The past two days we have seen approximately sixty patients per day in our medical clinics. Many people suffer from respiratory aliments because they cook over an open fire in the same room that they live in. They use green wood and the smoke makes them prone to bronchitis and asthma.
Today we examined a 16 year old married girl who was pregnant with her first child. We were concerned during our exam for the baby's health and were able to purchase an urgent ultrasound for her. Unfortunately the ultrasound was not good and she was sent to hospital. We were touched by the support and concern that was shown to her by members of the small close knit community. We have also been making daily home visits to the child with the burn we mentioned in the last entry. He is doing much better and should have minimal scaring. While we were there a mother brought her four month old to us. He was a very sick little baby, his right eye was swollen shut with a severe infection and you could hear him wheeze with every strained breath suffering from a severe respiratory infection. With no medical care he may have died and would have likely lost his sight in the affected eye. Fortunately we were returning from clinic and our trunk was packed with medications and supplies and we were able to start him on antibiotics immediately. We will be returning to check on him tomorrow to monitor his condition. It was a busy and eventful day made longer by running out of gas on the way home. Could someone send a gas card to Dream Agent Laurie!!
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