2011 Retalhuleu, Guatemala
Life’s an adventure: The art of being flexible
Retalhuleu, Guatemala
Be flexible. Those words from Mission Director Brian Walker could not be more appropriate for the first 24-36 hours of our adventure heading to Retalhuleu. From San Francisco we flew overnight to Mi... Read More »
Pre-clinic day: A great need
Retalhuleu, Guatemala
Brian warned us that Tuesday was going to be a busy day — controlled chaos as he put it. By the time we arrived at Hospital Galindo at around 7:30 a.m., we saw why: Hundreds of people were already li... Read More »
Wednesday: The first day of “wow”
Retalhuleu, Guatemala
Wednesday was much smoother in the hospital. We weren't over-run by children and families and the medical team spent the first hour getting ready for the first day's surgeries. Since I took the pat... Read More »
A quartermaster’s view
Retalhuleu, Guatemala
One of the most impressive aspects of this Rotaplast experience is seeing the incredible endurance and acceptance of the Guatemalan people. They seem to expect little and accept what is. Most came b... Read More »
Osvaldo asked mom for a mirror
Retalhuleu, Guatemala
This is my first Rotaplast mission and as translator, I am available to the doctors and nurses to relay important information to parents before, during and after surgery. On our first day, I staffed the in... Read More »
Watching Juan Daniel’s life transformed
Retalhuleu, Guatemala
As the photojournalist for the mission, I have the opportunity to roam as I please throughout the hospital, taking photos of the children and parents in the pre-op room, the PACU where our team takes care ... Read More »
A life-changing experience
Retalhuleu, Guatemala
This is my first time on a Rotaplast mission and it has changed me forever. The days are long and tiring but not nearly as much as they are for the parents and children, many of whom have traveled days Read More »
The view of a Rotaplast rookie
Retalhuleu, Guatemala
I chose Family Medicine because it allowed me to see the whole family from birth to death. When I asked my attending Dr. Bryan Stamm over a year ago if they take Residents on Rotaplast missions, I never ex... Read More »
A Medical Records moment
Retalhuleu, Guatemala
With all the things happening simultaneously on a Rotaplast mission, the one constant is that each patient is assigned a Medical Records number before they even come into the pre-clinic door on the first d... Read More »
Experiencing a “Rotary moment”
Retalhuleu, Guatemala
Our Rotaplast mission reached its climax yesterday as we celebrated the successful completion of over 100 cleft lip and cleft palate surgeries with cake and lots of hugs and photos with both the mis... Read More »
From the Ward Coordinator: Anthony’s story
Retalhuleu, Guatemala
As the Ward Coordinator, my role is to keep track of the patients, both coming and going. I work very closely with the pediatricians and the PACU (recovery room) staff. The pediatricians are ... Read More »
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