We're back!

We all made it home, all except Jessica, who is in the ICU. We are not sure at this point what is going on with her medically, but she was looking and feeling a little better tonight. Thank you everyone for reading our blogs. We all have stories to tell and pictures to share. We helped people, a lot of people and in the process they helped us see the world a little differently. Thanks to all the great team members for doing such a great job. I will try and get some pictures uploaded tomorrow.

pictures

Fun Day In Paradise

Today we started out with the usual early breakfast. Beans and rice are getting less and less appealing as the days go on. First activity of the day was zip-lining at the coffee plantation. The tour guides really kept it interesting for us, they let us do stunts like the superman, crazy monkey, and bouncing. Some were scared at first and some were crazy from the beginning. For lunch we ate at Tip-Top chicken. Its kind of like our KFC. It was pretty good, I'm not gonna lie. My phone was stolen out of my book bag though, that was a Debbie downer on fun day. Next on the list was volcano Mombacho in the town of Masaya. It was an active volcano and very smokey. The cross at the top of the pictures has a story behind it, the Nicaraguans used to believe that if they would sacrifice people into the volcano then it wouldn't erupt.That obviously didn't work to well ha ha. We saved the best for last though, shopping. This big group of ladies + Bob have been asking about it since the beginning. It was hot, sweaty and dirty and your bubble no longer existed. We had security guards follow us around to make sure we weren't harmed or cheated out of money. Jeanie 9a nurse from the states that was already there)lived up to her name again and bought everything in sight. For dinner we ate at the second fanciest restaurant in Nicaragua. We could eat steak, chicken or sea bass. May I just add that the steak was pretty fine. And so was the fruit juice. We had a lot of firsts on this trip but hopefully not a lot of lasts. Overall it was a very good day and a great way to end this trip. Hallie & Madilyne (from Missouri)

Nicaraguan Children and Hospital Tours

After a good nights rest following our 3 clinic days, we were up early with the dogs, birds and mangos again. Delicious breakfast started at 0630 with omelets, rice and beans, fruit and tasty Nicaraguan coffee. We headed to the Life Link base. Once we arrived, we were greeted by all the children and their smiling faces with a warm welcome. As we waited for the chapel service all of the children, grades 3 year old preschool thru 4th grade, gave us high fives and hugs which was enjoyed by all. The children then lined up and walked to the auditorium while carrying their colorful plastic chairs over their heads! The 4th graders organized and performed song and dance during the service which had the whole school involved, including the staff. We also had a special presentation by some of the children who performed traditional folk dancing and hip-hop as well. Afterwards, we were able to tour the classrooms and play with the children at recess. We blew bubbles and loved watching them chase and pop them enthusiastically. Bob, Jen, and Jenny were exhausted after playing soccer. Several members of the team sponsored children. This sponsorship provides support for their Christian education, meals, vitamins, and clothes. Every child at Life Link now has a sponsor! We were able to celebrate another birthday, Megan, one of the Life Link missionaries who has been a wonderful leader and influential to the continued success of the school. Next, we were able to tour 2 government hospitals, such a shocking difference from what we are used to in the states. We donated medications, vitamins, and toys. They were grateful for the donation. After dinner, including pollo (chicken) and fried plantains, we were surprised by Mike and Deb with an impromptu salsa dancing lesson by the Life Link dance instructor, Josalyn. She did an amazing job, and we couldn’t stop laughing at our two left feet! We are all looking forward to ziplining and shopping tomorrow. Good night☺ Tanya and Jessica

Casa Del Adulto Mayor

Today was another early 0630 start with breakfast, but the coffee and food is amazing! We have had good luck so far with weather: sunny, humid, and 90’s but tonight is our first storm. Luckily it only rained for a short time. Today we were based out of a senior community center. We saw mostly 50 and older but we also had some families with kids come through. They had wounds, acid reflux, arthritis, upper respiratory infections, and high blood pressure today. We saw a few patients in their 90’s which was impressive as we learned that 56 years old is the average life expectancy here. We were able to see almost 300 patients again today and provide them with care and medications they would not have otherwise been able to get. Many issues that are treated or curable in the States are unfortunately not a priority here as they are seen as terminal. We have seen patients with cancer tumors whom in the US would have been treated and most likely cured, but instead the focus here is on pain management. Women are sent home within hours of birth, if they can even get to a healthcare clinic to have their baby. These realities make it evident why the Nicaraguan people are so grateful for the littlest of cares we can provide. Most of us would say we are picking up a decent amount of Spanish, at least enough to make the Nicaraguan people laugh when we try. Many of the individuals requested reading glasses (some just to look cool) and we were able to provide them to many of those in need. Plumbing is a luxury we have been given at the hotel, but we were not so spoiled in the field the last two days. We have had outhouses and “flushable” toilets that you add a bucket of water to in order to flush. Needless to say it has been an experience we will never forget! We are all reminded how lucky we are to have such amenities back home! We were heavily rewarded this evening with a special Moto Taxi ride to the local ice cream shop. It was the perfect way to reward our hard work for the last three days of clinic.

