Just To Give You an Idea...

Today is, thankfully, mostly a day of rest here for us at home. Matt is working on some gardening and things around the house, but Heidi is mostly hanging out on the couch waiting to feel better... which gives her some time to catch up on blogging and a couple of other things she's been meaning to do!

There were a couple of follow-up patients from the team scheduled in the hospital clinic today for her to see, which was no big deal. But going down to the outpatient clinic gave us a big reminder of exactly how bad things are here for patients needing routine care here these days. We mentioned before that the outpatient clinics in the state/government hospitals are closed in protest of not being well-equipped by the government. Specifically, what is happening is that the doctors are refusing to work in the clinics until they receive better support, equipment, medication, etc. with which to do so. There are no non-emergent surgeries, no routine prenatal care, and no follow-up or new patient clinic visits for any reason available in any of the state hospitals in the nation as we understand it. (Most cannot afford to go to the private hospitals). There argument is that the government has not kept up its end of the bargain in the "peace accords" that ended the civil war here around 10 years ago. This is a common theme here in Guatemala, and there have been lots of protests involving many different topics over the years since the war. People do not want to go back to war, but also do not want the things they were fighting for to be forgotten.

Anyway, Dra. Karin Garcia Pinzon, who is one of the administrators in the hospital, gave us a copy this morning of the list that the hospital is presenting to the government, which contains all of their requests/demands that they want met before they will work again. Apparently, there is a meeting this weeks in Guatemala City, but if it doesn't go the way the doctors want it to, things could go from bad to worse! There is a possibility that even the Emergency Rooms may shut down in order to "get the government's attention". Can you imagine a countryside without any ERs in this day and time? Many people could die unnecessarily, and there are pretty big moral/ethical implications if it comes to this.

I write all of this "un-fun" stuff here, though, for three reasons. One is to remind our friends and family reading this of just how blessed they are to live in the U.S. The health care system there is not perfect by any means, but you won't be denied care there. In Guatemala, 0.9% of GNP is spent on health care (versus around 12% in the U.S.), and that money is trying to support what essentially boils down to a national health care plan! No wonder the hospitals feel under-supplied. The second reason is to solicit prayer for the Guatemalan government and doctors and, more importantly, the indigenous people here who may suffer greatly from this conflict. Pray that peace in this nation will continue and that the leaders will continue to work towards improving the lives of their people here. Thirdly, if you happen to have access to any of the equipment they need and want to donate it, please let us know and we can make that happen! It's sad to think that some of this stuff is literally laying around in American hospitals in closets, unused...

I wanted to just put the list in as a "link" in order not to overwhelm and bore you entirely, but I couldn't figure out how to do that, so here it is:

Immediate Needs (within 15 days)

Enough scrubs and bedding (sheets) for all of the medical personnel and beds/cribs in the hospital
Purchase and improvement of disposable equipment and medications, with at least 6 months of supplies
3 Ventilators (2 adult, 1 pediatric)
3 EKG machines (1 for outpatient clinic/surgical work-up, 1 for ER, and 1 for the wards)
4 Neonatal Monitors
2 Pediatric Monitors with Defibrillators (1 for wards, 1 for ER)
4 Fetal Dopplers (ER, Clinic, Labor & Delivery, inpatient)
Long gloves (with coverage up to past wrist) for extraction of placentas

Short-Term Needs (within 1 month)

Disposable impermeable surgical gowns, with masks and eye protection
10 IV infusion pumps (5 adult, 5 pediatric) with the appropriate cassettes
10 Pulse-Oximeter monitors
1 Cardiac Monitor
2 Capnography devices (adult and pediatric)
5 Blood Pressure cuffs on pedestals (rolling/portable, but a little more difficult for people to “walk out” with, I think…)
1 Peak Flow monitor
6 Ambu bags with respective reservoir for adults
8 Water-seals for adults (I assume for chest tubes…)
7 complete laringoscopy sets (4 adult and 3 pediatric)
Implementation of a post-op recovery room (equipment and personnel)

Medium-Terms Needs (within 3 months)

Pediatric operating room table/bed with heated mattress
4 heating lamps
4 water-seals for pediatric patients
4 water-seals for neonates
2 portable pulse oximeters
2 neonatal cribs with phototherapy, oxygen, and suction capabilities
4 incubators with controls
2 kinesiotherapy devices for patients on vents
20 hospital beds (10 pediatric, 10 neonatal)
6 neonatal ambu bags with respective reservoir
7 portable oto/opthalmoscopes and 12 wall-mounted
10 adult blood pressure cuffs
4 pediatric blood pressure cuffs
10 pediatric stethoscopes
5 heat lamps for episiotomies (I assume lights for episiotomy repair…)
2 portable oxygen tanks
4 respiratory suction devices
5 nebulizers
10 complete Pomeroy sets (for doing tubal ligations in the OR)
10 pairs of asbestos gloves (for handling hot things out of the autoclave, I assume… Not something that can be bought in the US, of course, but if anyone knows what they’re using for that purpose there, we’d love the information…)
1 colposcope with ?double vision and conization
5 kevorkian biopsy forceps for cervical biopsies
4 uterine immobilizers (?I think they mean tenaculums…)
5 Novack canulas for endometrial biopsies
6 fetoscopes
2 electrocautery devices

Longer-term Needs: (within 6 months)

2 portable X-Ray machines, one with fluoroscopy for use in the OR and the other for ICU
1 orthopedic operating table/bed
1 gynecology operating table/bed with padded stirrups
4 intermittent suction devices
8 full sets of water-seals
1 rectosigmoidoscope
1 endoscope
1 gastroscope
OR/Surgical instruments: pliers/forceps, scissors, retractors, yigli saws 2.5 and 3.5 mm screwdrivers, a few other things I can’t translate…

Thanks for your time, and for your prayer's for these people. Have a great day, and don't forget to be grateful for what we all have!

God bless you...