.

kev

Pictures: Click Now

Wednesday May 9:

Today was as busy and fun filled as the previous few days. I was a part of a team who spend the majority of the day at the school meeting classrooms full of children ages kindergarten through the 6th grade. With entry into each classroom we were greeted with songs. We watched as they made gifts for their mothers and had time to play as well. We spent the rest of our time painting a classroom that was built a few years ago and really needed a fresh coat of paint.

The highlight of the day, for me was when we went into the village where we got to see how great the poverty is and what seemed to me was the ‘real Guatemala’ and what daily life is like for people here. We met a wonderful family whose daughter is suffering from chronic renal failure. She was hooked up to a make-shift dialysis device and we heard from her mother that the young girl wanted most was to ride a bike again before she died. This statement was not only incredibly touching and heartbreaking but motivating for our team. As we left them, we made the decision to buy her a bicycle before we left. In the middle of dinner she and her mother and father came to the Nazarine Center to get her gift. We were all overwhelmed by her father’s gratitude and her mother’s tears. The little girl was so excited and was able to practice immediately, her joy was undeniable. It was so humbling and rewarding to know that we made a difference in her life and hopefully made her time before and after surgery a time she can enjoy and have fun like other kids.

I am looking forward to the adventures and challenges that we face tomorrow but I am so encouraged after tonight, seeing the impact we made simply by giving a little girl a bike- something we take for granted everyday back home.

All the best,

Rachel Haddock

Our first visit was to Lucy. The nursing team and I were honored with an invitation inside her home, and witnessed a kind of gratitude for that home (which had been built by The Shalom Foundation) that far outdid what any of could have expected from someone living in such extreme poverty. Our hearts broke in unison when Lucy disclosed that the beautiful baby girl in her womb was past due, and that she completely lacked access to any kind of hospital, clinic, or even midwife to facilitate delivery… Las Conchas simply didn’t have anything to offer her or her baby to be… And Lucy simply didn’t have access to transportation. Her plan, when the time came, was to take to the bumpy dirt road outside her home and walk until she passed someone who could help. Not long after, we ran into Julio, another man Shalom had provided for in the past. With one of his precious daughters wrapped around his legs, Julio lamented that he no longer had a job and that he was struggling to provide food and fulfill basic needs for his family. Heart-wrenching visits like these passed one by one throughout the day until finally, standing outside a small tin home on a hillside of the Las Conchas community while the nursing team examined another helpless baby girl, I stared down the steep dirt road toward the masses of other small tin houses, and thought to myself that there was simply too much.

Luckily, I had someone there to remind me that miracles happen one by one. And the reminder was well-timed. Today was a day of miracles. I even think I may have contributed to one very special miracle at the clinic that we visited in Las Canoas. The nurses were overjoyed at the bags and bags of medical donations that we brought with us. They dug right into everything, and with great care they organized it all between the two small rooms that functioned as their office and exam room. Their gratitude for the donations was unmistakable. still it wasn’t long before I became aware of a rather large deterrent to their actual ability to use many of the supplies that we were leaving them with: They couldn’t read any of it. In fact, they couldn’t read any of the bottles or instruction sheets for any of the drugs that they had so neatly organized in their cabinets from previous rounds of donations. It was therefore with great honor that I was able to translate the function and dosage information for their entire cabinet. The nurses enthusiastically noted and labeled everything, with their minds undoubtedly full of the many local people that they would now be able to treat with the medicines they had received.

The need here is overwhelming. But with the right mixture of generosity and sharing of skills… perhaps these small miracles can be even more so.

Pictures: Click Now

Tuesday, May 8:

Tuesday May 8th was our third day in Guatemala, and the second day we were out in the community doing work. The team of nurses started the day at the Hospital for the children with infectious diseases and in need of rehabilitation. First we met the nurse director who gave us a tour of the entire hospital, she was amazing and taught us about how they run all of the separate units in the hospital. We were introduced to the pediatricians and the staff nurses and they showed us around each of their respective units and we met some of their patients. The last unit we went to was the intensive care unit. There we were met by the supervising nurse of the ICU where she welcomed us in and we had to wash our hands and get on gowns. We met all of the patients in the ICU and learned their stories. After that we all split up into three groups, one group in the ICU, one in the emergency room and one group taking vital signs in the general admission unit. All of the groups helped take care of patients and worked side by side with the nurses in the hospital. After lunch we left the hospital and went to the university to teach the physical therapy students there CPR and the Heimlich maneuver. Last we went back to the Moore surgery center, to hold a fabulous baby shower for Maria Jose. We had an amazing day and were completely blessed to spend it together helping the children in Guatemala.

OT and PT got to visit the hospital again this morning and worked with the Guatemalan therapists to treat several children.  The therapists seemed happy to see us again this morning and involved us in each treatment session.  My favorite memory from the hospital was working with a little boy named Oscar who is diagnosed with microcephaly and is blind. Oscar doesn’t have proper strength within his trunk in order to sit up straight, so his spine kind of looks like a “c”.  Tamara worked on positioning Oscar to help straighten his spine, but needed a little “something extra” to help involve Oscar in the therapy session. She asked us to start singing and as we did he immediately responded to everything Tamara was doing! It was such a great experience to be involved in something so simple but so monumental for this little boy. Oscar most definitely melted a piece of my heart today.  After the hospital we traveled to the surgery center to see patients. OTs and PTs split into two groups and worked with patients that had previously visited the surgery center. This was a great learning experience and everyone was able to learn more about our disciplines and about how to work together to give the best treatment possible.  We then joined the nursing students for the baby shower and had a fantastic time playing baby shower games and showing love to Maria Jose and her family.  Today was absolutely fantastic and I can’t wait to see what else Guatemala has to teach us!

Monday May 7:

Today was both exhausting and exhilarating. We started off the day at the government hospital in the heart of Guatemala City. The OT and PT students split into our respective gyms to work with a few of the children scheduled for the day. I broke off with a few other PT students to work with 3 babies in the stimulation room where we observed the mothers learning at home stretches for their children as well as visual stimulation activities. We then were able to take the children into a dark room and work with lights to work on visual tracking and postural control. The child I worked with, Cido, started off with a lag as he was following the blinking glow stick and by the end of the 5 minute exercise was successful able to track with his eyes and head in all directions. The progress, even if just small, was extremely rewarding. We then moved into the main gym and worked with some of the inpatient clients. These children presented with an array of problems from CP to malnutrition. We worked with the Guatemalan PTs to learn what was already being used to help the children as well as suggesting other activities. I loved the hands on opportunities to work directly with the children implementing techniques learned in school as well as learning new ones along the way. After breaking for lunch, a group of us traveled to the local Physical Therapy school to have a collaborative lab with their students. It was extremely challenging to engage with Spanish speaking students and to collectively come up with activities that could benefit both PTs and OTs. We emphasized the importance of communication and collaboration between the disciplines. It was amazing to see that although communication was difficult we were able to complete the task as a bi-cultural group. The visit to the school ended our work day but left me with an amazing feeling of accomplishment and excitement for the days to come.

Constance Taras

Sunday, May 6:

Today was our arrival into Guatemala City. After arriving into the airport our whole team was transported by a yellow school  bus to the pediatric Moore Surgery center for lunch and a tour. Driving to the surgery center was nerve wrecking. Traffic rules are more like suggestions here, which is something I personally have never experienced. We received our itinerary for the week, watched a video about the surgery center, and Claudia gave us some words of encouragement for the week. She made it known to us even though we may not be able to speak Spanish, we can smile and give a hug because love is a universal language. After that we were very worn out from getting up so early and flights so we checked in at the Nazarene Seminary where we are staying for the week.

Tiffany Campbell

It was an early start to the morning as we gathered as a team to travel to Guatemala! This has a been a trip that I have been anticipating even before I started PT school at Belmont. The morning was filled with a combination of excitement and exhaustion. We arrived in Guatemala with all of our team members and all of our luggage! We all hopped on a bus and arrived at the pediatrics surgery center to have lunch and tour the facility. Before I talk about the surgery center, I need to mention the streets and the people that I saw. There were people walking everywhere and random booths set up by the locals. The toughest thing to see was the poverty in this country. There were these two children sitting on the sidewalk, holding a cup in their hand, and begging for money. This was just another reminder of how I take everything for granted, especially the things I don’t even think about that like a roof over my head, a bed, food, and water. Now, about the surgery center! This surgery center was built for children who are less fortunate and can’t afford to pay for the necessary surgeries. It was so inspiring to hear about the difference these surgeons were making in lives of so many children in Guatemala. I’m excited to see the difference our team is going to make in the lives of the people in Guatemala this week!

