This was the site for our clinic today. And when we drove up, it was clear they knew we were coming. It promised to be a busy day and it did not disappoint. The good news is we were not crowded into a 10 x 10 room this time! In fact we had 3 large rooms – one for check in and 2 for consultations. What a difference 7 months make!!
The clinic “before”
Clinic ran from about 10am to 3pm and we had seen 158 patients. Today was unique in that Kitty did not get to do any minor surgeries. Today was mostly just primary care day…and lots of it! The space was a real treat, unfortunately it did not catch today’s breeze, so it became very hot, very quickly. I think the water consumption and loss matched the previous 2 days combined! As usual though, Big Boss treated the group to cold water, soda and other beverages on the ride home.
Once home, everyone found something to eat and we were off to another favorite destination to cool off…the other beach. We were accompanied by nearly every child on our path…unless they were out collecting water for their homes.
When we returned home we had 2 more patients waiting, bringing our total for the day to an even 160…maybe the most we have seen on this island in a single day…and remember, we were keeping records…on paper! Who needs Epic!? Anyway, one of the 2 extra was the baby that was delivered under the mango tree on our last visit, Joshua Emmanuel – he is an adorable 8mo old and couldn’t seem to get enough of Chelsea and Melila, before Kelly treated his illness. These are some of our favorite moments…I hope we get to watch this little guy grow into a fine man some day!
We have now finished dinner and are getting the days salt and dust cleaned off before we return to sorting more medications…today was so busy, we have depleted our supply and we still have 2 days of clinic to run. After that work is finished…who knows what the rest of the night will bring. It does seem to be cooling off a bit, so hopefully a good night’s sleep will be had by all.
Tomorrow, we venture to Point Est by boat for our first clinic in this village. We are looking forward to this new experience as we do all!
That’s all for tonight.
Love to All,
The Team