Dr. Ben Adesope, CEO, FIP Visits the Clinic…
Introduction
Another day ahead of us!
Our joyous and seasoned leadership were steadfast to encourage and motivate us to finish the week strong!
… and with a sigh of relief for any diversion, and a timely one too, we were elated that a new member, though brief, greeted us: the CEO of Faith in Practice appeared today, and today only, Dr. Ben Adesope.
Grateful to be given the opportunity to meet such an important member of the organization, the newly appointed CEO of FIP greeted us one by one, broke bread with us at lunch and dinner, and traveled to the hotel with us. Though initially reluctant to take photos, it didn’t stop us grabbing a group shot with him which included the village locals, the Guatemalan FIP team, and our volunteers. Thank you, doctor! We said our goodbyes to him the following morning as he zipped out to another location.
The day was hotter and drier than yesterday.
We were assured there would be less of a caseload today (250 patients according to intake). That didn’t hinder complicated cases. One of the physicians from general medicine early in the day had to make the decision to send, not one, but two patients to the hospital in ambulances, which was one hour away for respiratory issues.
In gynecology, Dr. Christi Hunt performed an ultrasound on a 24 weeks pregnant woman. This would be her second child, and she needed to know her due date. We report that she was healthy and was half way through gestation even though she had not seen a physician. According to Dr. Hunt, most women do not seek out prenatal care in pregnancy in Guatemala, or have access to it during their pregnancy. When they ask women what their plan for delivery is, they will state they have a midwife coming to their home or show up to the nearest hospital hoping they go into labor.
Women’s health care initiatives are ongoing. “Although this is not an ideal situation, I feel fortunate to provide what little care I can do for the women in Guatemala. Prevention of birth trauma, and promotion of healthy prenatal care is the only way to achieve better outcomes in moms and babies here, and ultimately their communities.” says Dr. Christi Hunt from Asheville, North Caroline. Dr. Hunt is alluding to the high case load in our mobility clinics which have seen many children who have mobility issues to previously mentioned birth trauma, and require wheelchairs for a better quality of life.
Actively, Dr. Patty Baiza is working to train midwives in Guatemala. She is the Medical Director of women’s health here, and a wonderful resource for us.
The mobility clinic gave out two pediatric wheelchairs to toddlers with cerebral palsy (CP). The head of the clinic is Dr. Phil Fillbrandt who is the director of a clinic for CP back in California.
In the ultrasound clinic, Dr. Phebe Chen performed an ultrasound on a newborn’s testicle. His family couldn’t feel it in the normal place. Dr. Chen wanted to see if this newborn was missing a testicle or if it was undescended. Luckily, Dr. Phebe Chen found the other testical in the groin. It wasn’t a surgical referral but, she recommended a follow up in 6 months to make sure it properly descends.
Dr. Chen also saw a 40-years-old woman with a breast mass. Since she never had a mammogram, she wanted to know if she needed treatment for breast cancer, or had a benign tumor. Her patient felt a mass in her breast which grew over a period of three months. So, it was unlikely it was benign. Dr. Chen delivered some unfortunate news. The ultrasound did indeed show a suspicious mass for a primary-site breast cancer (because it showed in her lymph nodes, so it didn’t appear to have metastasized). She was referred for biopsy, and likely surgery. Fortunately, this patient knew to seek out medical attention which is not always the case. Because there are no primary doctors to give annual breast screenings for women to detect breast cancer early, these clinics are typically the place to receive primary care for those who seek it out.
Dr. Chen uses a portable ultrasound (US). It has the capability of doing many different types of studies. Including thyroid, breast, abdomen, vaginal, and prostate exams. Dr. Chen can also look for fluid collection in joints. For example, she examined a young man who had prior corrective surgery on his thigh, which now had a draining wound. Without this US to provide insight, the wound would have festered, and eventually caused an infection in the bone, and when that happens they would have to remove the hardware which would have been a lot more serious. They referred him out to get the fluid drained before it could get into the bone. This man’s quality of life just improved dramatically.
Many complicated cases were seen today again, and with the CEO’s energy, he helped uplift spirits from the prior day’s exhaustion.
Even still, the days are starting to blurrrr together. I miss espresso…
With Love from an Angelino in Guatemala.
Eleanor
Team Blogger
