Day 1 and 2: Rest and work

Saturday, the first day in Quito, is generally a day of rest and acclimatizing to the high altitude. Some team members choose to sightsee areas in and around Quito. Others choose to stay put in the hotel and catch up with rest. I chose the latter. It's been a hectic week. Sleep came easy.

Saturday is also the day when the two teams overlap and since this is the only full day when all 97 of us are together, a special dinner was arranged to say good bye to team one and welcome to team two. It's all about good food, entertainment and yes, on or two speeches. There was genuine camaraderie among the team members and everyone was in high spirits.

A glimpse of Ecuadorian culture, food, music and dance.

Clinic Day:

Sunday is when the real work begins. We headed to Hospital Padre Carolo Un Canto A La Vida at 8:00 am to set up a clinic area where we will see throngs of hopeful patients throughout the day. As we walked into the hospital, we were met with applause from the waiting patients. This happens every year and it just makes me tear up every time. 

Clinic Day: All set for the patients.

Registering patients before they are assessed by the doctors and nurses.

A good number of the patients are here for a follow up appointment. They would have had surgery on a past mission and are back for assessment on how well they are doing. 

My roommate Erica, (a Ward Nurse on the team) told me of a patient who had a bi-lateral hip replacement last year. Maria had travelled from a village hundreds of miles away from Quito with her husband for the surgery. She was the primary breadwinner of her family, earning only 1-2 dollars a day, until the pain in her hips made it impossible for her to continue working. CAMTA was her last hope. A very quiet and stoic lady, you would be hard pressed to coax a word or smile from her. Her dotting husband did all the talking. Needless to say, the surgery was successful and she came back this year for a follow up appointment. Erica says that it was like meeting a different person. She was walking pain free, all smiles and talk and hugs. At one point she broke down and started crying about how much her life had changed since the surgery and how grateful she was. "She wasn't the only one crying," Erica says. There was a tear fest in that room.

Many of the patients are here for the first time. They are assessed by Orthopeadic surgeons who determine whether their case is operable. This is based on factors like  the risk levels, whether we have the right tools, their general health, etc. Some are turned away and it is heartbreaking for the team to watch them walk away disappointed. 

Meet Alfredo. A shy but brave four year old boy that will be getting surgery 

to correct his club foot. 

For those that will be having surgery, a slate (a kind of schedule) is created to outline who will be getting what surgery on which day. It's fascinating to watch the surgeons, GP's, anesthetists and head nurses debate which patients go first on Monday. Each of them have a point of view driven by their role and they all have to be on the same page. 

My role on clinic day was two fold: helping the information technicians prepare new patient charts and checking them for completeness when they come back after assessment.

We finally head back to the hotel at 5:30. It's been a long, exhausting but rewarding day. My pillow is all I can think of.

Sandra

Fun Fact: In Ecuador it is mandatory that ALL eligible voters 16 years old and above go to the polls and vote. Three days before the election it is illegal to sell or buy alcohol of any kind.  And, on voting day (Sunday) it is prohibited from holding any public meetings, including church services.

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