Haiti - Midweek

     Wednesday began very similar to Tuesday: woke, dressed, Lumarc offered us coffee, went to breakfast, met the biomeds upstairs at the hospital. I don’t mean to discount those things at all, but if you've read my previous posts I'll spare you the details. I should mention that one of the first thoughts I had was gratefulness for the many things God has and continues to provide for me.

     The work we had to do seemed easier. I heard back from Kevin, my coworker in Indy, and his advice helped point us in the right direction. Soon we found the problem with the settings on the test that had caused my frustration the day before. We reviewed the PM procedure with the biomeds and had them do most of it with some instruction. One of them doesn’t speak English as well and I had to keep that in mind as I gave him direction. It helped to point to the values in the service manual. Can you imagine having to translate all those numbers?

     Sometime in the morning I received a phone call from the director of clinical engineering at Holy Name Medical Center and provided him with an update. They send supplies and equipment to the hospital. I was pleased to hear they were sending test equipment with the next shipment to keep here and expressed the need for some expensive ventilator batteries that we didn’t have. He seemed like a nice man and had been to Haiti a couple times before.

     Later we came across three ventilators that had different problems and took a while attempting to put one together from the working pieces. I think we came close, but it wouldn’t pass a certain set of tests and we decided to set it aside for tomorrow. David went with one of the biomeds to pick up the last available vent that needed to be tested. It was down the road close where our residence was and I felt a badly for not going with them. And wouldn’t you know it started to rain as they were wheeling it down the main road. That must have been a site! Fortunately, it didn’t rain much and I was able to help get the vent up the stairs. David and I worked our way through all the various tests and finished the day with another operational vent.

     Sister Ann met us soon after we returned to our rooms and asked if we’d like to go with her to see some of the homes that had been built and pass out candy to the kids. We sat in the back of a John Deere utility vehicle and drove past the hospital and through the city of Milot. The driver took some turns through narrow streets and then started up the foothills of the nearby mountain which quickly turned into even narrower dirt roads. One of the other riders pointed out some of the new houses that were built and we could pick them out because of the shiny tin roofs and solid looking walls. At some point the children started chasing our vehicle in their excitement – probably for the candy.

     Once we stopped Sister Ann pointed out a house that was in the process of the being built that only lacked the tin for the roof and the doors. Cautiously, I took some pictures not knowing yet if the people would mind. Sister Ann introduced us to a few families as we walked up and down the cactus lined paths. I felt out of place and didn’t know how to act because I couldn’t communicate in their language and I was in the unfamiliar spotlight of everyone’s attention.

     Some of the candy had been passed out at our various stops but most was given when we returned to the vehicle. Many kinds crowded around and it took some doing to get them to form something like a line. Then we had to keep them out of the line until everyone got some. One of the mother’s helped and when the grocery bag was all empty she asked if she could have the bag. Something we take for granted when we shop and probably throw away was in demand here! David brought some for Sister Ann to use because he remembered this from his last trip here. I wish I would have known. As we returned to the residence, the other guy riding with us explained that it is very hard for most people to find work and he lamented that their government hasn’t done much to help the poor in Haiti. I tried to read when I got back but I couldn’t help thinking about what and who we saw.

     Sister Ann came back by our residence and we talked for a while. This time we talked about different churches and denominations, Ash Wednesday (which was this day), Vudu and the problems with herbal medicine. She said, “sometimes the poor people just go where they can get something to eat” and didn’t always go consistently to one church. There’s a Baptist church across the street and we’ve heard “enthusiastic” preaching and lots of singing - in French of course. David and I helped take a few bags of things for the kids to Sister Ann’s home. The things that the Trimedx Foundation had sent with me included: blankets for newborns, stuffed animals, snacks, toy cars, colorful hair clips, coloring books and crayons. I think they will be much appreciated.

     We talked until it was time for dinner and headed back toward the hospital for the cafeteria. Tonight, it was baked potato slices – almost like chips, flattened bananas that were baked or possibly fried, a hot dog – no bun, something like coleslaw but spicy, and a coke. The spicy coleslaw was good but definitely close to my limit for spicy foods. David and I talked about biking for some of our meal and I found out there were a few years when he really got into it and even biked to and from work. Presently he hopes to quit smoking, start walking more and then start biking again. I hope he does and I tried to encourage him. It was hard to belive the week was already halfway over.