Clinique.

Today was my first day in the clinic.  

Patients arrive pretty early and wait for their appointments throughout the day.  First, there are clinic devotions, so every patient is presented with the gospel and offered more education - fantastic!  The clinic administrator then decides the order in which they are seen.  Visits cost the patients about $1.50US, but if they cannot pay, they do not have to.  All of the appointments go rather fast, so the doctors, nurse, and physician's assistant see quite a few people throughout the day, totaling to around 150.  There are two Haitian doctors, one male and one female, on staff, which I think is really great that HHM hires Haitians and isn't exclusively American.  

I spent my morning working with the American doctor, and I saw SO much!  We saw several pregnant women.  I measured some pregnant bellies and was taught several things about how to read a sonogram, which is pretty neat.  I took a lot of blood pressures and pulses throughout the day.  We also saw several patients with diabetes, which, of course, is pretty rough if it is poorly (or not) managed.  I also helped with surgery prep for the minor surgery and the biopsy performed today.  And I saw what pretty advanced congestive heart failure looks like on a sonogram - crazy - and learned how to measure hematocrit.  

My afternoon was spent seeing a whole bunch of children with the physician's assistant, which was great.  We talked about ear infections and respiratory infections that kids suffer from, which was rather common among the little ones we saw today.  

So, in all day one in the clinic was great.  I've learned and seen so much..and I have six more weeks of this stuff to go!  

Revelation of the day:  I must learn Creole or French.