Jennifer Tong

Arrived in Guatemala City around noon to a crowd of individuals waiting behind barriers at the airport (now I know what celebrities feel like). We loaded a school bus and headed to the Surgery Center for lunch and to take a tour of the facility. I was sort of in culture shock at the surgery center because I realized how fortunate we are in the United States to have so many necessities. The surgery center was perfect though for the families in Guatemala. Children’s paintings with bible verses were all over the facility. It was amazing to see the hard work and volunteers that have helped put the center together and make it possible to help families out in Guatemala with surgeries that would never be possible without the help of Shalom. After we left the surgery center, we took a “crazy” bus ride through the city to the Nazarene center. People are walking all over the streets (men, women, children). Let’s just saw I saw my life and other peoples life flash before my eyes with the traffic in Guatemala. Once we arrived at the center we checked in our rooms and all hung out with our team. We got the chance to learn about a lot of our members and talk about the culture shock of the things we saw in Guatemala. Now it’s bed time. Big day tomorrow! Full of exciting events at the Orphanage and local hospital.

Morgan King

May 6-12, 2012

Graduate students and faculty members from Belmont University will travel to Guatemala to provide physical therapy and occupational therapy for children, as well as specialized training for Guatemalan OT/PT students. A team of 30 participants, led by Tamara Garvey, are planning for another year of service at Hospital Infantil de Infectología y Rehabilitación. The team will also provide instruction to students attending Universidad Mariano Galvez. A team of 7 nurses from Belmont University’s Nursing School, lead by Jamie Adam, will conduct first aid training at various places including Las Conchas, Las Canoas, Hope For Tomorrow Children’s Home, and our surgery center.

Team Members include: Tamara Garvey, Kelly Brown, Jennifer Tong, Andrea Wheman, Carly Walls, Allison Toole, Lindley Holder, Rachel Haddock, Darcy King, Alison Martin, Amanda Sisco, Morgan King, Aimee Costa, Mary Beth Long, Jami Graham, Constance Taras, Tessa Irwin, Britt Colston, Ashley Ganus, Sheila Robb, Jenna Briggs, Tyler Servedio, Casea Calvert, Tiffany Campbell, Leslie Simmons, Cassandra Goble, Jamie Adam, Natham Adam and Joe Doughty.

Related Trip

• Organization: Medical (Clinic) Mission Trips
• Trip: Medical (Clinic) Mission Trips
• Date: Sunday, May 6th 2012 - Saturday, May 12th 2012
• City: Medical (Clinic) Mission Trips in Belmont University – OT/PT department
• Venue: Hospital Infantil de Infectología y Rehabilitación
• Country: Guatemala
• Notes: Graduate students and faculty members from Belmont University will travel to Guatemala to provide physical therapy and occupational therapy for children, as well as specialized training for Guatemalan OT/PT students. A team of 30 participants, led by Tamara Garvey are planning for another year of service at Hospital Infantil de Infectología y Rehabilitación. The team will also provide instruction to students attending Universidad Mariano Galvez.
• Add to Google Calendar | Download iCal

Hi everybody,
Just want to share this picture that we took after a nice lunch today, we were celebrating our First Anniversary of Moore Center in Guatemala!!!

Steve and Israel thanks for coming and share with us.

Blessings,
Claudia A. Hurtarte

Featuring Henry Cho, Jim Hope and Brian Bates
to benefit The Shalom Foundation
supporting Education, Nutrition, Medical Care, and Community Development

Monday, May 7 at 7 pm

3rd & Lindsley
818 3rd Avenue South
Nashville, TN  37210

$125 per person

RSVP:
615-595-5811
ABender@TheShalomFoundation.org

Secure your tickets by donating online: click now
or make checks payable to The Shalom Foundation, PO Box 1354, Franklin TN 37065

$125 per person
Sponsor table of 4 – $500
Sponsor table of 8 – $1000

Learn more about Henry Cho – Click Now

Pictures – Click Now

April 23, Bethany Bedford

I’m typing this post from my home in Nashville, after arriving home safely yesterday after one of the most amazing weeks of my life.  Life has quickly settled back into the “normal,” with the stresses of graduating from pharmacy school and figuring out paperwork for licensing taking attention away from where I was just 48 hours ago.  However, the impact of that experience will NOT go away, and I’m so grateful that I had the opportunity to be there!

Friday was our last day of surgeries, and it ended up being a much shorter day than the preceding ones.  I got to go upstairs for the beginning of two procedures, where Emily patiently told me the details of what medications were used for what procedures and why.  It was a great “put it all together” moment for me, as I got to see what my contributions in the pharmacy had been doing for the team upstairs.  The surgeries were smooth, the recovery of the patients operated on earlier in the week was deemed appropriate, and the party given by MKI and TSF that afternoon boosted all of our spirits.  We got to see the kids enjoy their pizza and cupcakes, dance around and visit with each other, and had an opportunity to talk to the families present for the celebration through the translation of the amazing Maria Jose.  This day was one of the most important for the pharmacy, as the responsibilities included making sure all kids had their discharge medications (and the right doses), making sure the inventory taken out for use during the week was matching the numbers on the computer, and, especially, making sure that all of my control inventory matched what it was supposed to be .  It ended up working out, I have my wish list for the next group (which DEFINITELY includes some compounding syrups…), and everyone went home with the medications they needed – success!!!! It was tough to leave at the end of the day, not knowing the details of how things would work out for me to come back.  I absolutely adored being involved at the Moore Pediatric Surgery Center, and feel honored and humbled that I got to be there with the amazing team from Mending Kids and Duke.

Friday night involved a dinner hosted by the Shalom Foundation – it was great food and even better company.  We got to see a slide show of the week created by Cindy (wish I could post it – great shots that represented all aspects of the trip)!  I even got to sing, which made it a great topper for me .  Caren from MKI also announced that they were interested in having us back again, so it looks like this time next year, I’ll get to blog for The Shalom Foundation again!!!!!!

Saturday was a day in Antigua, where people could pretty much choose whatever they wanted to do.  Some folks got massages, others did the zipline, some did the coffee tour, hosted by Pablo.

Pretty much all of us ended up at the market at some point.  I negotiated for scarves and had a great time with some of the other members of the team.  We ended up wandering around in the food section (inadvertently) for about 45 minutes, and saw everything from chicken feet to shrimp to every kind of bean you can imagine.  We also got to visit a pharmacy, where we discovered that as long as you knew what to ask for, you really can get pretty much anything (don’t worry, it was just antibiotics we were after)!

That evening ended (after visiting the GORGEOUS hotel that most of the staff stayed in due to a connection with TSF and the hotel) at Miss Maggie’s house.  Miss Maggie is MKI’s Guatemalan ambassador, and she graciously opened up her home to us for a final dinner.  FANTASTIC – wish that I could adequately describe the grandeur of the place and the kindness of the host.  The food, again, was excellent, as was the company. I promised another picture of my twin, so here it is:

I said goodbye to the team after the dinner, and arrived back at my hotel in Guatemala City at about 12:30 in the morning.  After 3 1/2 hours of sleep, I packed up my stuff and headed to the airport, where I got through security with no problem.  My arrival and trip through Miami was completely uneventful, and I arrived safely at home in Nashville yesterday afternoon.

Words honestly can’t describe this experience (even though I’ve tried to do it in this blog), and I can’t wait to be back someday soon!

April 20th, Bethany Bedford

I can’t believe the surgery part of the week is over!  48 surgeries later – 48 kids and families lives changed forever.  I think the majority of the team is exhausted and ecstatic, if it’s possible to be both of those at once.  We’ve all had opportunities to do things outside of our comfort zone, we’ve all learned a lot, and we’re all excited to come back to Guatemala again next year.  The last two days have been full of adventures, with surgeries being scheduled and unscheduled, medicines being made and adjusted, and allergies cropping up, calling for substitutes of other drugs.  I feel like I’m more prepared for my boards now, that’s for sure!

Yesterday was a shorter surgery day – the team still did the same amount of surgeries, but the adjustment to the new environment and equipment has clearly been made, and they were able to carry out their procedures more efficiently (so they tell me – it always seemed impressive to me!!).  I definitely feel like I’d (mostly) caught on by Thursday…which means I’m ready for a repeat of the week so I can be more efficient next time!  We had a truly gorgeous baby yesterday – he was about one year old, and was staying in the room right across from the pharmacy.  His parents spoke a little English, and when I told them that their baby was beautiful, I was corrected by Israel, our Shalom representative from Tennessee, that I should actually say “guapo” instead of beautiful.  I guess you don’t call boy babies beautiful here?!  He was, though – and he was such a great reminder that THAT is the reason we’re here, and the reason that we do everything we do.  THAT is the reason that I have such awesome people donating money and time in prayer to make sure that everything goes smoothly here.  It’s all about the kids, and it’s a humbling honor to be a part of it (I know that’s expressed everywhere in this blog, by everyone that writes anything, but it can’t be emphasized enough).   I love my little sauna room (though I did get a fan the second day, which made it much better), I couldn’t have had better coffee, they also kept me supplied with Diet Coke, AND I got to mix and dose medications.  I’m pretty sure life doesn’t get much better .  I’ve also been really inspired by the staff of Guatemalan nurses and doctors at the Moore Pediatric Surgery Center – so many of them spend incredible amounts of time at the Center.  Dr. Ligia pretty much lives there during the week, leaving for MAYBE 8 hours at night to go home, eat, sleep, and come back in to work.  The medical resident doctors also stayed for many hours a day – I saw some of them at about 3 o’clock in the afternoon when they arrived, handed off the pharmacy keys/code box  to them about 6, 6:30, and got the keys back from them in the morning at about 7:45 when I arrived back at the Center.   They truly love what they do, and provide great care for the kids recovering from surgeries.

