I made it in one piece to this funny little island in the Caribbean I'll call home for the next month. A man named Mr. Dee picked me up at the airport in his red pick up truck which is known all around the island as he stops for everyone, letting them jump in the bed of the truck for rides around town. Town, I suppose, is Coxen Hole- where the local public hospital (which is like a dungeon and looks a little scary) is located, along with a bunch of local stuff and a big grocery store called Eldon's. We went straight to the store from the airport which was tough not knowing what would be waiting for me at the beach house, but I figured I'd just be safe and get everything I might need.
To my great surprise upon walking into the grocery store- I could have been in America. Almond milk, JIF peanut butter, gluten free crackers, organic everything options... I mean, there's pretty much nothing I can't get here which is crazy to me.
I thought I was coming to the developing world.
I dyed my hair brown expecting to have too much unwanted attention from locals.
This was way off.
I'm in a full on Western world.
Not what I was expecting.
We arrived at the beach house and none of my three roommates were home, which gave me an opportunity to decompress, light a candle, do some yoga, and cook myself some veggies.
Around 8pm, like a tornado, came a blur of drunkenness- a mad Canadian pharmacist who's last night it was and she was taking it to the next level. She could barely stand up straight and the other girls, my roommates Rosanna - a beautiful young Irish doctor, and Bethany, a pharmacy student from Ohio were playing the role of the bumpers in a bowling alley, trying to keep her somewhat contained (a basically impossible job.) Another friend, a nutritionist from London named Shey was there too and we all hung out after the hammered Canadian passed out, until I couldn't keep my eyes open and I went to sleep on my pillow that i had sprayed with Carlos's cologne like such a dork but am so glad I did.
I used to spray my dad's cologne when he was gone on long trips singing abroad. Smell is such a powerful sense.
I woke up with the beautiful sunrise and the familiar smell of island trash fire. I know that sounds like not a nice smell of you don't know it, but I do. It pulls me back to Indo and makes me ache for my friends and family out there who feel so far away after 2 years apart.
I had an absolutely incredible day at the clinic.
I oriented in the morning and then went home until my afternoon shift.
mr. Dee gave me a little tour of the island in his red truck so I could get my bearings...
And suddenly it was 1 so My roommate and I walked to the clinic which is just up a dirt road in Sandy Bay.
Dr Jaylene- a beautiful Honduran M.D. pulled me out of my scheduled triage rotation and in with her to meet with patients in Spanish all day. It was incredible for me. I was understanding about 70% of everything happening but Dr Jaylene was interpreting for me anyway. She spoke slow and deliberately not just for my benefit but to hammer home what she was saying to the patients.
"Por qué no viniste antes?! Usted está enfermo! No hay dinero? Esta clínica es gratis para usted si no puede pagar! GRATIS! Eso no es excusa. Se debe tener cuidado de su salud! Es por eso que estamos aquí !!"
She gently but firmly laid down the lay with the patients telling patients with high blood pressure why they could die if they didn't take their meds... Telling mothers with children who's mouths were abcessed and rotten that it was the mother's fault she didn't brush her kids teeth and the repercussions of that. We had patient after patient with different ailments and problems and life stories...
We were on the far end of a room separated from Dr. Rosanna and her patients by a curtain. The pharmacy is a little room/closet where everyone shuffles sideways to sort medication all of which goes to the patients for free.
Suddenly it was 6 and the clinic was closed but I didn't want it to end.
Walking home I was buzzing and Rosanna (who said she was not used to working with such enthusiasm) asked me if I'd ever worked with a G.P. Before and I realized that I hadn't. This was brand new to me... And I loved it.
More than any other specialty or medical situation I'd been in, general practice has been my favorite already. I loved the clinical setting too.
Everything is so difficult in the basic, humble clinic though compared to the billion dollar hospital where my internship in San Diego is.
It's a phenomenal operation and incredible service to the community. I can't imagine what it was like 14 years ago before Miss Peggy opened the clinic.
Some of the other volunteers were at the house when we got home and were going out on the town in West End but I stayed behind and studied Spanish with Dr. Rosanna. We are about at the same level of Spanish and she's brilliant and wonderful and definitely my favorite person I've met.
We fell asleep late.
I woke up to an empty house as Bethany was working the early shift and Rosanna was tutoring English to kids at a local school. (I start on Thursday).
I practiced yoga on my beloved wooden floor overlooking paradise, when some of the volunteers- shay and two pharmacy guys came and got me to go to West Bay to snorkel.
So beautiful!
We took a taxi up and over the winding hills to West End and then a water taxi in to the bay where the fancy resorts are and the most beautiful reef I'd ever seen.
I have no photos but this is Shay on the water taxi leaving West Bay's crystal waters.
On the way back through West End I was told I could scuba dive for a major discount due to my volunteership which made me giddy!!! I can't wait to dive!!! And I am considering doing an advanced course while the clinic is closed over Christmas and New Years.
I made it back to Sandy Bay just in time to shower and head to work at the clinic. I spent the entire day triaging (which was what I was supposed to do the first day but there were plenty of people there to help so I ended up shadowing Dr. Jaylene.)
Triage is taking vital signs, patient history, and making sure that nobody needs to jump the line. A few patients did of course- super high BP or blood sugar, one baby with a high fever and a girl with very very love BP that we had to hang an IV bag for immediately. It was much more high energy than my previous day but so fun for me to practice my Spanish. Probably 80% of the patients didn't speak a word of English so I was left to translate and communicate on my own. In just a few days my Spanish has improved exponentially.
Rosanna and I came home from work to a big potluck dinner that Miss Peggy planned for all the volunteers at our house. We didn't have time to cook so we went down the street to get some rice cooked for us by Miss Elizabeth who has a little restaurant thing- in Indo we'd call it a warung.
Everyone left but Dr. Victoria, a Russian internist who is very interesting and actually lives and works here full time as staff, and Erin a nurse who lives here for a year and hasn't been working at the clinic this week because her family is visiting.
We stayed up late talking again until it was Rosanna and I in our same spots as the previous night talking about medicine and travel and all the synchronicities and coincidences that had brought our paths to cross so many times before.
We went to bed at 1am still talking and I woke up to the sound of steady rain on corrugated tin roofs and birds squealing in joy as the water streamed down through the trees.
I love the rainy season in the tropics... I always want to capture the sheets of rain and the way it hangs off of Palm fronds but I'm yet to photograph it.
Today is another day at the clinic probably triaging... But who knows?
It is a beautiful rainy day and I'm just so grateful to be here.
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