December 6th - Week 6
This week went by quickly as we had Monday off for the post-election
holiday. We have been busier in the clinic now with two doctors. We
are seeing 25-30 patients per day now in contrast to about 15 when it
was only Dr. Mario. Dr. Robert has settled in well here but is still
surprised by the short work day. It is always a big rush for 3 or 4
hours, and then clinic is done before noon. With two doctors, I do not
have as much time to sit in on the appointments because I am preparing
the patients as fast as they get through them. However, both doctors
are very kind to call me in to see, for example, an interesting case
of impetigo or shingles.
My dentist at home in Oregon, Dr. Bodyfelt, has agreed to donate 300
toothbrushes to the clinic! My sister will bring them in a few weeks
when she comes to visit. I am so happy we will have toothbrushes to
hand out to some of the children. Even if the supply only lasts a
month or two, it will be helpful to those 300 children.
I may have written about this before, but I keep thinking how grateful
I am to have a job on the island that keeps me connected to the real
lives of the citizens here. It is so easy for ex-pats living in West
End to never leave that “bubble,” never speak Spanish, and never
understand the poverty that the great majority of the population live