Much of my morning (after dosing for the surgeries scheduled for the day) was spent preparing discharge medications for the kids.  Now, these are kids who have had urological surgeries, things like circumcision and inguinal hernia repair, along with other things I can tell you the names of, but if you asked me to describe them, I’d have to use a lot of hand gestures, and look them up (just like you) on wikipedia.  The culture in Guatemala doesn’t lean toward using any kind of narcotic medications for discharge, so, where in America kids would be going home with ibuprofen and lortab prescriptions (at the LEAST), most of these children left with about 10 mg/kg of acetaminophen, scheduled every 6 hours for three days.  (and yes, I can write the directions in Spanish now:  Dar una tableta por la boca cada 6 horas por fiebre o dolor)!!  The team of MKI and Duke staff brought a boatload of liquid acetaminophen for this purpose, so I would draw up one dose as an example, and send the families home with a bottle plus a dose.  This actually saved me a lot of time, as previous teams had worked with a slightly more limited supply of acetaminophen and had to draw up however many doses of medication were needed for each patient to send them home.  We ran out of any size of oral syringe except for 5 mL by Tuesday, which meant we sent lots of kids home with 3 syringes with which to dose their medications.  Another part of my day was spent preparing “now” doses of medications – I would get an order from Marciele, one of the floor nurses, for the dose needed immediately plus 3-4 doses for the rest of the day.  Since we had about 10 patients there at a time, I would get staggered orders throughout the day.  Some children required a little bit more medication than just the standard acetaminophen order – one child had a way more extensive surgery and required diazepam, toradol, and flavoxate doses frequently during his recovery.  He stayed with us most of the week and seems to be well on his way to recovery…and I am now really good at dividing round pills into fourths.  I’d usually get a few doses to do RIGHT as the team was ready to leave, but they were all awesome about waiting for me.

Thursday night, we actually got done at about 4, and headed back to the hotel to prepare for a dinner at a restaurant on the side of a hill overlooking the city – El Portal del Angel.  When we got there (after a harrowing trip up the mountain, in which we passed a guy walking his goats…), we tried to take pictures of the view.

It doesn’t quite translate in picture form as well as it did when we were standing there.  It truly was a breathtaking view – and the restaurant was beautiful.  I also have to include a picture of my twin, though I promise to get a better shot of us to include in tomorrow’s post.

Megan is the queen organizer of the trip, and we look very much alike – similar coloring, similar builds, similar hair styles, and at one point we both wore our glasses and hair in braids, so people got us confused.  I got comments about organizing things (to which I responded with “I’m lucky to organize the drugs!”) and she got comments about the pharmacy, so we got adept at directing people to each other.  It’s funny to realize that we all came together on Saturday never knowing each other, and I feel like all three teams truly enjoy each other now and definitely have learned a lot about and from each other.  Such a neat experience in so many ways!  So back to the dinner – the restaurant was very nice, with great food and drinks.  We figured out it was about $20 for a filet mignon and two sides, and we all thoroughly enjoyed our meals.  I didn’t take a picture of my main dish, but I did take a picture of the dessert that we split – it was a traditional Guatemalan desert that I should remember the name of, but don’t.  It was basically like a french toast with a filling, drowned in syrup and topped with a cherry.

The girls in this photo were absolute loves, and it was wonderful to get to hang out with them after the surgery day was complete.  Though our schedule had listed “dinner on your own” every evening except for Friday, I ended up being invited to tag along with them every night, and only passed it up one night (oreos and Diet Coke, then crashing for me on Wednesday night!).  Blessing, for sure!

I’d intended to blog about today, as well, but (shocker) I wrote way more than I intended and it’s now 1:15 am with a scheduled departure for Antigua at 8 in the morning, so I’ll leave more details for tomorrow night.  Dios es muy bueno!

Pictures – Click Now

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Mission Accomplished, by Isabelle Fox

Monday, April 23, 2012

There are No Accidents, by Isabelle Fox

Saturday, April 21, 2012

Returning to Guatemala with MKI, by Lorena Delgado

We are having a great time and praise God everything is going really well with the kids surgeries. Most of them have had speedy recoveries and have gone home already. It has been emotional to see them leave but also it is so nice to know that they are doing better, and whatever they were here for it’s no longer to bother them.

Saturday, April 21, 2012

Object of Beauty, by Isabelle Fox

It’s six o’clock in the morning and Caren and Juan and I gathered in the lobby to meet the driver who would take us on a 4.5 hour drive to visit Erika, the little girl MKI has been providing surgeries for, for most of her life. The journey would lead us northwest toward the border with Mexico into the state of San Marcos. I suspect the three of us were hoping to catch some naps along the way but the scenery was not cooperating as we were subjected to a visual assault of National Geographic proportions. From the blinggily repainted, smog-spewing, jam-packed school buses (known as chicken buses) carrying commuters, to the Guatemalan women in their kaleidoscopic indigenous dress selling breakfasts at every corner, to the dogs darting traffic, we negotiated our way out of Guatemala City and headed onto the highway weaving our way up serpentine roads scattered with landslide rubble, skirting precipitous drops, passing slow trucks on a two-lane highway (avoiding on-coming traffic) on and on we went. We drove past kilometers of farm lands, past toddlers sitting on the edge of the road with their siblings, children herding goats or sheep, and thankfully avoided a cow and her calf that broke away from their herd and decided to cross the highway as we were speeding toward them. You name it, we drove past it… Until we could no longer.

The highway came to a raging stop (in both directions) in a small town where a human barricade had formed. A couple hundred people with banners protesting social injustices were waiving their arms at us barring our crossing. Buses and vehicles were going nowhere and the mood was not cheerful. We all suddenly got very quiet in the car. We gently asked our driver to go find someone in that human chain who was in charge and to please ask him to let us through. By some miracle, Juan was wearing his scrubs, Caren had Erika’s medical folder on her lap and I was wearing my MKI I.D. badge. A group of agitated men approached the vehicle and we calmly told them that we were on a medical mission to help a three-year old girl get surgery. The scrubs assuaged them but the photographs of Erika were our “open sesame.” People started yelling at each other, rocks were shoved aside and the sea parted as our vehicle was ushered through the crowd of protesters. All, not knowing our story, glared and shouted at us. Caren showed them Erika’s photos and we yelled back, “Medicos, no touristas.” We were the only ones they let through. You think coffee wakes you up? No, there was no time for napping.

The highway suddenly stretched before us with no vehicles in sight. We made up for the delays and arrived in Erika’s home town, San Antonio de Zacatepecas, in record time – or more importantly for lunch.

It was a very sweet reunion for Eldemira( Erika’s mom,) who spent a year living with Caren when her daughter received her initial cranio-facial reconstructive surgeries. The two women caught up and held hands as we left our driver and walked the remainder of the way (a few blocks) to their home: a colorful turquoise concrete structure with a clump of purple hydrangeas in the front yard. We were ushered into a darkened room where a toddler lay. Eldemira picked up her daughter and hugged her kissed her as did Caren, immediately. The two fawned over her as Juan and I stood by recording the reunion. A feast of fried chicken rice and salad had been prepared for us. All cooked over a steel plate covering a wood-burning fire – with no running water in the room. That, could be found outside at an outdoor concrete sink you had to duck under garlands of drying laundry to get to. This would be the last time I say that I need a designer gourmet kitchen to cook in or more than three square feet to do it in. Seriously, the meal, that I am happy to say (four days later) that, “I stomached,” was delicious. It was like Thanksgiving for them and we were their honored guests. They went to a neighbor’s to borrow a table for us to sit at, and to the store to buy plastic cutlery, and we washed it all down with Orange Crush, which happens to be my favorite soda. We sat. We talked. We took it all in with humble appreciation at the effort they went to host us with grace. There is no shame in poverty. People often think that you need to be dressed to the nines and sport fancy accessories to be dignified. They need a visit with Eldimera.

