Bonjou Mezanmi!My last newsletter was a brief update just to let you know that I'm alive and well. This time I wanted to give you snippets of what I've been doing in Haiti for the past 6 weeks. Throughout this newsletter, you'll see words with web links, which will take you to corresponding entries on my blog.
First of all, I wanted to let you know that my return flight has changed from August 9 to July 31. The reason is that my older brother Sundo is getting married on August 2. So now I only have a few more days before I go home! Seems like my plans always change on the fly (last year I decided to stay an extra month in P-au-P). I can't believe my time here is almost over!
Secondly, I wanted to put a word out that the clinic here needs an X-ray machine to replace a broken one. Please let me know if you know anyone who needs to get rid of an old machine to replace it with a new digital one or for whatever reason. The one we have here has been broken for a while, and it would help so many people if we had a working X-ray machine.
Anyway, here are some of the things that I've seen and done so far. During the first week at the clinic, I learned how to do a breast exam, observed a vaginal exam, saw a patient with trigger finger and a very sick and hyperventilating baby. The fist weekend I went to the beach in Labadee with a bunch of people from different mission teams.
Second week, I saw several HIV patients including an old lady with an acute onset of dementia, practiced drawing blood, saw a fetus using an ultrasound, gave babies vaccine shots, and heard all sorts of lung sounds at the tuberculosis clinic. That weekend we went on a mobile clinic up in the mountains, where I got to draw lots of blood, and we brought down a girl with a machete wound to take care at the clinic.
Third week, I did some manual labor at the new seminary construction site, helped reduce a fever on a baby, saw tendons on a torn hand from a car accident, pulled a birthday prank on Vicki (another short-term missionary), and took lots of blood pressures for the hypertension/diabetes clinic. That weekend we went to Labadee again, and I went kayaking and snorkeling (for the first time). On Sunday, we saw a girl who had sickle cell crisis.
Fourth week started with the most emotionally draining day, where I saw a 6-year old boy with respiratory emergency, who turned out to have diphtheria, and two little orphaned girls who were tested positive for HIV. The boy ended up dying at a hospital, so I lost my first patient. We had saved the boy's life by bringing him to the hospital and having him intubated and put on antitoxin, but next day during the night he woke up and took out the tube on his own, and died. It was such a tragedy. Also that week, I dealt with many impatient (and non-patient) parents at the well baby clinic, got to eat a cheeseburger, and took a tour of downtown Cap-Haitien.
During the fifth week I saw a Haitian nurse open a closed hymen on a 7-month old girl, helped treat a delirious patient with fever caused by tuberculosis, learned how to take out stitches, sent Laura (another short-term missionary) on a birthday treasure hunt, rode a motorcycle, tried to resuscitate a 6-month old boy who ended up dying, learned how to start an IV, and learned how to properly clean wounds and change dressings from a Canadian nurse. On Saturday I went to see the Citadel, which was quite amazing.
This past week, I learned how to do vaginal smears, saw a lesion on a cervix through a speculum, helped take a boy with a broken femur to a hospital, distributed some food for tuberculosis patients, and attended a funeral of one of the Haitian doctor's mother-in-law. On Wednesday, there was a violent and insane woman, so we had to drag her out of the clinic.
I haven't written about the last couple weeks yet, but you can see some pictures on my web album. I will continue to write about my experiences after I come back home to the States.
Since all the other short-term medical missionaries have left as of last Saturday, it's been pretty quiet (and a bit lonely especially during breakfast and lunch), but I'm still enjoying my time here. Of all the mission trips that I've been on, I've seen and learned the most through my trip to Haiti this summer. I want to thank all the short-term and long-term missionaries that I've met here for making this such an enjoyable experience, all my friends and family for sponsoring me and for praying for me, and God for allowing all this to happen and for making this undoubtedly the best journey and the best summer ever.
Thanks for reading and for all the responses and comments on the blog!
Bondye beni w,
SunMin Kim
Blog: http://zanmihaiti.blogspot.com
Photos: http://picasaweb.google.com/doxadeo/Haiti2008
PS. Thanks to Laura, I now have a number you can call or send text messages to: +509-3727-7275 (but it's only good until July 31)
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