Guatemala 2006 View the Photo Gallery
By Kathleen Walker, MS, RNC
On May 14th eight senior nursing students and two faculty members, Kim Ziegler and Kathleen Walker left Rochester International Airport to fly to Guatemala City. This day was the culmination of on-campus classes, an evening at InterVol to work and pick up donated supplies, several days of Spanish classes, a few team building activities and months of collecting vitamins, toothbrushes and other medications from unsuspecting family, friends, and church members. Other than the seven hour lay over in Dallas and late take off from there, the flight was uneventful, as was customs and immigration – Praise the Lord! |
Monday morning we met our three translators and Joe Walenchiak from John Brown University in Arkansas who helped set up the experience, loaded the top of the van with 24 bags and suitcases (12 of them containing medications and supplies) and set off for Santa Cruz, a small mountain village about a four hour drive from Guatemala City. We again praised the Lord for a safe trip up narrow winding mountain roads, no car sickness episodes and beautiful scenery. That afternoon we set up the clinic in a small two room building, using the porch as our intake station, one room for pharmacy and hanging a sheet to divide the larger room to make two examination rooms. From Tuesday morning until Thursday afternoon at 3:30 we saw, treated and provided medication, toothbrushes and toothpaste to 436 men women and children, 121 of these were seen during a four hour stretch Thursday morning! It was quite a clinic.
| Friday we drove back to the city and that evening went to The Lord’s Kitchen, a soup kitchen that provided a meal for 536 people that evening. We served food, prayed for the people and treated close to 150 of them for medical problems ranging from headaches to broken bones and a probable pneumothorax. We could not give them medication to take out with them so it was a one time shot. (Just how much Amoxil is a safe and effective one time dose for a 15 month old who most likely has pneumonia (at least it sounded like that might be the problem when we listened to his chest)? And don’t forget, you must estimate his weight by lifting him, since there were no scales. Students washed and treated feet that had not seen soap and water for months – or so the odors proclaimed. And they did it with a smile that radiated with Christ’s love. It was a tremendous trip! |
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Guatemala 2005:: View the Photo Gallery
Toothbrushes, Worm Pills, and Answered Prayer
By Kim McGlinchey and Christina Dodd
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One year ago at this time a team of two seniors, five juniors, and two faculty members began preparation for a transcultural nursing elective. At the time plans were being made to travel to Haiti, however the Lord had other plans. Before we knew it, plans had changed and we were making arrangements to travel to Guatemala. Through the support of prayer, plans began to come together quickly, as did the necessary medications, equipment, and health promotional items (such as toothbrushes, and flip flops).May came quickly and we were on our way before we knew it. Our team left the day after graduation, for a long travel to Guatemala City where we spent our first night. |
It was not until the next day that we were able to travel to Santa Cruz a small village in the mountains, approximately a four hour drive from the city.
Our first hours in the village were spent setting up our small clinic, which consisted of a triage area on the porch, two small assessment rooms, and a modified pharmacy. In the equivalent of three days we saw and treated 526 people. We saw mainly women and children, as most of the men were out in the fields working. Some of the common problems that we treated were stomach aches, aches and pains, rashes, cough/cold symptoms, and suspected worm infections. Along with treating these problems,we also gave out vitamins, toothbrushes, and flip flops for health prevention.
After a long week of working in the clinic we traveled back to Guatemala City to work with the street children. We were able to treat minor scraps, and injuries. We were also able to bring the children out to receive some health teaching and to interact with us. While this was a scary experience for us the Lord protected us and taught us a great deal about what these children experience.
As we take time and reflect back on our trip we are very thankful for the power of prayer. The Lord kept us safe, and provided what we needed. We are forever grateful for this experience! |
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