It’s hard to describe Erika. All I can say, on the most superficial level, is that she is the poster child for the quote “a face that only a mother could love” because her disfigurement is so profound. She can’t speak. She can’t sit up and she has a tendency to stick half an index in her eye socket (and make her eyeball bulge out ) that can take your breath away at the sight of it. Only she does it because it helps her focus and possibly see better. She loves to be carried and the survival odds she beat in the initial surgery that removed a tumor the size of a small watermelon and reconstructed her skull, brought her entire community. She woke everybody up. And the mayor of this minuscule town and everyone else is routing for her as she prepares to return to the United States with us for another surgery. This time to close her palate so that she can eat solid foods for the first time. This time alone, without her mother.

Erika may not grow up to be doctor but she is a teacher. Not the conventional kind who uses words to hammer in a lesson plan but the kind, who if you spend enough time with, teaches you to recognize that her soul is just as valuable as ours if one is brave enough to see past all the superficialities to let her touch you and teach you how to live in the present.

And here is the thing, she may not be a classic beauty but she is loved. She is loved profoundly. And that is a thing of beauty.

Isabelle Fox
MKI Mission Volunteer

Friday, April 20, 2012

A Visit to Hermano Pedro Hospital, by Dian Jonus

Walking down the cobblestone streets of Antigua this morning, as we headed toward Hermano Pedro Hospital, I felt a sense of purpose and resolve.  I knew I was where God wanted me to be.   First, it was just nice to be able to observe and be part of the Guatemalan culture.  The people of Guatemala are beautiful people, and so friendly and willing to interact with us.  It’s as they have all the time in the world to spend with you.  However, our purpose was to spend the morning and early afternoon at Hermano Pedro Hospital with neurological challenged children. What an experience!  The hospital is a beautiful Italian colonial building that I am guessing was built maybe in the 16th century.  From what I learned, it was a church first and then a hospital, named after Father Pedro.

Friday, April 20, 2012

The Journey of a Mission Volunteer, by Noelle Duryee

The journey of a mission volunteer lies in the hands of many local customs, daily routines, the cultural ‘sense if time’…to me this translates into many unknowns of where the day may lead, and a strong internal desire to help where I am needed because today is Wednesday and we are leaving on Sunday.  Making sure that I am present to the child in front of me, this child needs to know they are so important, loved for the beautiful child they are, and are being prayed for by me right now.

Dee, Liz, Dian and I climbed into the red van headed towards the Hermano Pedro Hospital where we will be visiting with children that are neurologically disabled and live in this facility full time. These children are wards of the state, some have family and some do not. I think of my children at home, and quickly force my thoughts to remember my goal is to be present here, not ideas of my life and family back home. The 45 minute drive to Antigua has turned into almost a 2 hour trek because we ran into a local protest taking over a main street in Guatemala City and a fallen tree across the highway close to Antigua. We arrive outside a beautiful yellow church-like looking hospital and in the matter of a few moments the four of us are feeding children lunch from bowls or bottles. Their ages range from toddler to late teens, and in some cases I cannot tell who is 5 or who is 13. All of them have a designated metal crib and wheelchair, and toothbrush. Take a deep breath and be present I tell myself by the minute. We speak broken Spanish to the nurses to make sure we are doing what is needed because it is clear they are angels who work so hard to care for these severely disabled children. Looking across the courtyard I see Dee smiling while holding the hands of a teenage boy in his bed, his very slim legs crisscrossed, lying folded on his chest. Dian is laughing with a young boy who is trying to play the toy piano we brought as a donation. Liz feeding a teenage boy who preferred to stare at her with a grand smile rather than eat lunch…I am honored to be surrounded by like-hearted women with so much compassion for helping those in need. After two days of visiting the Hermano Pedro Hospital, I have come full circle. There are no more “unknowns;” there is love surrounding these kids.

Just told I am off to observing an operation for a 5 year old precious girl…So much good work being done this week!

Noelle Duryee
MKI Mission Volunteer

Thursday, April 19, 2012

A Visit to the Ronald McDonald House, by Liz Kessler

April 18th, by Bethany Bedford

Today was another busy day – the team did 10 surgeries at the Moore Pediatric Surgery Center, and most of the children from the past two days surgeries have now gone home.  After hearing some of the stories of how these children came to get their surgeries, I am so grateful to get to be a small part of this process!  From my perspective, the day was incredibly smooth, though I believe the surgery team had a few surprises (all handled with grace and all the kids are doing well, no worries)!  Because of the amazing team and their preparation/attention to detail, I was able to get all of the medications except for one batch ready for tomorrow.  Putting this in perspective for you…Monday, these batches were literally getting done right before the surgeries started, and the first batches only got done in a timely manner because the awesome anesthesia and nurse practitioner team helped me get them done .  Yesterday was better, with me being able to send 2-3 batches (one batch per child/surgery) at a time, and finishing up about 2 pm with medicines needed for the day.  Today, the first patients were ready to go when we arrived at 7:45, and by 1pm, the batches were being started for the next day!!  I’m hoping this translates into “kid time” tomorrow and I’ll get to meet some of the children.  Being on the first floor, I get to hear them and see some of them as they roll past me out of surgery and into their rooms (and they are absolutely precious!), but I haven’t interacted with them besides smiles yet. I ended up being blessed with Inez, who is a volunteer for the Moore Pediatric Surgery Center – she works for them as a translator, and was assigned to me on Sunday to help out in the pharmacy.  Inez is fluent in English, and actually teaches it to American teachers!  She also has a background in biology, and actually did research for the Smithsonian Institute while she lived in the States – and I got to have her on Sunday, and yesterday, and today!  She is amazing and a huge help, and I am definitely giving credit to her for helping get everything done in the pharmacy today.

Inez’ best friend from college is also a volunteer at the Moore Pediatric Surgery Center, and she is working with the kids, acting as translator between the medical and MKI staff and the patients.  Much of the MKI team is made up of folks who are fluent in Spanish, and I got lucky enough to have one of them help me with some instructions for a patient this afternoon.  I was also introduced to traditional Guatemalan snacks by Inez:

On the bus into the surgery center yesterday, I learned about an injectable drug that can be used by mouth, I’ve learned about dosing for drugs not commonly used in children (as well as good substitutes when what we know is not available!), and I had the opportunity to convert capsules into an appropriate solution dose for a child today – when I expressed how excited I was about these things, one of the team members said to me, “it’s good that you’re excited – this is obviously what you’re supposed to be doing!”  I love being able to apply the things I’ve been learning about and get exposure to new medications and processes.

10 more surgeries are on the schedule tomorrow – pray for the team as they tackle another bunch, and for the children and families in recovery and yet to go.  Each day brings new challenges as well as new joy – will you also pray for the Guatemalan staff of the hospital?  The nursing staff works so hard, the cleaning crew is on top of every mess (or possible mess!), and there are resident doctors who are there for about 20 hours at a time. The director of the hospital, who has an absolutely indefatigable spirit, is there for crazy hours and I know she must miss her little girl, but she does it all with a smile on her face.  When I grow up, I want to be like these folks.

Pictures – Click Now

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Fun to be a Grandma in Guatemala, by Julia Hans, MKI Board Member

Since this is my second mission with MKI, I already expect this to be a wonderful life-changing experience.  On Saturday when twenty-four of us arrived in Guatemala we had the opportunity to tour the Moore Pediatric Surgical Center.  AMAZING!!  They are so ready for us.  On Sunday, eighty-five children were screened.  Was it hectic?  My answer is, “It was busy, well-organized and fun.”  Lots of fun for me since I’m the only grandma in our group.  I was able to play the role I love. To name a few of my responsibilities: coloring with the kids, giving out lots of balloons and hugs, dancing and even playing a serious game of soccer.

I was excited for Monday to arrive knowing this would be the first day of surgery.  As I walked through the hospital doors seeing the children with their parents waiting to have their lives become easier, I felt a little overwhelmed.  I thought, can we do this?  Really, can I do this?  Seeing fear in their eyes, I smiled, touched each of them and within minutes, I could feel their strength.  How lucky I am to be part of this experience.

