We got a few more patients last night…up to 5 now! The surgeons went ashore again today so no surgeries…the kiddos will stay 2 nights before they get into the OR. We have one 17yr old with a SIGNIFICANT murmur. Possible PDA (big hole) and his heart sounds are similar to washing machine sounds. His family cannot afford to fix his heart and most humanitarian missionaries don’t have the time (too short of a time period to do open heart surgery). We found out the cost of the surgery in Ho Chi Minh City is only $3400…first thought was we could write home and raise the money, but then you realize how many of these kids there will be out there. It’s overwhelming and depressing.
We also got a bunch of nursing students today. For all those at Balboa you can relate…imagine having 5 pts, 4 nurses, 4 corpsmen and 10 nursing students. Ugh…crowded and annoying! Lol I will be excited to teach when we have more to talk about then just charting and care plans.
That's so sad about the 17yr old. Will he have surgery then, or will you not be there long enough?
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