I cannot believe we will be celebrating CardioStart’s 11th mission to Honorio Delgado Hospital in Arequipa, Peru, later this month.
I clearly remember CardioStart’s first mission. It really felt like a different world. The teammates became like family to me in the experience. Just to add to the new challenges it was the first time I had the responsibility in leading a mission. My co-leader was my rock though and we got through it together.
From housing issues to building an ICU from scratch we learned tremendous lessons, which continue to enrich our knowledge for future missions.
Nursing in a developing country is not for the faint of heart. Having only seen the rudimentary ways of doing a CVP in books, we actually had to do it as the technology had not yet arrived in Peru. Then, there are the limitations in supplies. We were short a suction machine in one case and had to rig up a system to attach all the chest tubes, vent etc. to one. This is where being a seasoned nurse is vital. I remember one story we still laugh about. We had one newer nurse who looked at us like we were crazy when we handed her a mercury thermometer and asked her to get a temperature on the patient. She honestly had not seen one and did not know what to do with it. Us old nurses got a stress-relieving laugh for the day. She took it like a trooper though and when it came time to mixing drips in a sterile bottle she showed us her stuff!
Some of the standard items we have here in the States are luxuries in developing countries. For example, pillows for propping patients on their side. We learned from the Peruvians the art of using large IV bags and blankets to do this. They even use gloves filled with water to keep heels propped up on babies. It was definitely creative patient care.
In Peru, our patients need to do deep breathing and coughing to prevent pneumonia after surgery. In the U.S., we would give a patient a little plastic apparatus to do this. Of course, this is a space-taking item that is not easily obtained to bring on the mission. So, we now get Peruvian flutes in the market to do the incentive breathing. And for the children, we bring bubbles. It is fun for everyone.
One of the foundations of doing a mission is being flexible. We termed the phrase “on a dime” in that first mission. Situations change so quickly and you have to come up with plan B, C, D, and on. This will be important again this year as it usually is in Peru. There are challenges of strikes of physicians looming this time. Physicians and nurses are paid a pittance in developing countries. No one would go into the medical field for financial reasons. Elite positions in the hospitals are posted based on the government leadership of the time. Politics are ingrained in the fabric of the structures.
Nothing is more rewarding though than giving a family its bread winner back or their baby. I am always amazed that the first thing a patient says after we take them off the ventilator is “thank you.” As a nurse in the States, that does not happen. It brings tears to my eyes every time. Making a difference in families and patients is why we go into healthcare. The old clique, “it’s better to give than receive” is proven in volunteer work.
I am proud of the volunteers our Mission Director, Dr. Mariano Brizzio, assembled and can’t wait for us all to work together. A few last minute preparations and we will be off to make many new experiences, save more lives and make CardioStart history.
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