Julia Hans
MKI Board Member
MKI Mission Volunteer

Monday, April 16, 2012

A Visit to Las Conchas, by Isabelle Fox

With everything under control and rain looming on the horizon, a few of us leaped at the opportunity to leave our guarded, walled, hospital compound and check out the sights. Most of which, in the 48 hours we have been here, have been seen on the drive to the hotel from our relatively safe zone – 10″ to the other side of the figurative tracks, zone 1. Any displays of tourism, namely photographing, are thoroughly discouraged because this would make us targets. Cameras and other electronic gadgets are easy money.  In any case, into the minivan we went guided by our driver, Israel (AKA Mr. Okey-Dokey), and the Shalom Foundation’s mission coordinator, Claudia, who took us to Las Conchas,  a new development in the outskirts of Guatemala City. Through the efforts of her organization, a group of families in Tennessee raised enough money not only to fund four homes here, but some of them traveled to this community to build them as well. One was intended for a single mother, one for a widow, one for a handicapped person, and one for a growing family who prior to their gift, had lived in a corrugated tin shack with a dirt floor and two kids.  These were the people we were going to visit. We showed up completely unannounced and were graciously received by the family, who was proud to show us their new two-level concrete house with windows. We stayed with them a half-hour and then drove a little further up the road to visit the principal of the school. He too was proud and intent on showing us his water filtration system – the only place in town a child can get purified water short of buying it at the local store.  Talk about perspective.

Which makes me think about another mom I met and spent time with today, who lives near the border in a house like the ones in Las Conchas. She walked an hour and a half with a baby strapped to her back while towing her ailing son, to reach a paved road where she waited four hours until she was able to hitch a ride for herself and her children on the back of a truck to a town where she caught a six-hour bus ride to the capital on the chance that her child might get surgery from this mission.  So the next time I am running late, trying not to read texts while stuck driving in traffic, I’ll think about her.

My gratitude tanks fill up fast on a trip like this.

Isabelle Fox, MKI Mission Volunteer

Good morning, Guatemala! by Isabelle Fox

 Good Morning Guatemala!

Over 125 families traveled from near and far at the chance to have their child receive surgery from the team of Duke University Hospital doctors. Some enduring six-hour bus rides into the big city and setting foot in a hospital for the first time. Some traveling out of their villages for the first time or away from their mom or dad for the first time. The hope on each parent’s face was palpable. No access to medical care, no means, some with little if any education, found their way to the Moore Pediatric Center through the help of the Shalom foundation, their churches, Christian radio or word of mouth from other families or relatives who had once sought critical care for their loved ones and received it here. A hundred percent of these people devoted to God and hopeful that miracles might happen for a third of them who were now standing in line waiting to be seen. Proud people raising families in a country that has the fourth highest rate of infant mortality in the world, and where half of the population is under twenty-five or some crazy number like that. What does this tell you?

I was in the room filming when the doctor told a mother that her son would be receiving surgery.  She had been so poised and outwardly calm until the interpreter translated the approval, and then she burst into tears with relief that her five-year old little boy would soon have relief for his condition. I caught up with her later in the hallway and she was composed again. She told me that she had fought from the day he was born to get him help and that she had been turned away countless times because of the risk of the surgery and lack of medical expertise, not to mention funds. I admire this mother for her strength, patience, resolve, and luck that brought her there and the vindication and relief that she must feel now having accomplished her goal.  She moved a mountain. His surgery is scheduled for tomorrow. Please pray for him.

Isabelle

MKI Mission Volunteer

Screening Day, by Noelle Duryee

With “Dr.  Elmo” on my arm (complete with surgical mask and diaper) our MKI team met, greeted and gathered patient information on over 100 Guatemalans in need. Spanish, English, Spanglish and smiles ping pronged of the walls of the MPSC.  Crouching at the eye level of a 4 yr old girl, I attempted to speak “Elmo-ese” in Spanish…with confusion in her big brown eyes, she just smiled.  Her medical condition, an infected neck wound with an unknown cause, worried her mother, but for a moment the little girl could only focus on Elmo.   I said a small prayer that her infection can be treated with antibiotics over the next few days. And that both mother and daughter will rest a little easier knowing that someone will be looking out for them.

Noelle Duryee

MKI Mission Volunteer

Saturday, April 14, 2012

We’ve arrived! by Liz Kessler

Arrived to Guatemala this morning after an uneventful flight from LAX.  Dee and I napped briefly, then waited anxiously for the rest of the team to arrive.  After hugs with the L.A. folks and introductions to the Duke folks, we loaded into two large vans and headed to the hospital.  While you would drive right by if you didn’t know it was there, once inside you are transported to a cheerful, clean, organized hospital.  The Shalom-Moore Foundation staff were extremely warm, welcoming and very thorough with our tour.

Dinner at a local Guatemalan restaurant was delicious, but overshadowed by our fatigue. So for now it’s off to get a good night sleep.  Six a.m. will be here very fast, along with the 140 kids we will meet.  I can’t wait!

April 16th, 2012 by Bethany Bedford

I (Bethany) had full intentions of blogging every day and keeping everyone up-to-date on all the events of the week as they occurred…but time gets away from you here, so I’ll do my best to make up for missing a day!  Yesterday was amazing – everything seemed to come together, and all the preparations made sense.  We arrived at the Moore Pediatric Surgery Center about 8 am, and I expected to see hundreds of people lined up for screening.  We were to have four groups of people for a total of 140+ kids to screen, and we were going to start at 8 am and go until we were done – we even planned a tentative trip to Las Conchas for the late afternoon.  HAH!  As is the case in any mission trip (and probably especially medical missions, though I do have to admit this is my first one of that type!), the name of the game is “be flexible!”  We had a lot of no-shows for the screenings, but we still ended up staying at the Center until about 6 pm last night.  I, of course, was not involved in the screening process (even though I’m pretty sure I could have contributed something…probably just entertainment), but I had plenty to do in the pharmacy, organizing the drugs that the awesome team brought with them and making sure that all the “surgery boxes” were ready to go.  I was glad to have the time with my great interpreter, Inez, who actually teaches English to American teachers. She was very gracious as I attempted to practice my phrases on her, and I am now the proud owner of a piece of paper absolutely covered with tons of useful pharmacy-type phrases…which I fully intend to memorize, eventually.  I definitely feel a desire to dedicate more time to learning Spanish – it would be so incredibly handy right now to be able to converse without having to make hand motions or ask my interpreter to translate what I’m trying to say!  When we arrived back at the hotel, we split off in to groups to go eat – I ended up going out with the anesthesia team to a place called Kacao.  It was tasty, the company was great, and we got back to the hotel in time for me to do calculations for the drugs for the kids going to surgery this morning.

I am proudly primarily a community pharmacist, which means I’m completely at home in any Walgreens, Walmart, grocery store, mom-and-pop pharmacy setting that you can imagine…but it means that much of hospital pharmacy is foreign to me.  This definitely includes anesthesia and operative medications, so there’s a huge learning curve for me this week.  While I certainly recognize the medications and can tell you mechanisms of action and reasons for use, it’s a different ballgame to dilute and draw up these medications – especially when the concentrations are not the same as what is listed on the vial (and you know how pharmacists are – we like to do things exactly as the instructions say)!    All this means that I am absolutely blessed to have Brad, Carrie, and Emily as the anesthesia team, since they are all willing to teach me how things are supposed to be.  This morning they even showed me how to reconstitute to their normal concentrations and helped me fumble through some new techniques.  Needless to say, that meant my morning was incredibly busy – they did 13 procedures today, and expect to do 11 tomorrow.  We have the schedule for the rest of the week, as well, but things change on a daily basis as new patients ask to be screened and some are fit into the already busy schedule.  The team of doctors, nurses, and scrub techs is phenomenal – they work well together and, though they said they felt slow today, they got all the cases done and we left the center by about 7 pm tonight.  They’re also hilarious and really easy to get along with, so I definitely don’t feel like an outsider when I’m with them.  All the ladies from Mending Kids are absolute blessings, as well.  Today, many of them entertained the kids before and after their surgeries – I didn’t get a chance to get out of the pharmacy to visit much, but it brought a smile to my face when they walked by and shared stories of their interactions.  One of the surgeries involved the excision of something (they did tell me, and I did pay attention, it’s just lost to me now), and I got a picture of it, but today the pictures were not as easy to get as on Saturday, so I’ll try and do better tomorrow:

After the day, we’re all pretty tired, so the evening consisted of a fairly quick dinner trip to Taco Inn, a fairly close by and inexpensive restaurant that will probably become one of my favorites.  After dinner, it was back to the room, looking up a few doses, and updating this before crashing!  Tomorrow is another exciting day – all the patients from today except for possibly one will be going home, and I’ll get to write discharge instructions for the medicines and dispense take-home medications. I’m really blessed to be able to experience this, and am grateful that something like this is possible for me to do before getting my license!  Pray for wisdom and the ability to think and act quickly on my feet tomorrow as I do the unit-dose medications for the surgeries in addition to discharge planning. Dios es bueno!! (and if that’s incorrect grammar, feel free to let me know, and I’ll fix it!)

