Peru Medical Project

We got to sleep in this morning! At breakfast we voted on the agenda and it was 9-1 (1 being Don Juan), so we went to a really old cathedral in Lima. It had catacombs underground which we toured and sneaked pictures of the 100’s of dried bones that we saw. It was very intricately decorated, and we even got to buy souvenirs and feed the birds outside. This was the first time we got to exchange for some Peruvian money (soles)! We found that our dollar goes pretty far here. After our tour at the cathedral we got back on the bus for the ride of our lives. The drivers here are in sane! We’re pretty sure they have no traffic laws whatsoever. We’ve seen about one traffic light and no speed limit signs this whole time. Needless to say, it’s a miracle we arrive safely at our next destination–the hospital in Lima. Diana (one of our translators) gave us a tour of the hospital her mom works at. It was the biggest hospital in the biggest district in Lima, yet it was smaller than one of our smallest hospitals…around 100 beds total. We all got to put on scrubs in the maternity ward and see a woman in labor. There’s definitely a lot of things they do differently that have made us appreciate all of the rules and regulations in our own hospital systems.

The next stop was McDonald’s! Nobody would have ever expected to see 14 Americans eating there, right? They were so excited about it that they gave us a private room and took our orders at the table. They even brought all our condiments on a tray and delivered all the food to us! The McFlurry’s were heavenly because they add chocolate syrup on top of all the cookie crumbles…yum! And we actually got to have ice in our drinks, a hot commodity these days. After that we went to the market next door called Metro. It was pretty much like Target or Wal-Mart, and everyone got good deals. We’re going to a big market tomorrow in Lima that we’re all really excited about too. Then it was an hour bus ride back to Ola Grande.

We’ve spent the rest of the evening soaking up all of the sand and waves that we can. We watched the sunset, took group pictures by the ocean, had more rice for dinner, and laughed and cried as we talked about our week. To celebrate one of the other team’s leaders’ birthday and 22nd wedding anniversary, the hostal staff brought us cake and ice cream, and set up an awesome fireworks display along with a bonfire on the beach. Since then we’ve just been hanging out and enjoying our last night here at Ola Grande! It’s been a great trip so far, and tomorrow we will say our goodbyes to all the friends we’ve made at Hogar de Ninos in the morning. Then we’re headed to Lima for some touring and shopping before we head back to the airport. Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we travel home tomorrow. We can’t wait to see you all!

Alyssa and Stephanie

Hola familia y amigos!

Today came ridiculously early…7:30 to be exact. We left at 8 to go to Hogar de Ninos to set up our last clinic for the week. On our way to the orphanage/clinic, our bus suffered a slight epidemic which consisted of a belt breaking…I guess they need those? (ha!) While our bus driver went about fixing the belt, Jon decided to be a true tourist and get out of the bus and take pictures of the Peruvian landscapers working on the median of the highway. They quickly approached our bus with shovels in hand and wanted their pictures taken with the Gringo! Our bus was quickly fixed and we were once again on our way.

Upon arriving at the clinic, our things (clothes and pharmacy were quickly organized and we were blessed to have a doctor who took control and knew how she wanted her clinic run. She wanted a Triage station (which consisted of blood pressures, temperatures, etc…) before she saw the patients. We started a little before 10, and by 1 o’clock we had already treated nearly 60 patients! Our doctor was very time efficient and thorough in her assessments which helped us out a lot. We divided ourselves up into groups of two and rotated between each station we had set up (Triage, Doctor’s table, pharmacy, and clothes). By the time 4 o’clock rolled around we had seen 127 patients, praise God! We actually saw a boy with 6 toes (he had 6 fingers but had the 6th surgically removed when he was a baby)! Everyone who was seen by the doctor and nurses were able to receive free clothes and medicine. Our physician was even grateful to receive donated clothes as well, which would not typically happen in the U.S. but truly showed the appreciation and humility of the people here. We are all learning so much and being touched in many different ways by things we are observing here.

