CLINIC 3: Dutty aka “the jungle”

Wednesday, January 10, 2018

As we bumped and rolled the bus down the pot-holed dirt road, scrapping the back of bus when coming over a cement bridge, the people along the road to our third clinic greeted us with smiles and waves – a phenomenon that we had not seen before.  Wearing our boots, we encountered a small site with a thatched building maybe 40 feet wide and 60 feet long, plus a small building for pharmacy.  Everything else happened in pop up tents, including surgery, dental and obstetrics!  Hundreds of people awaited us and we quickly set up and begin day three of providing medical and spiritual care to the people of Dutty. 

Amy Owenby gerryrigged how we would weight the pediatric patients when the scale proved to be inaccurate on the dirt floor; she used a folding table as the base and set the scale on it so that the many, many children that were seen on Wednesday could be weighed.  Amy also had a pediatric patient with congestion and was happy to scour the supply suitcases to find a bulb syringe that would allow mom to suction out the mucus.  It is heartbreaking know the simple things that Haiti does not have, especially in the jungle.

If was wonderful to watch Dr. Summer Nguyen give away baby slings to the expecting and new moms in Dutty.  Given its more rural location, we hope that the slings made by Pam Magnus’s daughter, Sydney will be a blessing for years to come.  Sydney made more than 80 slings as part of her Girl Scout Gold Award project.  Using colorful fabrics and rings, the slings are long enough to adjust from an infant to a toddler.

The medical team, but especially RN Teresa Plank, took time with their patients to address non-medical needs.  Many children in Dutty were provided shoes, additional nutritional pack and other items team members had brought to make a difference in peoples lives.  

Sabrina Garrovillas served with Dr. Dan Ng in surgery, learning a new technique for stitching patients. Dr. Jim Korb saw a returning six-year old girl whose skin looked like she had been burned, but in fact, was suffering from a genetic skin condition that hardened her skin and make it difficult for the child’s body to sweat. 

Pam Mangus, our pharmacist, noted that on Wednesday, the pharmacy worked as if it had it’s own heartbeat, which given the size of the room, the heat of the day and the significant number of medications filled, is surely a God given blessing.   Continuing yesterday’s theme of Haitian partnership and sustainability, Pam noted that Jamal, her pharmacist assistant, handled all the pharmacy counseling, teaching the patients how and when to take the prescribed medication. 

The highlight of the day (told to us in worship later that evening) was the wheelchair story.  Late in the afternoon, after tear down had begun, Pastor Ryan noted that the wheelchair was near the truck, ready to be loaded.  When he returned to the truck, he found that the wheelchair had been strapped to a motorocycle and was on the verge of being driven away.  Proceeding to rescue the wheelchair from an alleged theft, he quickly learned that Sherri Orr had given the wheelchair, so that a housebound 4 year-old child that has never walked, could be transported with the wheelchair.  Trust me, you know Pastor Ryan tells the story with great detail and hilarity, so while I can’t do it justice in this blog, know that wheelchair will change this young Haitian’s life. 

Two hernia patients and a returning patient with a lump in the elbow of his arm could not be treated at Dutty, but were referred to God Sam Hospital in Limbe, thanks to Fabienne’s help and God continuing to open a door to a hospital with volunteer surgeons serving a mission there. Overall, we estimate that more than 240 people were served in Dutty.