April 14th, 2012

I (Bethany) arrived yesterday afternoon after leaving Nashville on a 6 am flight.  Even though I’d thought of everything that could possibly go wrong at customs when I tried to explain that I was working in a pharmacy for a week, built up all these awful scenarios in my head, and was absolutely convinced that it was going to take forever to get through, I was literally waved on, and greeted by this picture:

I was met by Victor (who, I am convinced, is the best driver ever), who took me to the surgery center, where I got an amazing introduction the staff including Claudia and Dr. Figueroa, who gave me advice and insight for the coming week.  Carlos and Mr. Moore were also there, as was Lucy, the charge nurse I will be partnering with quite a bit of the coming week. Plus, of course, I got an introduction to the pharmacy…and some amazing coffee.  Needless to say, they’re going to have trouble getting rid of me at the end of the week.

This morning, two more members of the team arrived, and everyone will be gathering around 3 pm to get the official tour.  Today is a “get acclimated” day, and tomorrow will start the screening process, with Monday being the kick off for the surgeries.  Meanwhile, I’ll be in the pharmacy, finding places for things, cleaning things, checking medications/expiration dates, drinking more amazing coffee, and looking at names I’ve never seen before (see the next picture – has anyone ever heard of this?  Our medical director tells me it is used for flu, but none of the ingredients except benzocaine are familiar to me…)

There are over 130 patients to screen on Sunday, and according to my conversation with our medical director, Dr. Ligia Figueroa, we have the capacity to do about 80 surgeries – so pray for wisdom during tomorrow’s screening process! Because there are so many people expected on Sunday, there are literally chairs everywhere in preparation – in the halls, in the normal waiting room, and even set up in groups outside!  There are thunderstorms expected, but apparently that’s pretty normal so no-one seems too worried about it.  While the surgical team is doing the screenings, I’ll be logging the medications they brought with them/had shipped in from the States, so my morning will consist of finding more places in the pharmacy for medication and ensuring that everything we have is up-to-date in terms of inventory.  I think I’ll be using Excel more this week than I have the whole of my pharmacy career so far.

This is the typical set up for the interview rooms – each patient is interviewed with their parents on Sunday, so the team can determine who they can best serve during their time here.

I feel semi-organized – definitely grateful for this morning to be in the pharmacy and get familiar with where things are, and I got incredibly lucky when Pablo brought a group of folks through for a tour…Pablo is the coffee expert around here, which pretty much makes him one of my favorite people…and they brought me a cup of coffee.  Told you it was going to be hard for me to leave…

Tonight after the meeting will be down-time, so I’ll be back at the hotel reading through my Spanish-English dictionary and looking up phrases – feel free to email/message any good ones!  They let me borrow a children’s book to attempt to read – pretty sure it’s elementary school level Spanish, which means it’s over my head, but it’s a good one to try! Thanks, again, for your partnership and interest in The Shalom Foundation and what’s going on in Guatemala!

Bethany Bedford

More than 123 children have been successfully pre-screened by Dra. Ligia Figueroa and the Moore Center staff for Mending Kids/Duke University Children’s Hospital General Surgery Team to see on Clinic Day, April 15 at the Moore Pediatric Surgery Center!

Blog by Mending Kids International – Click Now

Pictures – Click Now

Team members include: Dr Henry Rice, Dr Sherry Ross, Dr Brad Taicher, Carrie Kaylos, Emily Funk, Pam Ilagan, Suzette Bernabe, Luz Aguilar, Adam Sturkey, Sydney Crocker, Casey Vera, Crystal McGhee, Megan Maloney, Jorge Lazareff, Barbara Lazareff, Caren Niewisch, Karissa Nguyen, Dian Jonus, Marchelle Sellers, Julia Hans, Nathaniel Glenn Dabatos, Mary-Jane Dabatos, Werner Cajas, Lilian Myers, Keneth Myers, Maggie Hansen, Juan Ramirez, Tom Lake, Lorena Delgado, Noelle Druyree, Isabelle Fox, Makenna Fox, Walter Simmons, Patsy Simmons, Robert Kemp, Florence Kemp and Bethany Bedford.

Related Trip

• Organization: Medical (Surgery) Mission Trip
• Trip: Medical (Surgery) Mission Trips
• Date: Saturday, April 14th 2012 - Saturday, April 21st 2012
• City: Medical (Surgery) Mission Trip in Mending Kids International – General Surgery
• Venue: Moore Pediatric Surgery Center
• Country: Guatemala
• Notes: General Surgery
• Add to Google Calendar | Download iCal

April update: Team members Kristen Vieira, Mary Sutherland and Kelley Futch visited Project CURE in Nashville to collect donations for the medical clinic at Las Canoas.  They got everything from band aids to blood pressure cuffs.  We filled up a pickup truck bed with 8 boxes of materials.

2 teams will work in Community Development with projects in Las Conchas, Las Canoas and the Hope For Tomorrow Children’s Home.  Team 1 – June 29-July 7, lead by Matt Clarke and Team 2 – July 6 – 14 lead by Crystal and George Waller.

Pictures – Click Now

Related Trip

• Organization: Community Development Trips
• Trip: Community Development Mission Trips
• Date: Friday, June 29th 2012 - Saturday, July 7th 2012
• City: Community Development Trips in Community Development Missions Trip
• Venue: Las Conchas, Guatemala City
• Country: Guatemala
• Notes: Community Development missions trip to work in Las Conchas, Guatemala City.
• Add to Google Calendar | Download iCal

• Organization: Community Development Trips
• Trip: Community Development Mission Trips
• Date: Friday, July 6th 2012 - Saturday, July 14th 2012
• City: Community Development Trips in Community Development Missions Trip
• Venue: Las Conchas, Guatemala City
• Country: Guatemala
• Notes: Team members will work in Las Conchas on various community development projects.
• Add to Google Calendar | Download iCal

Mon-Wed: Surgery Days

The team has been doing 14 to 16 surgeries a day.  They arrive at 715 am, and finish up around 8 pm.  It’s amazing to watch the passion of the team for these kids with hand issues.  Some require just a ‘simple’ surgery that lasts maybe 20 minutes, while others take 3 hours.  All are life changing for the kids.

Once the surgeons are finished with the child, the therapists take over.  They create a mold for a splint to assist the child’s hand development post surgery.

Sunday, Mar 11: Clinic Day

When I arrived in Guatemala City two days ago, I was greeted by an unexpectedly modern, easy to navigate airport. Quite a change from my previous Guatemalan airport experiences, more than ten years ago, and quite a relief after more than 12 hours of travel. Since then, I’ve been warmly welcomed by the Shalom Foundation and Moore Surgery Center staff. Yesterday and this morning Chris and I have been preparing the pharmacy and cataloging the new medications brought with the Guatemala Healing Hands Foundation. A surprise trip to a nearby orphanage provided a glimpse into the culture here and the other involvements of the Shalom Foundation. The surgery center, so quiet yesterday, is teeming with children, families and volunteers today, as they undertake the screening process for the surgeries. Seeing these precious little ones in need of medical care reminds me of the great privilege it is to share our skills, whatever they may be, with others. I’m so grateful for the opportunity to be a small part of helping change lives in Guatemala this week.

Elisa Greene

From Lynn Bassini – Guatemala Healing Hands Foundation:

What a wonderful and successful Screening Day! Today was our first day working in the beautiful Centro Quirurgico Pediatrico Moore facility in Guatemala City. A huge thank you to our family of volunteers, both Guatemalan and from back home. You all worked so incredibly hard to evaluate 150 kids and schedule 55 of them for surgery! Others will be receiving therapy and many we will be monitoring and seeing them in years to come.

Saturday, Mar 10: Pharmacy Set Up Day

Dr Elisa Greene and Chris McKnight, from Belmont University School of Pharmacy, arrived 1 day early to the surgery center. They prepared the pharmacy for the week’s surgeries – checking inventory of medicines, inputting new medicines, and ordering ones that are needed for the week.

