June 2, 2011
The start of the great flood...
The rainstorm started on Wednesday, right in the middle of our soccer game. We thought it would end by the next day, but we were so wrong. We awoke to the trickling of rain in the middle of the night, which on a tin roof sounds something like someone throwing nails against a metal sheet...constantly. The rain continued for what seemed like the next 10 years. In fact, it is still raining as we write this. We were unable to go the clinic because the entire region closes down when it pours cats and dogs. The morning was spent studying diligently while being serenaded by the deafening sound of rain on the tin roof. By lunch time, we were all burnt out from studying and decided to play games and go for a walk in the rain. We met one young man who pointed at Tricia and said she was beautiful and then preceded to congratulate her on her beauty. The rest of us stood in her shadows. After our walk, we hung out at the house and got to talk with Likowki, one of the trainees in the prosthetics shop. We learned tons about Haitian culture, and Haitian perceptions about the United States. Some were correct, and some were "slightly" exaggerated. For example, it is common Haitian belief that in America, money is everywhere, everyone is rich, and no one has to work hard. We were told that there are places to go in the states where you can pay 2-3 dollars, stay for 24 hours, and eat as much as you want! (If anyone knows of one of these places, let us know!) They also are amazed that we can get water for free from water fountains, or in restaurants, or that the government helps you get food if your family is poor. Likowki has never seen snow, so we showed him pictures of the snowstorm from this winter, and he was amazed! Then we started talking about American sports, and realized how ridiculous some sports (especially football) sound to someone who has never heard of the sport. (So every time they hit someone they get a red card?? No, hitting people is kind of the point...) Snow skiing, water skiing, hockey, etc. Then, he gave us a lesson in Kreyol, and explained a lot about Haitian culture. It was amazing to hear his story. Some interesting things we learned: It is considered bad form to call your family poor, because if you are Christian, God provides for you, and calling yourself poor would be ungrateful. Industry is rare here, so jobs are extremely hard to find and hold onto. We learned about Haitian politics, schools, and the aftermath of the earthquake. Other interesting trivia: Haitian people fear frogs in the way that Americans fear spiders. In the evening we were able to watch Marvin, the prosthetist, make a lovely new prosthesis for a young boy who had broken 4 previous prosthesis. This one was made of titanium instead of plastic, and will hopefully hold up better for him. We ended the night with tons of laughter and smiles while playing numerous card games! Refer to the pictures below...
June 3, 2011
Our day began with...can you guess? Yes, rain!! (Supposedly the forecast is rain until next Wednesday, and then it will start up again on Thursday!) Yet, we were all antsy and determined to go to the clinic even if no one would show up. Surprisingly, the day was quite busy with treating all of our inpatients and even having 2 new evaluations! One of them was a woman who had a hysterectomy and the day after had a stroke. That was one month ago and today was the first day she was evaluated for physical therapy. She has very poor sitting balance, pushes towards the left, and was very distracted. Working with a patient who has had a stroke who has cognitive deficits is difficult, especially when you add a language barrier. The other patient was a man who had epilepsy and fell into a fire and sustained 2nd degree burns over his left leg, left arm, and right and left hand. His wounds did not heal and he had to be surgically debrided this week. When we saw him, he was in so much pain, he could barely lift his hands up or even move. We are treating a total of two patients who have sustained 2nd degree burns and it's heartbreaking at times to make them move because it causes them more pain. Yet, we know if they do not move, it will just get worse and their pain will increase. Unfortunately, pain medications are not as readily available as they are back in the states. Sometimes even our translators do not want to see them because seeing them in agony is too much for them. After our morning was finished we headed home to eat lunch. The rain started to pick up and was falling so heavily that we spontaneously decided...to try showering in the rain (If anyone saw us they would've thought Americans sure have peculiar behavior)!! Pictures are below. Afterwards we went with Kelly, another volunteer, to visit a school for women where she teaches English and life skills. The women who run this shop hand-make various goods such as purses, hand embroidered napkins, skirts, aprons, etc. These goods are sold and all the proceeds go to help support their families. They were all beautifully made, and we all bought several things to bring back for our friends or family members. As we headed out of the school, the rain had picked up where the streets looked like overflowing rivers. There were a few slips, but luckily we all made it back to the house alive (but soaked to the bone)!
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| Tricia makes sure everyone flosses before they go to bed to insure healthy gums! (even if they don't want to) |
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| Our hanging dirty/wet clothes are starting to weigh down our mosquito nets! |
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| This is what happens when you are unable to do laundry...clothes pile up, and mosquito nets fall down |
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| We watched Lekowki's team take the win! (He's the "president" of the team) |
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| The workshop where the prosthetics and orthotics are made (in our house in which we are staying in) |
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| Tools and prosthetic knees |
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| feet of all sizes, and titanium for the heavy duty legs. Most are made with the red cross plastic materials. They work for some, but for those who are very active, they may not hold up for long. |
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| These sheets of plastic are heated in an oven, until they are flexible enough to be molded around a socket |
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| Marvin fits a socket around a plaster mold of the patient's residual limb. |
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| The socket is wrapped in plastic, then the vacuum tube conforms the socket to the plaster mold |
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| Marvin then builds up certain areas of the socket with foam to make it more comfortable for the patient |
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| The metal square will be used later to attach to the titanium rod |
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| The black plastic after it has been heated. Marvin drapes it over the socket, then waits for it to cool. |
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| The vacuum system sucks the plastic tightly to the socket to ensure that it is shaped correctly. After the plastic is formed properly, he trims the edges off and smoothes it out |
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| This is the red cross plastic prosthesis, which was not strong enough for this particular patient. |
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| Marvin saws off the long edges |
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| and smoothes it out so it does not touch the patient's skin |
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| Marvin drills holes onto the bottom so the rest of the prosthesis can be attached. |
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| The titanium rod and foot are attached |
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| and then aligned in slight flexion using a laser to make sure everything is at the right angle |
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| Celebrating Lauren's 24th birthday with a cake!! |
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| Enjoying cake and good friends :) |
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| The INTENSE game of spoon begins... |
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| and continues...! |
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| we re-emphaize, INTENSE game of spoons (they're weighted spoons OT's use. A chunk of kara's skin was scooped out with a spoon) |
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| Saw a little friend in the pipes of our house.. |
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| Playing dominos |
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| Did we mention it has been raining for 3 days straight?! Sometimes we are limited to what we can do while being cooped up in the house... |
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| Philostine (our patient with osmotic demylination) is practically taller than Tricia standing on a plinth! Imagine gait training him without a plinth, it was tough! |
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| just a typical day, showering in the rain... |
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| The streets, flooded! |
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| parts were almost knee deep! |
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| Trekking up to the house in the rain...good thing we live on top of a hill! |
