Routine is Good. And Excellence is Refreshing

Today, Saturday, our group traveled to Guiamaca, a large town about two hours from Cofradia, our home base.  We left this morning in the bus about 7:15, and arrived shortly after 9:00 to begin set up at a primary school.  Set up went quickly thanks to the forethought and pre-planning of the church hosting the clinic, Casa de Restauración Familiar.

Church members and young people from all over town came to the school yesterday to sweep out classrooms, label rooms for various clinic areas, and rope off areas of the landscape in hopes of protecting it from the crowd of medical patients.  All we had to do was organize our supplies and we were ready to begin.

The first stop for patients was to come through the intake area.  We gathered their name, age, and general information about why they were at the clinic.  All information was recorded on a white bag, and this bag holds all the vitamins and medications given to each patient.  Because this process requires fluent Spanish speakers, this task is often performed by local volunteers.  Today was no exception.  Several church volunteers worked through the day to register 400 patients.

After registering, each patient received de-worming medication and vitamins.  Then, they waited in line to see one of the medical providers.  A team member checked their blood-pressure before they spoke with a provider about their medical concerns.  The church provided a host of translators who helped in every area of the clinic. 

Some patients chose to go to the dentist.  Some waited for eye-glasses.  Most came through the pharmacy to receive prescribed medicine.  And, all heads of households went home with bags of beans, rice and corn.  Many of the children headed home covered in stickers, hand-stamps, and love.

The church provided a hot lunch of rice, stewed chicken, avocado, and corn tortillas for all the team members.  The meal was delicious. The cold water and Pepsis were very refreshing on this very warm day.  They made sure coffee was available all day for those that needed the extra caffeine.

In all, the church furnished more than 15 volunteers who worked with us all day long.  Many were still cleaning up when we left. In each case, they worked with excellence and as unto the Lord.

My best description of today’s clinic is that it was, well…routine.  Everything went smoothly and efficiently.  That is exactly what we prayed for.  We longed for all patients to feel God’s love through our care, and that we would be able to care for all who came our way.  So, thank you for praying that prayer with us.

Two more items of prayer, please.  Two team members are still waiting for their luggage to be delivered.  One is a nurse practitioner, and her suitcase contains all her medical gear.  Though it was supposed to arrive today, we’ve been told it will be here tomorrow.  Join us in praying they will be reunited with their luggage, and all their belongings will be in good shape.

Finally, as I write this, we on our way back to Cofradia. We saw so many patients today, we didn’t get away from Guaimaca until almost 7:00.  That is going make for late night, tonight, after a long day. Thank you for asking God to bless us with a restful, refreshing night’s sleep.  We need it.  Until tomorrow. Hasta mañana!