More photos - click now

Mar 11-17, 2012:

A team from Guatemala Healing Hands Foundation will work at the Moore Pediatric Surgery Center conducting hand and upper extremity surgeries on children. Team members include:
Surgeons:  Henry Backe, Scott Kozin, Carolyn Levis, Ken Marshall, Desirae McKee, Miguel Pirela-Cruz, Francisco Soldado, Jay Talsania

Anesthesia: Michelle Becker, Luz Perez-Schwartz, Natalio Schwartz, Mike Smith, Christina Smith, Hana Teissler

Therapists: Sharon Andruskiwec, Lynn Bassini, Jennifer Bunner, John Indalecio, Gretchen Kaiser, Sue Michlovitz, Carol Page, Amy Turner, Kristin Valdes, Rebecca von der Heyde

OR Staff: Cheryl Chik, Carolyn Davis, Annette DeGreeff, Jarvis (Jay) McMillan, Christine Novak, Pat Nowlan, Marylou Patari, Danielle Scher, Betsey Slattery, Jordan Smith, Jorge Valdes

Therapy Students: Megan Sparks, Amber White

Volunteers: Edward Andruskiwec, Danielle Andruskiwec, Mona Lipson, Andrew Lipson, Diana Talsania

Youth Volunteers: Christian Backe, Sammi Kozin, Zach Lipson, Brooke Talsania, Alec Talsania, Sophia Teissler, Nick Zambas

Pharmacy: Dr Elisa Greene, Chris McKnight

Related Trip

• Organization: Medical (Surgery) Mission Trip
• Trip: Medical (Surgery) Mission Trips
• Date: Sunday, March 11th 2012 - Sunday, March 18th 2012
• City: Medical (Surgery) Mission Trip in Guatemala Healing Hands Foundation
• Venue: Moore Pediatric Surgery Center
• Country: Guatemala
• Notes: Hand and Upper Extremity Surgery
• Add to Google Calendar | Download iCal

Thursday, March 15:

We spent the day in Las Canoas – a neighborhood about 3 miles from Las Conchas.  The school has requested a clean water system. Nic and Bill talked with the principals and measured the room.  We also talked with community leaders including members from the 2 community churches and the Las Canoas Association. Bill and Nic plan on sending a team back to Canoas in October to install the clean water system at the school.

It was a great week.  The team heads home to Tennessee tomorrow.

Wednesday, March 14:

Nic connected with a Presbyterian missionary living here in Guatemala City – Phillip. He came by the surgery center today to tour the facility and meet with Bill and Nic. They will have dinner at Phillip’s house tomorrow night.

Nic and Bill then got a chance to go into the operating rooms to observe surgeries.  They got to see their clean water system in operation! (The water in the OR is from a system they installed here 2 years ago.)

We then went into town (zone 8 and 9) to meet with 2 different companies that sell supplies for the water systems. Great news to find out that they have all of the materials to not only supply the current systems, but to install them as well.

Tuesday, March 13:

Nic Clemmer and Bill McClure arrived yesterday afternoon.

After checking into the hotel, we had lunch with Kenneth Sese of the Hope For Tomorrow Children’s Home. The founders were in town – Jennifer and Brenda – they came  in on the same flight as Bill and Nic.

We took them on a tour of the surgery center then went over to the orphanage. Nic and Bill talked with Kenneth about a system for the orphanage.

We then headed back the surgery center. They fixed the UV light on the system. Everyone there is THRILLED!  No more ‘beep beep beep’ from the system.

Today we spent the day in Las Conchas.  They installed a drinking fountain at the school.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/shalomfoundation/sets/72157629216462434/

Spent good time talking with Principal Donaldo about the water system.

Last week, we had teams here that installed 10 home based water systems. $39 each. Filter lasts 1 year ($12 replacement).  We are testing this for community water.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/shalomfoundation/6968393021/in/set-72157629186035954

Today we went to 3 of the 10 let Bill and Nic see them. We got samples (water before and after the filter) to get to a lab to see their effectiveness.

Tomorrow: meeting a missionary then going to AquaCorp to visit and gather intel on getting equipment here in Guatemala.  We are also going to have Nic and Bill scrub in to watch some surgeries. (there’s a team here performing hand surgeries).

Thursday: visit Las Canoas to discuss install this summer. Visit Shalom School system.

More photos – click now

Friday 3/9/12

Our team at work

Today was sadly our last day of work in Guatemala. We returned to Hermano Pedro Hospital for the second day to wrap up our projects and leave the hospital with repaired equipment or recommendations for proper use or subsequent repair.

Becca and Liz investigate the source of the unstable operating table

Surgeon Juan Jose and Anesthesiologist Corey observe the ECG on Cat

Britney and Laynie worked on a set of anesthesia vaporizers which they determined to be beyond repair. Later in the afternoon, they joined Becca and Liz who were conquering a difficult project of steadying an operating room table which was prone to shifting mid-surgery. This project also recruited the help of Laura after she placed orders for batteries for a blood pressure monitor and Erica after she worked on a pulse oximeter. Cat worked with Corey on an operating room electrocardiogram in the morning before working on an ESU foot pedal with Britney in the afternoon.

Our team with Jorge (top left), Juan Jose (top middle), and Pablo (bottom right)

Thursday 3/8/12

Just when we got comfortable in Pedro de Bethancourt , we switched gears and began our stay in Hermano Pedro hospital. For more information on the history of our worksite for the next couple days, click here: Information on Hermano Pedro Hospital.

Britney’s turn for a hug from Mercedes!

Corey caught writing this blog during work hours

Perhaps an ode to our refined tinkering skills, great progress was made on our new set of projects. Corey, Danny, and Lowell installed a new light source in an endoscope thanks to a donation from Smith and Nephew. Becca and Britney fixed the printer on an ECG patient monitor and brought the unit back to full working shape. Evan worked with Mallette on a surgical headlamp then an oxygen/carbon dioxide monitor. Laynie and Liz also brought an oxygen/carbon dioxide monitor back to life. An automatic tourniquet system, ultrasound prope, autoclave bag sealer, and ESU pedal were all found to be beyond repair by Laura, Cat, and Erica.

Roommates Corey and Danny competed in a contest amongst the surgeons for the most ridiculous scrubs

In the afternoon, many of us were given the opportunity to scrub-in on a couple hernia surgeries. Corey, Danny, Erica, Liz, and Mallette watch Dr. Hendricks masterfully perform a hernia repair while providing us with a wealth of information on the history of surgery and his Iowa football days. Meanwhile, Cat, Laura, and Laynie watched Dr. Rodriguez perform a similar surgery, who also giving unforgettable lessons in hernia repair surgery. Both surgeons and their anaestesthiologists were serving through Faith in Practice who sends surgical teams 36 weeks per year.

Erica “the model” shows off her Tango skills with a local

Wednesday 3/7/12 – “A day in the life of Pabs”

Becca was able to finish her project on a custom Bililight and proudly passed along the equipment to Sergio, the chief engineer. Laura worked with Becca on this project and afterwards, as icing on the cake, they repaired a pulse oximeter together.

After a hard day at work, the team was treated to a glimpse into ‘a day in the life of Pabs’ and a private tour of La Finca Filadelfia, a sprawling coffee plantation on the outskirts of Antigua. Pablo, one of our drivers and translators who doubles as a coffee guru, led us through the precise and delicate steps of coffee bean preparation. He walked us through the harvesting of coffee berries by hand, selection by size, pulping, drying on the tile roofs, and shucking of the shells to expose the precious coffee beans ready to roast. The tour was followed by a walk through the luxurious on-site five-star hotel and relaxation outdoors while admiring the picturesque views of the surrounding mountains and volcanoes. The amenities were so tempting that, when it was time to leave, Dr. Walker even momentarily considered ditching the group and staying there for the rest of the week! For those at home envious of our VIP coffee tour, you just may get a little piece of this paradise in the form of Pablo’s hand-roasted and blended gourmet Guatemalan coffee!

Tuesday 3/6/12

Looking ahead to our first full day of work, the city of Antigua offered us a beautiful sunrise easily seen atop our hotel. With the sun sneaking up behind the mountains, the clouds and volcanic fumes stole the show with an orange glow scattered about the sky.

Becca hit the floor running with her custom Bililight she had created before coming. She set up a longevity test of the light and supported a few other teams as a translator. Lowell and Corey installed new fuses in a defunct infant warmer and made progress towards recovering its use as an automated thermoregulator. Danny also worked in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit on a VCR-DVD writer and successfully soldered a hand dryer in the scrub zone.

Although Mallette and Liz would love to talk about their work identifying the root problem with their incubator, I have a hunch they would first want you to know how ridiculously cute was the little Guatemalan boy who blew them kisses. Liz also worked with Laynie, Erica, and Becca on ventilators and saw first-hand the restraints of power availability in the hospital. Laynie also worked with Britney on a ventilator and discovered a hole in the device and the parts needed to perform a repair. Likewise, Laura was able to identify problems with an antique microscope offered the prognosis of retirement.

Tuesday, Mar 6:

Yesterday was a great day to see the Vanderbilt students (3) and Del Valle students (3) make presentations of their projects.   They were quite intelligent and significant projects.   Of course they had to be very organized in their presentations with technology etc.  It was very impressive.  The students were able to interact with each other afterwards and at lunch.   A tour was given of Del Valle University.
Afterwards we traveled back to the Moore Center and gave the students a tour of the facility.  The looked at a few pieces of equipment we needing repair.  Research had been done prior and it was found out that the equipment was no longer being supported with replacement parts and service.  It was concluded that parts were needed for repair and the unit should be scrapped.   We decided to take it to Hermano Pedro Hospital for them to use for parts, since we had previously identified a similar unit there.
The team left the Moore Center, made a quick stop at Walmart, yes Walmart in Guatemala, then on to Antiqua where they will spend the week working at two hospitals.

