Closing the Brigade - Day 5

Pharmacy Team

I have had the privilege of spending each day of the brigade with Dr. Louisa, the head pharmacist. She is a Honduran, and has been gracious in answering many of my questions about the culture and "norms" here as we have served the people of Los Animas. I would guess that she is in her mid/late 20s, but here 50 is considered elderly, so...

Coconut break

Here are a few of the observations she shared during our three days together. Some people walk 10K (or 6+ miles to see the doctor during the brigade. The people that visited us in Los Animas are not among the most needy. When I asked her about that statement, she said, "Look how they are all wearing shoes."

A few other 'fun facts' to round out our day:

Our security team

Animals everywhere

-Honduran drivers drive where the road is smooth, not according to traffic rules. This means at any moment, both directions of traffic may be on either side of the road.

-A baby burro is called a burrito.

-If you are a male student, asking a male patient if he is 'embarasada' (pregnant) will get a solid round of laughter. After understanding your mistake, stating 'estoy embarasada' (I am pregnant) to the next patient, a teenage girl, ensures you will NEVER hear the end of it.

-I saw my first smoker today. Maybe the economy impacts that habit. One of the staff team shared that many families live on $10/month.

A classroom that was used to see patients

Our own running of the bulls

Overall, we saw 583 patients in 3 days. This was with 3 medical doctors, 1 dentist, 1 pharmacist, 26 brigaders, several staff/security and 15 community volunteers.

Tonite closed out with an overview of what we are doing tomorrow. We are doing a pilot of an Architecture Brigade. When that was fully explained it sounded like full-on construction. Half the group looked ready to run for the hills. It got real quiet and then one student raised his hand. "We have a pregnant group member, will there be something for HIM to do on site tomorrow?" I think it eased some worry.

Today two members of the group thanked me for coming. It was an unexpected kindness. They are all tired and starting to argue about little things. Yup - exhausted, tired and crabby. Sounds like it is almost time to come home.