After the clinic, we got to play with the kids at Hogar de Ninos - which is ALWAYS so much fun!! Needless to say we were all pretty exhausted at the end of the day from all the hard work and play; however, the joy and sweet smiles on the kids’ faces never cease to brighten our hearts.

We look forward to sleep. (oh ya, and what God has in store for tomorrow). Your prayers are very much appreciated and we are happy to report that we have seen tremendous results from your prayers, love, and support.

Love you all…

Elisabeth and Jess

P.S. We love you, Don Juan.

Well today we had a little change of pace. The beginning of our longest day yet began with a great breakfast as always, served by our hosts at Ola Grande. Instead of working at a clinic, we helped at Hannah’s Home. This is the final week of preparation before they begin to welcome pregnant girls in to their open doors for discipleship and care. They will also teach these girls how to be good moms or if this is not possible at least find good homes for their babies. Our tasks were everything from staining slats and bed parts, assembly, weeding the garden, digging, and cleaning. Working under the hot sun was difficult yet enjoyable and a welcomed change from the fridged Ohio! We finished up our time there by spending time playing and hanging out with the orphanage children at Hogar de Ninos. Gifts were exchanged and the time spent was thoroughly enjoyed. Our sad departure was brightened by the idea that we would see them tomorrow because it will be the location of our next clinic! Very exciting.

We showered up and dressed up for the next part of our day. We went out to dinner at a restaurant that was famous for its chicken and fries and we soon found out why. The food was delicious! Our next stop was a church about 45 minutes north of Punta Negra. They welcomed us with open arms and we worshiped to familiar songs sang in Spanish such as “Trading my Sorrows,” “This is my Desire,” and “Open the Eyes of my Heart.” We listened to a Pastor from Chile who has been preaching a lot in Peru. He spoke of how we need to stay on the Mountain of God in order to be used by him. We need to always be climbing and striving for the top and never let ourselves descend. It was a very lively and powerful service. Afterwards we sang and danced with the people in the front of the sanctuary. It was wonderful to be able to worship our God in unique ways. It was a late when we left and we did not arrive back at the Hostal until after 11:00.

We went to bed in anticipation of an early day tomorrow. Things are still going well and we are excited to see what God has planned for us tomorrow. God is good!

Jonathan

Today we set up another clinic in Olof Palme outside of a Peruvian Hospital. We were surprised to see that the hospital was no bigger then a small family practice. Inside they had a dentist, obstetrician, pharmacy, and general medicine doctor. The doctor we worked with was Dr. Manuel, a Peruvian physician from the nearby hospital. We met him and set up our clinic. Dr. Steve worked with us again which greatly contributed to the overall success of our clinic. We were a lot more organized today and the facility we were working with was a lot more spacious. We also had two Peruvian women who helped to control the massive crowd waiting outside for care. As the people filed in they saw one of the two doctors, received their care (consisting of drugs, vitamins, and/or medical education), and then finally proceeded to the other side of the room where several of us were waiting to hand them donated clothes. It was wonderful to see the faces of the people as they received the care and gifts that were available to them. Several little children come to mind as I picture their bright faces and wide eyes as they received a new shirt or pair of flip flops. Many of them had never received so much at one time. One little girl who could not have been any older then four ran around the room giving all of us “gringos” hugs and kisses on the cheek. It was such a blessing for us to experience the power of love. It seemed to be immediate and unconditional for many of the children.
We rotated and had a chance to spend time with both physicians, the pharmacy, and the “clothing store.” It was awesome getting to work with Dr. Steve. Although he originally came down with the group from RiverTree to work on the construction of Hannah’s Home, God quickly showed him that He had other plans for him. This orthopedic surgeon did an incredible job using his general medical skills to not only treat his patients, but thoroughly teach them about their ailments. Our knowledge of medication greatly increased as we worked along side the doctors to use the medications we had on hand to best treat the patients. Sometimes it was frustrating not being able to help some individuals simply because of lack of supplies.
It was wonderful being able to see how God worked throughout the day. One situation occurred with a 10 year old boy who came in crying because he had just had a tooth pulled. Little or no pain medication was used. We had a shot that we could give him to help decrease inflammation and pain. He was scared to get the shot and did not want it at first. With the help of our translators and Alyssa, we calmed the boy down enough to allow us to give him the shot. Brannyn administered the shot and within 3 minutes the boy had stopped crying and stated that the pain had gone almost completely away. Later I saw him running around in good spirits. Another very encouraging situation that we encountered was that the little boy from Monday with the colostomy came and received the colostomy bags to protect his stoma and catch his stool. This was a huge blessing to them because it will greatly increase the sanitation and overall safety to health of the boy.
At the end of the day we were tired but left with a feeling of satisfaction. It was incredible being able to take care of the patients and show them the love of Christ. We packed up and left the site after taking pictures with all Peruvians who had greatly helped. Upon arriving back at Ola Grande, we relaxed and met again for dinner. We enjoyed another incredible meal proved by the hostal employees. Afterwards we met for our debriefing. This was one of the most touching experiences I’ve had on the trip as we laughed and cried about our experiences so far. Seeing God work had been such an incredible experience and it has touched all of our lives in tremendous ways. None of us could stop expressing our deep gratitude to Dr. Steve for letting God work through him in the clinical setting. We were grateful for our translators and an incredible man named Felix, the Peruvian man who runs the Child Reach orphanage, who seems to be everywhere and help with everything. Although he does not speak English, he continues to be able to communicate his love and compassion everywhere he goes. God’s plan for us is still unfolding and we see a bit more each day. Its been awesome seeing him work in our lives and through the people we meet and it is exciting to see what else he has in store for us. I thank each of you for your prayers! God is so good!