Tommy Sanders
Director of Operations
The Shalom Foundation

Monday, March 5, 2012

Monday 3/5/12

Thank you for your patience! I hope these pictures and stories are worth the delayed post.

Our team at Universidad del Valle

At a bright and early 6am, we began our day before the roosters. After a traditional breakfast of eggs, plantains, bread, and coffee, we set sail for Universidad del Valle (UVG). There we held a mini-conference with three student presenters from our school and theirs. After an inclusive introduction of Nashville and Vanderbilt by Dr. P, team Proto-life from UVG presented their research on a prosthetic hand and elbow. We later had the chance to hold their prototype and were all very impressed! Our very own Danny then led off with a charismatic presentation on his senior design project also focused on prosthetics, but from the angle of quantifying the selection process for a prosthetic leg. A fourth-year student from UVG presented his work on customizing the learning environment to improve attendance and accessibility to online lectures, among many other ideas. Erica then gave an overview of her senior design project which peaked the interest of mechanical, electrical, and biomedical engineers in the audience with a new way to diagnose tuberculosis. The final UVG presentation, given by team Profectus, proposed a wheelchair capable of ascending and descending stairs and automated navigation controlled by the users’ voice. Mallette finished the presentation session by highlighting her team’s progress on a low-resource, smartphone-based endoscope. We were then given a tour of the beautiful UVG campus and advanced engineering facilities. We then relaxed over lunch with the UVG students and were able to learn more about their experiences as students in Guatemala City.

Following our mini-conference, we had the pleasure of being driven by our favorite Pablo and Jorge to the Moore Pediatric Surgery Center. We were given a tour of the facility and a brief history of its role in Guatemala City. If you have a minute, I would highly recommend you to glance through their website to learn more about this unique surgery center.

Lowell and Laura attempt to repair a light generator in the Moore Pediatric Surgery Center

Before heading to Antigua, we needed to pick up some essential supplies at a quant store, beloved by locals: Walmart. Everything in the Walmart was oddly familiar except for the prices which, after the $1 to 8 quatzales exchange rate, presented us with Walmart quality goods at Ralph Lauren Polo prices. We quickly got back on the road and no sooner did we find ourselves in the jaw-dropping Guatemalan countryside. We wrapped around mountains, valleys, forests, and maybe even some volcanoes. The beauty of the countryside was somehow matched by the beauty waiting for us in Antigua. We are all very excited to be calling this old Spanish colonial town home for the next few days. Once inside our hotel, we found an interior that mirrored the majesty of the exterior.

Our stunning seniors in the courtyard of our hotel

We ended the night with dinner at a (very) nearby restaurant which featured chefs who would prepare salsa and guacamole in mortars at our tables. Laynie, Liz, Mallette, and Corey took on the challenge of a Pollo Fajitas platter suitable for a family of kings.

We couldn’t make it a single evening in Antigua without a quick walk around the central square, where we stumbled upon a picture which ought to be your new desktop background for the next few weeks.

 Sunday, March 4, 2012

We have arrived!

Dear loved ones,

Rest assured; we have arrived safely in Guatemala City! All students showed up on time to leave Vanderbilt and the flight to Dallas was exceptionally easy. Eerily easy, some may say. The turbulence flying into Guatemala was noteworthy, but the adventure started upon arrival. With our faces glued to the windows, looking at the sprawling city, Evan pulled a quick joke about leaving his passport on the plane.

A joke, right?

Nope. Evan and Corey rushed back to the plane to beg an airport employee to go to seat 28A on the plane that just landed. With minimal confidence, Evan returned to customs empty-handed. Our fearless leader, Dr. P, stayed behind while the rest of the team casually passed through customs and hoped for the best. An appropriately dramatic length of time later, Evan and Dr. P emerge triumphantly.Crisis averted, we pass through the second stage of customs and meet our Shalom Foundation heroes, Claudia and Tommy. They led us all safely to our cozy hotel for the night.

Mallette, Danny, and Erica will be presenting their research at Universidad del Valle bright and early tomorrow morning. We look forward to our first day of work and beautiful Guatemalan sunshine.

Until then!

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Final Preparations

Danny practices his presentation to be given at the Universidad del Valle

A mere two days from now we will be flying to Guatemala City to begin our Service Learning experience!

We have researched our assigned medical equipment and are prepared to troubleshoot and repair on-site. We have acquired service manuals, donations, and Becca even designed a new Bilirubin light! With our bags packed, we are excitedly looking forward to putting our freshly refined tinkering and Spanish skills to work.

After a late flight Sunday night and an early rise Monday morning, we will have a mini-conference with students at Universidad del Valle and work in the Moore Pediatric Surgical Center in the afternoon. Then we will drive to Antigua where we will be working at Pedro de Bethancourt Hospital and Hermano Pedro Hospital for the next few days. On Saturday, we will take a mini-vacation by hiking the Pacaya volcano and gift shopping for loved ones (by reading this blog, your chances of a gift are at least tripled!).

We will keep this blog lively, colorful, and active with daily posts. Please feel free to leave comments! We look forward to sharing this experience with you as we learn more about the culture and healthcare system in Guatemala City and Antigua.

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Getting ready for Guatemala Service Learning 2012

We’re at it again! Twelve Vanderbilt University Biomedical Engineering students and two professors are preparing for a week-long service project to Guatemala City and Antigua.

What is that, you ask? How can you be a part of this excursion? You are invited to follow us as we will be posting our adventures to this blog daily!

Stay tuned for pictures, stories, and surprises.

Blog written by Vanderbilt University’s BioMedical Team visiting with The Shalom Foundation in Guatemala. http://vubme-guatemala.blogspot.com/

Team members include: Dr. Cynthia Paschal, Laura Albert, Elizabeth Asche, Mallette Asmuth, Britney Broscher, Alayna Boland, Erica Curtis, Evan Dalton, Lowell Hays, Rebecca Hudson, Daniel Johnson, Catherine Majors, Corey Peak and Matthew Walker.

More pictures:  click now  and  here

Related Trip

• Organization: Medical (Clinic) Mission Trips
• Trip: Medical (Clinic) Mission Trips
• Date: Sunday, March 4th 2012 - Sunday, March 11th 2012
• City: Medical (Clinic) Mission Trips in Vanderbilt School Of Engineering – BioMedical Trip
• Venue: Moore Pediatric Surgery Center
• Country: Guatemala
• Notes: 2 faculty members and 12 engineering students will work at the Moore Pediatric Surgery Center and Hermano Pedro and Pedro Betancourt hospitals in Antigua to service medical equipment.
• Add to Google Calendar | Download iCal

Medical Clinic in Las Conchas

Thur, Mar 8:

Back to Las Conchas, we finished up the clinic.  We saw about 30 patients as well as finished the height/weight of the school children.

In the afternoon, Dr Franks’ husband, Pastor Dee Franks, talked to the high school about Christ.

The team also finished delivering the home water systems.

Dinner was in the city – we met up with the OT/PT Team from Belmont University and Vol State Community College.

Wed, Mar 7:

After arriving ‘just a little’ late to Guatemala on Tuesday (10 hours), the team got to work today in Las Conchas. We held a medical clinic. We were assisted by medical personnel from Manos de Amor Clinic (an outreach of Shalom Church). We checked blood pressure and blood sugar levels for 100 people.  Part of the team also did height/weight analysis of the school children. This information is used to assist with the nutrition program we are implementing for the community.

In the afternoon, the team held training for those that tested high for blood pressure. They also got height/weight information for the high school children.

During the afternoon, Colon Pope delivered 3 home based clean water systems to Carmen, Lucrecia, and Pastor Carlos. These folks have agreed to test them and provide us with feedback.  The team split up and each got to assist Colon at 1 house.

Esteban joined us for the day as a translator.  All teams enjoy it when he comes out with us.  He’s a 16 year old Guatemalan that speaks better English than most of us from Tennessee!

March 6-9, 2012

Members from Belmont University School of Pharmacy will be conducting a medical clinic in Las Conchas. They will screen and provide education for various conditions including high blood pressure, diabetes  and prenatal health.

Members include: Dr. Rachel Franks, Pastor Degrango Franks, Jennifer Corder, Mandy Newman, Chris McKnight and Marian Roufael.

More pictures – click now

Related Trip

• Organization: Medical (Clinic) Mission Trips
• Trip: Medical (Clinic) Mission Trips
• Date: Tuesday, March 6th 2012 - Friday, March 9th 2012
• City: Medical (Clinic) Mission Trips in Belmont University – Pharmacy School
• Venue: Las Conchas, Guatemala City
• Country: Guatemala
• Add to Google Calendar | Download iCal