Our First Week at Palacios
We made the first journey of many to Centro Medico in Palacios, Bolivia, on August 5th. We arrived in time for the 11th year anniversary celebration at Centro Medico Humberto Para. This clinic provides substantial primary care services for members of 20 + communities in rural Bolivia. The clinic has 2 rooms for general physicians, a room for womens health where an OB-GYN physician comes once a week, a room for an ophthalmologist, a room for dental care, a laboratory, a pharmacy, as well as a large room for providing health education classes. The clinic functions with two full-time Bolivian nurses, two Bolivian physicians who switch off days, as well as other visiting physicians (OBGYN, optho, others...). Don Pepe looks after the clinic during the week and his esposa Mumi provides lunch for all the clinic trabajaores (workers). We will be working to facilitate the volunteer trips here at the clinic as well as providing Physical Therapy services (less we and more Kara). Next to the clinic is a house with a kitchen and dormitories for the volunteers and coordinators. It is very cozy and we will have some limited access to email via satellite internet.
Centro Medico Celebrates 11 Years!
Clinic Founders: Dr. Mark Molitch and Dr. Susan Hou
After the founders gave speeches, community members honored them with gifts and traditional Bolivian dances. We enjoyed the show.
The Celebration ended with Mark and Susan and the Bolivian staff blowing out 11 candles on a cake for the Medical Center.
Mark and Susan holding the cake.
Left to Right: Maria (head nurse and clinic coordinator), Dr. Douglas (Bolivan program director) and Dr. Vargas (clinic physician)
This last week we started work at the clinic. During the first week we encountered patients with uncontrolled diabetes, a case of malaria, as well as a case of complete heart block from Chagas disease. Kara even went on a house-call where she evaluated a young women who had broken her hip while pregnant. Despite receiving surgery in December, recent X-rays show that the fracture continues to be displaced without signs of healing. She has now been bedridden for five months. Thankfully she is a very strong woman with a supporting family. The surgeon that most recently evaluated her determined that she needs a hip replacement at this point. We are beginning our search for the hardware needed for her hip replacement as the cost ($4000) is far beyond the means of this family. If any one has any contacts or leads...
Kara's first home visit: trying to assist and educate the patient
Kara's patient with her newborn and older son
More to come, don't you dare touch that dial
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