La Clinica

We have been fortunate to find a niche where we can help and learn about the healthcare of Honduras. So far our information has been only from our teachers and Honduran parents, but now we are lucky to have the opportunity to experience it first hand.

Over the last week we have been spending our mornings working with the doctors of Copan in the "Centro de Salud," a government-run clinic. People from most of the surrounding pueblos come to Copan for healthcare. They start lining up around 7am and the two doctors see about 40 patients each, before 1:00pm. It is first come, first serve and the doctors are only paid for 6 hrs so everyone must be seen before 1-2pm. Fortunately, this consult is affordable for most everyone - 5 Lempiras or $0.25 - but then they must buy the medicine at the local pharmacies which doesn't seem to be discounted.

We help the nurse triage the patients early in the morning by taking vitals, and as the line dwindles, we move back to join the doctors for the consults. It has been incredibly interesting and informative to be included in these consults. Furthermore, it has been invaluable for us to observe the most common ailments, to see how they are being addressed, and to hear our new medical vocabulary in action. We hope that we will be able to absorb enough to do this on our own in just 2 months.

We have only been in the clinic for one week but from what we have seen, the most common illnesses are diarrhea/GI, upper respiratory infections, reactive airways disease, and pharyngitis. But one of the biggest initiatives of the clinic is family planning. There are many families with 10+ children and they are often the poorest families who come from the mountain communities by foot to be seen. Often times they have grandchildren who are the same age as their younger children. Mothers who live far away from the clinic birth their babies at home and don't bring them in to a clinic until their first severe illness - meaning that many children can go several months to years without vaccinations.

It is encouraging to see these doctors who are motivated to improve the quality of life for these people, and it is encouraging to see that the government is providing affordable healthcare. But there are still large challenges that these clinics face. We have not yet found soap in the clinic - the "foam in, foam out" policy definitely does not exist. They do, however, have new sterile needles for immunizations and injections, but they continue to be limited by lack of supplies.

Despite the lack of supplies and differences in standards of care, these physicians are providing a much needed service for the people of Copan. They are diligent in what they do, and they have a heart to help the people. We have truly been blessed with this opportunity to observe, learn, and in a small way, help the people of Copan. We look forward to continuing at the clinic, and we hope that it effectively prepares us for further, more independent work with the locals in the coming weeks and months.