On Friday we went to a barrio, one of the suburbs of La Romana. Some of the barrios are nice, some are more like projects. We went to the latter. We treated 115 patients on Friday. It was a busy, yet more organized clinic because we had more space to work than on any of the previous bateys. This photos is of Hermani, a 16 year old mom whose 7 month old baby weighed only 6 lbs. Hermani clearly loved her boy, Juley, and wanted to take care of him. She had no food, milk, diapers or clothes for him or herself. The nurse practitioner who worked with us, Kristy Engle, took Hermani and her baby to the emergency room of the Good Samaritan. His veins were too small to hydrate him intravenously, so they were trying oral rehydration with a syringe. The process of hydrating him was made more complicated by the fact that the boy had thrush throughout his mouth and throat. We should get an update on his status before we leave. Our team has made a donation to the the hospital's indigent care fund to cover the bulk of the boy's medical costs.
We leave in a matter of hours, and while I am eager to get home to see my family, friends, and puppy, my brain is bustling with ideas for what more we can do. I cannot wait to see how the Watkinson community takes our experience and builds upon it, because I know they will. That is the kind of school I work for, of which I am very proud. See you all very soon!
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