End of Week Two in Haiti
Monday, February 15, 2010 at 12:21PM I feel like I'm sitting in the lap of luxury. Miguel, a missionary trauma counselor, needed to try and restore his computer to functionality, so several of us came downtown the Le Plaza Hotel. Jeremy is lending me his computer while he and Christian and Fabiola are with a pastor looking at a new site for a clinic this week. This hotel is one of three hotels still functioning in the city of 4+ million people. All of the media crews stay here, as well as the IMC (International Medical Corps) medical teams who are working in the general hospital. (Hopital l'Universite d'Etate d'Haiti -HUEH). There is free wifi here at the hotel, so I've finally had a chance to look at the blog and read all of your updates.
I just ran into Yvetot, a local producer for CNN, here at the hotel. He recognized me from when they were filming at the Emergency Department on Saturday. They were filming the night shift at the HUEH were Jeremy, Christian, Franckey (Interpreter), Fabiola and I had pitched in to help over the weekend. They ended up filming me while I was working and he showed me where to find it online just now. He's sitting next to me working on his computer and showed me where the clip was on CNN's website. http://cnn.com/video/?/video/world/2010/02/14/mckenzie.haiti.night.shift.cnn See, I really am here. :)
Saturday we worked in the ED for a 10 hour shift. All but the last 2.5hours were in the shade of a tree and a building, seeing patients as they sat on a hospital bed between the brick buildings and the functioning tent hosptial. Most of our patients were the "Walk in clinic" type of patients, clearing the ED for the real urgent cases and the ED doctors. The last 2.5hours of the shift we worked with alone Dr. Eugene, from IMC. I guess that time period is usually a gap in medical coverage with the changing of shifts, so we were really able to help out a lot. I was able to diagnoseand treat three notably ill people with malaria. It was great to have a rapid blood test to be able to use for the malaria... thus avoiding the time delay of sending a blood smear to the lab. Three out of the four cases I tested were positive.
Another 20 year old young man for whom I took over care at the change of shift had an out of control case of diabetes. Apparently he was diagnosed with his diabetes a few years ago. There had been a big gap in his insulin due to lack of money to buy it, then after the earthquake they haven't even been able to find it. He was hospitalized for several day, rehydrated and supposedly gotten under control, then discharged Saturday morning. He and his mother showed up Saturday afternoon with his blood sugar being too high to read, so >500. He was given insulin and I rechecked his sugar again in two hours... only to find that it was still too high to read. He received more insulin and discharged to the "charity house" where there is a nurse who could keep an eye on him and hopefully find some insulin for him. Unfortunately we couldn't give him any insulin to go as we didn't have enough for the ED use alone.
Another 60 year old gentleman that I saw had a large inguinal hernia. He had not been able to eat in 36 hours, throwing up and not passing any bowel movements for the same time period. His hernia was very painful to palpation. We found a bed in the ED for him, then waited till there was a surgeon available to reduce the hernia. Two hours later he was doing well, so he was sent home, with the hopes that he may be able to have electivecorrective surgery in a few months.
Jeremy is back with Christian and Fabiola. They have been scoping out a new clinic site for this next week. Time to return the computer to Jeremy.
Keep praying. I have two more weeks here.
Reader Comments (2)
I've been following your blogs and appreciate your astounding reports. I was Impressed with the CNN interview! With many others I think of you daily and continue to pray that God will give you good health and safety through the remainder of your time in Haiti and a safe and timely trip home trip at the end of the month. -Myrna Mc
A treat to be able to see you - you're looking good! Sounds like the shifts are getting longer as you become more "seasoned". Be sure to keep yourself strong and hydrated.