Jonathan

Today was utter chaos! We spent the day in Lomas de Marchand which was the poorest village we have spent time in so far. The village was set up in clusters of houses made of whatever materials they had to work with. Almost all homes had dirt floors and only one main room. When we arrived we walked around the village and advertised for the clinic. In spite of our ignorance of the language, many people actually showed up! We had one Peruvian doctor and a lot of various medical supplies that were donated for us to work with. A local woman offered her house for us to use for the clinic which was basically the size of a dorm room. Although the space was small, we had a table to put our supplies on and a separate area for the doctor to examine the patients. We took down all the names of the patients at the door and called them in one by one to the first “station” where we assessed them and took their vital signs. From there the patients met with a translator (very important!) and doctor who did their best to figure out the problem and best solution or medicine we could provide. While this was going on, a few of us spent time being mobbed by the village children…and we loved every moment! The best way to describe the kids was to say they were clingy. It seemed like they could not get enough of our attention, love, or stethoscopes, and we were happy to be their personal jungle gyms as well. We encountered a lot of tough situations today. One girl had burns covering her chest and stomach that had scabbed. Thankfully, we were able to see this and remove some of her scabs and give her a fresh change of clothes. It was heartbreaking to only be able to provide a little care when this sweet girl needed so much more. Another little boy we saw had a colostomy, (colon emptying on the OUTSIDE of his body) but did not have the bags to empty his stool into. Instead of this, he had an old shirt wrapped around the area. Because this boy has such special needs, we are trying to raise the money to get him the surgery he needs to fix this problem.

The second half of our day included a special guest doctor from the RiverTree group. We were so happy to have him because we were able to see many more patients that we wouldn’t have been able to without him. While Dr. Steve and the others were managing the clinic, some spent time passing out clothes. This event was crazy to say the least because it seemed that ALL the kids and their mothers crowded our bus at once. We tried to monitor the amount of clothes each child was getting by marking them with a Sharpie, but many were running home with their clothes, washing the marker off, and coming back for more. Eventually we had to stop handing out clothes because of this. Although this was frustrating, it was good to know that all the clothes were going to a good cause.

Though we saw a lot of devastation, it was incredibly rewarding to see the smiles on their faces and hear the “thank you’s” (Gracias’s). You know you’ve made some kind of difference when the kids practically drag from the back of the bus as you drive away!!

Brannyn and Becca