This summer has been quite the experience, everyday in Honduras has the possibilty of being a real adventure. I have seen all sorts of things. One of the interesting parts of being around the clinic is seeing how inuries of past become big problems when they are not treated properly. The lady at the medical brigade in Duyure is a good example of this, she had a slightly displaced fracture of her wrist. It had been broken for two weeks already when she was seen. There was nothing that could be done for her, except make a homemade sling and cast to support her arm, and give her some pain medicine. It the U.S. that patient would have probably been seen the day it happened and gone in to surgery and had it repaired, and would have gone on to a full recovery. Here in Honduras, she will probably never have full use of her arm again, because the bones will not heal aligned in the proper orientation. There are numerous other examples of cases like this from machete wounds to burns that make awful scars because the best treatment known is not available to them. These are the cases that motivate me to want to be involved in medical missions.
Drew