After a wonderful breakfast, we headed two hours away to a community called El Cipres, "the Cypress". The cypress tree is known for its longevity. The team found this ironic, as we all agreed that there were many elderly in this community.
Several team members wanted to get a feel for different areas today! The medical clinic was made up of Dale, Yolanda, Dr. Eapan, Crystal, and Julie. They saw a total of 251 patients with six pediatric referrals.
Shirley, Jessica, and Donnie were in the pharmacy; although Donnie stepped out to assist Melvin with crowd control for most of the day. Susan and Peggy continued to assist Dr. Adam in the dental clinic with 49 patients and 72 extractions. Elmer, Barrett, and Neal manned the eye clinic. Their total for the day was 29 patients and 51 pairs of glasses. Laura and Sean continued in deworming/fluoride/vitamin A clinic; with totals of 181 deworming, 56 fluoride, and 49 vitamin A.
Reflections after dinner...
Barrett had a great day in the eye clinic. He thought it was interesting although not quite sure how to take Elmer's comment that "Neal is the best!" Jessica liked the pharmacy and the opportunity to have a different experience. Peggy still enjoys working with the dentist and agreed with everyone that today was the biggest day of the week! Susan shared that the dental patients seemed more timid in this community. Papa Joe stated that due to treatment by the best doctors and nurses in the country, he feels better now! Crystal shared that this community seemed to be a lot healthier and that there were more elderly here. She also shared a story that touched her heart about a 45 year old woman with a past history of abuse. She is in a new relationship with a wonderful man and wants to have a child but has had several miscarriages. Crystal was saddened to have to explain that the miscarriages were probably because of her age.
Shirley was impressed with the cleanliness of this community. She stated that their good health was definitely a result of the cleanliness. Yolanda had a rose and she gave it to her first patient. She stated that her patient was the cutest 81-year-old and all that she wanted was some Tylenol and vitamins! Donnie was appreciative of the crowds' patience, as many of them had to wait to be seen since there were so many patients today.
Julie worked hard in the medical clinic, but still took time to enjoy all the "grandmas!" Dale saw several cases of lice today. She was glad that the pharmacy had the necessary supplies to treat the lice. Neal gave his cross to a cute five-year-old girl with a big smile, who came to the eye clinic because of bad headaches. He took a break from the eye clinic and visited with the dental clinic. He seemed excited to have seen a tooth extraction!
Laura and Sean were extremely busy and were named "King and Queen of the Day!" Laura gave her cross to a little girl. She has several medical conditions but the one that broke Laura's heart was that she had a hole in hers. She told her that she will be praying for healing and will carry her in her heart always! She was glad to learn that the girl is already in the extended care program.
Nury enjoyed controlling the main gate today. She advised us to make certain that we make the best of tomorrow, as it will be the last clinic of the year! Yolanda ended the night with a beautiful devotion reminding us to think before we act. We can change someone's whole day with just a little blessing! We are all saddened that tomorrow will be the last clinic of the week. We pray that God puts the people in front of us that need us most and that He will guide us in every step of the way to do His work and glorify Him! On a happier note..."Elmer's White Teddy Bear" needed no assistance getting up the mountain today!
Sincerely,
Laura and Dale ("The Stenographer") for the Dinwiddie Team
The Dinwiddie Team
Barrett Chappell
Susan Chappell
Papa Joe Covolo
Dale Field
Donnie Field
Dr. George Eapen
Jessica Earhart
Yolanda Mohammed
Laura Smith
Crystal Spiers
Neal Spiers
Sean Wade
Peggy Watson
Julie Williams
Shirley Woodlief
