We got a fresh (and cold) start to the day, getting out of the house at 7:35 am and got to Proworld very nervous about doing our first clinic at the Market in San Ignacio. When we got there, we were all relieved to find out that because of the torrential downpour, the clinic was canceled since the place where our tents were supposed to be got flooded out. To put our time to good use, we spent about an hour and a half doing inventory.
Dr. G was very impressed with the amount of equipment we bought, considering that last year's group had little to no stuff. When I say we had a lot of equipment, I am not exaggerating -- we literally had an entire pharmacy, without all the prescription meds.So, instead of holding clinic, we got a tour of San Ignacio and I think that a pre-req for this course should be a continuous workout program for five months prior to the trip, because this city is extremely hilly. I probably worked off my breakfast of tomato egg omelet by the time we got back to Poworld.
Our tour took us into the heart of the city -- found out that one of the main streets with restaurants and bars closes at 6pm so that people can walk around.
So far, I was very intriguing because it seemed like a very quiet and cool place. Then we got to the market -- there were so many fruits and vegetables and souvenirs (I will never learn to spell this word) stands. You could get 10 delicious bananas for $1 BZ, which equates to $0.50. That's an incredible bargain and its not like the bananas were bad -- they were delicious.
We bought some souvenirs and then first smelled then saw a quesadilla stand. Herbie and I couldn't hold it in and got some. It was awesome watching it be made by hand, from scratch on a large skillet with some bean paste and cheese. That's what I always love -- eating food made fresh andby hand. I really wish I took a video of her making it. Here's the finished (delicious) product:
After the market, some people got sodas at a bar and then we went to Proworld to eat lunch. The quesa had some spicy onions on the side, which was very good. Considering it was very hot, we went to change and then just hung out at Proworld (got bored and went to the market) and then had a conversation with a BZ doctor.
He told us that government clinics don't ask patients for insurance or anything and they get the services they want. Most drugs are available with and without a prescription, basically you can get any drug (from Tylenol to oxycodone) as long as you know their dose and frequency of use. This struck me as very surprising because this allows people to just assume they are doing something right, when in fact they can be harming their children or themselves; for example, in several clinics, we had parents giving their 4 month old kids 'baby' aspirin, because they assumed that the 'baby' in the name meant that it could be given to children.
The doctor also said that Belize lacks tertiary care and patients (most of the time) need to be sent to other countries (like Guatemala) to get their care. This is definitely something that I think needs to change. In order for Belize to prosper, it must ensure that their people have proper care for their people.
Another thing that I found interesting was that the BZ health care does not focus on preventative care. I think this can def be changed -- maybe doctors or nurses can give presentations in schools about DM or HTN so that kids know what to watch out for, as these are the two conditions which plague the people of Belize.
I mean, for a country that used to depend on another to help its health care system and one so young, you can't expect them to develop an amazing health care system overnight, but it seems like they are moving in the right direction.
After dinner we all went out to a bar to just hang out and I had a delicious Beliken beer, after which I slept very well.
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