Medical Mission Translating

Back in the operating room …

The nursery of the local health clinic was used as the operating room

But this time on solid ground. In fact, up in the mountains of Volcan, Chiriquí. Medical staff from all over the US came to Panama on a medical mission trip for the people of Panama. The event was sponsored by their church and paid for mostly by doctors and nurses themselves. A lot of the equipment and medicine was donated from pharmaceutical companies, sympathetic to the missions values.

The last time that I was involved with doctors visiting Panama was under much different circumstances (See my 2010 blog post for Operation Continuing Promises). Instead of the military flying patients out to an aircraft carrier, the local health clinic let us use their facilities and every day people were lining up outside from morning till evening hoping for the free medical care. This included a pharmacy, dentists, general care and optometrists. 

The word was out. People showed up and waited all day for a chance for free medical care.

Like last year, I helped out translating in the operating room. But this time the only operations were the optometrists. The most common surgeries were removing cataracts and pterygiums.

The patients with cataracts were almost all older people and in some cases, completely blind. The operation consists of removing the clouded lens (cataract) and replacing it with a new, synthetic one. Measurements taken in pre-op determine the power and size of this new lens and it is inserted and attached by sewing it in. 

"Sir, please keep your hands by your side and do not touch your face. Thank you."

The effects were immediate. Several patients who were legally blind because of their cataracts could now see light and even fingers during the surgery and after the removal of the cataract. However, their vision was obviously a little blurry. So a patch was put on over with ointment and painkillers for the night. After returning the next day for follow up and removal of the protective patch, some were able to see their grandchildren for the first time. This was very exciting.

The other type of surgery was to remove pterygiums (pronounced tur – rig – ium). This is a callous-like growth that covers the outer part of the eye over the cornea and is caused by over-exposure to the sun. People who have spent their entire lives outside, working in fields and on farms (more common at home with athletes and surfers) without hats or sunglasses suffer from the effects of this.

While the results of the pterygium removal are not as dramatic as cataracts, most patients were grateful for their improved vision. The larger growths covered half of the eye and severely limited peripheral vision and obviously made life more difficult.

These are unique opportunities for me to improve and practice on my medical related vocabulary. I am having conversations and using words that I would normally not use. For instance, talking to someone about scar tissue, ruptured blood vessels, injections of anesthetic, insertion of a synthetic lens is a completely different set of vocabulary then talking about calendars, accounting, organization, management and budgeting.

These events are a welcomed change of pace and are a lot of fun. Its another example of the incredible exposure that Peace Corps offers to its volunteers. Last week I was involved with a seminar working with small rural farmers and this week was in an operating room translating for surgeries.

A special thanks to the members of the mission trip for their dedication, generosity and humility. Their performance and the quality of care was excellent and they make an extremely positive impression of Americans. This is just as important as the work they are doing because Panamanians are often exposed to a lot of negative information through media, disrespectful and rude interactions by disgruntled expats and ignorance and by backpackers and many tourists. 

Lenses to replace the cataracts, all donations

"Other than the the needle in your eye, clamp holding it open and plastic sheet covering your face... are you comfortable?" PCVs in the mix helping translate

Pretending to be a doctor

For more pictures, see Renee's album on Facebook.