San Ramon, San Francisco de Ojuera Santa Barbara
“Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not be bent out of shape”
The team’s day was supposed to start at 6:30 this morning, but there was a problem with the radiator on the bus and our start was delayed a couple few hours. Eventually we made it to our community, San Ramon. This community has 40 families in 38 houses, with 31 having outside latrines. Education is from kindergarten to ninth grade, with a total of 52 students registered. There is water access through a fountain, which is 2.5 kilometers away. Malnutrition and parasite infections take a toll on the children. Due to the wood stoves inside the homes, respiratory diseases, stomach ailments and skin conditions are prevalent. The incidence of teenage pregnancy is 40 percent. The main crops are beans, corn, coffee, plantains and some vegetables and fruits.
Dentist Dr. Arita commented that the community "had far more acceptable oral conditions." The major problem was little children with their primary teeth. Mary commented that Dr. Arita is a “rock star” and "super cool," as he pulled
teeth one after another.
The pharmacy was steady. Tariq noticed that it wasn’t as busy today, and he and Tonia were the only people manning the pharmacy. Tariq was also in control of making sure the lights stayed on inside the medical clinic. Something was rigged up for lights in the clinic. Tonia said they did an awesome job. She was called on to get some clothes for a little girl. When the little girl looked in her bag, she had the biggest smile on her face, and waved to Tonia as she left. She also spent time holding a baby who wet her clothes; the baby left with a new diaper and shorts.
Translator Carlos considered today a normal day, until Rosa, a little daddy's girl (one of eight children), came to their station. Rosa had a cyst in her knee, Sharon and Jessica were able to excise and drain it with good results. Jessica was amazed at how stoic these children are, because Rosa never flinched during the procedure. When it was all said and done she hopped up and went on her way.
Dale had the oldest patient of the day – a 90-year-old man who had suffered a stroke a month ago and still had weakness on his left side. He wanted to know how he could fix it and was distraught when Dale explained to him that he will not be the same as he was before.
Yolanda had two girls who were not able to speak. One was 2.5 years old and the other was 7. They were both referred for further evaluation. She gave a lot of education about the impact of drinking only soda and encouraged the children to clean their teeth twice a day.
Several times today, the line of people waiting to be seen in the eye clinic wrapped around the building. Despite the fact that the clinic was very busy, everything went well. Teresa had help from a little girl who brought her a pair of scissors. This girl stayed close by to her, and Teresa was able to paint her nails and blow bubbles with her. She gave away her cross.
Mallory saw two precious little girls who started the day by giving her hugs. They stayed with her and even brought the team bananas at lunch. They were a joyous presence, and Mallory gave the two sisters crosses. Jason was in charge of fluoride and wasn’t as busy today, but enjoyed watching the children playing close by.
Nury thanked everyone for their patience this morning with the bus complication. The road to the village was in better condition than anticipated. The community recently received electricity and two men from the power company were present. They were helpful at the end of the day and were educated about the mission and work of FOBF. The community was very grateful that we returned to treat them
At the end of the night, Nury took the opportunity to give us the history of Honduras, and ended with delicious bananas fosters for desert
