A Weekend in Grand Goave

Time for some factual information….

COMPOUND:  Beautiful park-like setting, with mango, banana and palm trees, just loaded with fruit, closed gated with 24 hour guards at gates. On the premise we are accommodated in a beautiful old-colonial –style house, sleeping in air conditioned rooms, mosquito nets around beds/ sleeping on the roof at night in the open skies, with the mosquito nets. Dawn is officially pronounced by the roosters and devotions and coffee on the roof around 6 30 in the morning.  Awesome breakfasts and meals, Haitian and North American style, 3 times a day.

BUILDINGS:  A Technical school is in the process of being rebuild on the premise for education of students,  also use the assistance of Canadian engineers. The days are filled with the cheerful  voices of children attending  a kindergarten on the same premise. The clinic where we are currently delivering services are also on this premise.

CLINIC: Consists of 8 rooms, inclusive of an administration or file room, pharmacy (tiny), 5 examination rooms, weight and eye testing room.  The clinic days start off at 7:30 till 12:00 – lunchtime and then 12:30 till everybody has been seen.  The clinic is staffed at this time by our group of medical professionals, Haitians are highly involved in delivering the services with us, and we each have an interpreter to assist us in communications with the Haitian patients. The Haitians are great, humble, friendly people, well dressed for their clinic visit, filled with gratitude for the services delivered at this clinic.

MEDICAL CONDITIONS:  Interesting pathologies presented themselves so far while we were here:

Suturing wounds, Upper eyelid cancer, small finger amputations, Tongue cancer, Ear washes, and severely dehydrated babies supported by IV fluids, Trigger finger cortisone injection.

Common medical conditions:  Diabetus mellitus, Malignant Hypertension, Acid reflux and Asthma, Gastro-Enteritis, Ear infections, Pregnancies, Eye pathologies.

CHURCH:  Church services on several weekdays and on Sunday morning are held, attended by well-dressed families and their children with motivational services and great music, and an interpreter to take us through the services. 

Walking in the Community

First Glimpse of the Beach

WEEKEND:  Some members of the group visited the Cross Roads Market yesterday, visited some of the Haitian families at their homes and engaged in a beach visit, swimming in the great, warm Caribbean water.. so nice!

We had an official visit by 2 Officials from the Canadian Embassy yesterday, who were concerned with  the safety of the Canadian workers in Haiti at this time. Great visit, so highly appreciated!

SUNDAY……

Today (Sunday) was an easy day, after church and lunch, some lighter duties and organizational aspects were addressed by some of our hard working members at the clinic. Dave, our pharmacist, let us help him  put medicine in bags for monthly applications!



The SOMA Staff Goat

Elva & Sharon's Mom's Goat

This stubborn goat wouldn't walk!

 

 

 

Then it was goat-time…..some of our friends and families and hardworking staff members in Canada raised funds in order to buy goats (CAD100 for a female goat, CAD80 for  a male goat and about CAD25 for a chicken…..bought and brought to the compound and a selecting of members of this society each received one of these animals, a formal ceremony to hand these animals over to the deserving family with the help of an interpreter……moving to say the least…off they go in gratitude for the riches that has been added to raise a family with better nutrition.

Dining Out on the Town in Grand Goave...this evening 31 of us from Haiti ARISE went out on the town for dinner at Mondy's restaurant.  The menu options were goat or chicken, served along side was super spice coleslaw, pasta salad, plantain and a slice of tomatoe.  Everyone agreed it was delicious.  Because of the unrest in town we all got a ride home, either in the van or the back of the HINO dump truck.

GOOD BYE FOR NOW TO ALL OUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS
Dr. Braam and Elma