Wednesday, March 16, 2011.



Those of you trying to follow this blog now know that this is not a daily publication, even though it is dated that way. This is due to limitations of time and energy.



Our daily routine begins with the alarm about 6:15. 7:00 is breakfast, and 8:00 we try to have the transport leave. We break from work about noon for a simple sandwich and a piece of fruit. Balogna and cheese on white bread, lightly toasted, with an apple is typical. The end of the workday varies with the tasks in progress. Because the trip takes 30-40 minutes, we all wait until the last task is done. This occurs sometine between 5:00 and 6:00 P.M. This schedule has taken a toll on all of us. On one trip back to the hotel after 6:00 P.M., Heather was in a discussion from the front of the bus to the rear about the location of certain drugs or equipment necessary for the next day of clinic visits. The discussion lasted 30-45 seconds and was loud enough for all to hear. Seconds after the discussion, Suzanne turned to the rear of the bus and asked with some concern: "Where is Heather?" Loud laughter followed. Suzanne and Heather were seated next to each other. Dinner follows between 6:30 and 7:30 P.M. This team has an endless appetite for meetings to plan for the next day. These occur after dinner. Normally, the "team" day does not end until at least 8:30 P.M. At 6:15 A.M. the next day begins.



Trips like this must be expected to come with things happening that are not planned and not pleasant. We have experienced one pickpocket event with the loss of some cash and credit cards. Even notifiying the credit card companies was a challenge. The calls were passed from one to another, and just when it seemed the correct person would be at the other end of the line, the call would be dropped-the process would start anew. One of the team members also fell on an uneven section of a dock and suffered a nasty cut on the forehead. Not every tourist travels with a doctor with a surgical kit and a staff of nurses, but this one did. The hotel kitchen prepared boiling water. Ten stiches later the patient was back with the team, enjoying dinner and live music.



The highlight of the day was family planning for both men and women (separately of course). Suzanne will write that portion of the blog. She says it will probably not be ready until after our return. Check back later to see the addition to this date.



Today more patients were seen and work progressed on the construction projects. The new latrine is nearing completion. The walls are up, as well as a tin roof. The stool is set and flushes. The concrete is not set suffiently to allow use yet. The stool drains to a plastic pipe that passes undergound approximately 100 yards to a shaft like a well with approximately 4 feet wide and 45 feet deep. The shaft was dug by hand by some local workers. A wooden scaffold was built above the hole for the shaft. The clay-like soil was picked at and removed one bucket at a time. As the hole grew deeper, a man was lowered by pulley and rope. Buckets of soil were sent to the surface. I am sure hundreds of OSHA regs were violated, but in the Guatemalan way the work got done. At the bottom of the "well," sand was encountered. When in use, the solids and fluids from the stool are drainged to the shaft. The liquids percolate through the sand at the bottom and the solids accumulate. Theoretically, this could be pumped periodically. I do not what the actual practice is. Throuhout Guatemala we are advised that toilet paper, etc., are not to be flushed in the toilet. Plastic trash containers next to the stool are provided. Our American habits are hard to break, but we have granted each other one mistake.