Thursday, January 28, 9:39 p.m. Haitian time -
Our first day out in the field is over! We split into several smaller groups today:
1) The anesthesia group went to the General Hospital and worked in the OR with several teams from other countries.
2) A group of internists went to a clinic across the street from Adventist Hospital and saw about 170 patients.
3) A group went to the refugee camp and saw about 250 patients. Most of what we treated were infections, minor fractures and abdominal pain – mostly from people who have had minimal water and food for several days.
To get to our spot in the refugee camp, we had to cross the city. The damage from the earthquake (or as the Haitians call it “the event”) is truly astounding. We passed the school where 400 children died – three floors simply pancaked onto each other. We saw block after block of collapsed buildings, houses, shopping centers, supermarkets, etc. Every park is occupied by people living in makeshift tents made of sheets – we may be going to one of these the day after tomorrow. The devastation is simply catastrophic and very sobering.
Tomorrow, we will be going to similar sites – and our orthopedic and vascular teams will be splitting up to operate.
Overall, it was a challenging but rewarding day. More to follow…
Jeff
Haitian children
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