Unfortunately the Travel Warning issued by the French and Canadian governments put a damper on the group’s excursion yesterday. The hope was to explore a rare resort and see how it is benefitting the island by employing residents and sponsoring local programs in support of the community. However, as it is run by a French organization and no flights are coming from either country, the doors were closed and only a security guard remained on site. It is a shame that the turmoil on the mainland is reaching across the channel to also impact this community – no guests, resort closed, no work and thus no income.
As it was, we all had a couple hours to relax after the Urgent Care patients were treated, while we awaited another delicious dinner. We would need it because we had meds to count & sort and boxes to reorganize for what we expect may be a busy clinic near the market of Madame Bernard – after all, we are told Thursday is market day so there will be many citizens in the area. We also had much filing to catch up with, both from the past 2 days as well as left over from our last trip…the chores that go with a fledgling health care system!
Once the work was finished, it was time to connect with family back home, which meant finding a signal on a balcony or the roof to make calls or send good night texts (must say I am also missing my puppies!). Despite the unusually cooler climate and excellent sleeping conditions, the days activities are catching up and sleep came easily again for most…and yet another pleasant night’s sleep! Maybe this is the payoff for the challenges endured in the run-up to our arrival…no matter the reason, we all feel very fortunate.
We awoke to patchy cloud cover, keeping temps cool, and fans still running…and the smell of a delicious breakfast and fresh brewed coffee…on a beautiful Caribbean island amongst many friends. Somebody pinch me!!
As soon as breakfast was over we quickly loaded and headed for another familiar location…getting back to our origins – a thatch walled, dirt floored, mostly open-aired church with little air actually moving, doubling as a makeshift clinic. Wherever we go we adjust the space and our process to serve the needs of our patients…not sure we will know what to do with ourselves once the clinic is finished!
Though today’s clinic was closer to our usual experience in the heat of Ile a Vache, we still only treated a total of 65 patients…and again nobody was turned away…still scratching our heads, but happy with the efficiency we seem to have found.
Upon our return for lunch, we were not disappointed…we seem to have developed a reputation as an after hours urgent minor surgical clinic and Kitty had yet another finger to suture…Butcher Knife 1, Finger 0. I believe I predicted she would easily surpass my exploits in minor procedures done…if this demand keeps up I will definitely need to bone up on my suturing skills again!
Since we finished clinic early today, we decided to knock out today’s filing quickly. Some then started a game of Dominos (a new attraction this trip), but soon we headed for the best signal on the island, which also happens to be on a hill catching what seems the only breeze today…and an extra bonus – actual cold beverages. We are now cooling off from the day with our friends and preparing for a short day in Clinic at Gran Plaine tomorrow. I am already thinking about missing our brothers and sisters here and looking towards our return as soon as possible. I know I am not alone…there is so much more to experience here!
All for now – Love to All,
The Team