medical camp pictures

Clinic Day 2

We started the morning at 0630 with breakfast consisting of omelets, fresh fruit, and the traditional rice and beans. The bus departed at 0730 from Hotel Ticomo to the school where we set up our 2nd day of clinic. Clinic doors opened at 0900 with patients lined up waiting to be seen. We cared for a variety of complaints ranging from rashes, abdominal issues, breast lumps, cirrhosis of the liver, and a severe leg wound. Dr. Nikki was 3 for 3 with her positive pregnancy tests. One of the LifeLink employees that received an ultrasound yesterday, went into labor last night, and delivered a healthy baby. The heat played a major factor today, but thankfully "Mama" Julie kept pushing water and gatorade, and took turns "fanning" us. Lunch consisted of turkey sandwiches, PB&J, fresh, local bananas, apples, hard-boiled eggs, and of course, chips and salsa. We did a better job with the patient flow today, wrapping up the clinic around 3:00, but had to wait approximately an hour for our ride. This gave us a chance to mingle with the local children and dogs. Jenny G. had three little boys laughing hysterically while they watched a video she took of them. It's such a blessing to have the opportunity to care for these people, who are so grateful and appreciative of what we're doing for them. One of our patients stopped us as we were leaving and wished us the best of luck, and hoped that we would return in the near future. We arrived back at the hotel this evening where we sat around the hotel pool and relaxed after a hard days work. Dinner is shortly to come, then it's early to bed so that we're up and ready for another day of clinic tomorrow. Thanks for continuing to follow the blog. We're working on posting more pictures (hopefully tonight). Niki and Sarah R.

La Clinica Primera!!!

Today was our first medical clinic day. First of all, breakfast started at 0630... (pancakes/Nicaraguan coffee were well deserved given the early hour and the mango bombs). The city seemed to come alive during the week compared to Sunday. We continued to try to set up the clinic before the patients arrived at 0900. Our first patients began to arrive and "Dr. Bob" checked them in and took their vital signs (blood pressure, temperature, weight, etc.). The patients were then evaluated by all of our awesome providers with the assistance of our even better translators! We saw such a mix of ages, genders, symptoms, concerns and personalities. Patient problems ranged from minor scratches, to cough/cold/fever to diarrhea with suspected parasite infection and a multitude of women's issues. We even saw extreme cases such as breast cancer and diabetic ulcers. We did several ultrasounds of pregnant women (more in the afternoon after the word got out!) and even revealed a girl baby to a very happy mother who would have otherwise not known. We started the rotations in the "pharmacy" area of our clinic...all we can say is how much we appreciate them. Overall, everyone had a great time and the patients appeared happy and positive (the kids were even happier after Bob started handing out Starburst candy). We cared for over 300 Nicaraguan patients and had a great time doing it. Some things to keep in mind were all the signs of optimism and goodwill towards community that we noticed in our patients after seeing their living conditions yesterday. What an amazing experience! Looking forward to start all over again tomorrow. Drs. Nikki and Bob Holbrook P.S. I wanted to write this entire blog in Spanish...my co-writer disagreed...

some pictures...

Day one

Hello friends and family, We wanted to let you know that everyone is safe and healthy. I do have to report, however, that our lives are being deeply touched by the events of the day. We woke up to the unfamiliar sounds of feral dogs barking, roosters, and mangos bombing the tin roof of our cabana (sounds like firecracker explosion). Breakfast was delicious, consisting of fresh tropical fruit, rice, beans, and eggs. We then took a bus to a city with a strong Sandanista presence. We toured the life-link school and base camp, also discussing logistics of tomorrows medical camp. We then toured the surrounding neighborhood, a congregation of clandestine tin hovels and squallor that experiences frequent flooding . The people were amazing, letting us tour their homes, meet their family, and reinforce to ourselves how truly lucky our lives are. Our day to day grind that is life consists of first world problems. The first medical camp is tomorrow, where we will see 60 patients per hour and I sincerely hope that I may return a fraction of what has been given to me. Jenny G. and Sarah W.

We made it!

We finally made it to the hotel. Everyone is excited but tired. The electricity is working so the rooms all have air conditioning tonight, which is awesome as it is 80 degrees and very very humid. We now have the whole team together. LifeLink International graciously picked us up from the airport. Customs was a breeze which was a blessing. We celebrated Sarah's birthday with cupcakes on the plane (Bob ate most of them). It is mango season and the hotel grounds are full of mango trees, which is great except they like to drop at night on the tin roofs-it should be an interesting night..... We will try and upload some pictures tomorrow night. Buenos noche.....

Landed in Houston

We landed safely in Houston. Waiting for Tanya from Minnesota. No rush as we have a 7 hour layover. We should get into Managua close to 10 pm. We'll meet the other 4 team members who are coming from Missouri there (16 total team members). We left Milwaukee around 5 am, so we'll be tired and ready to go to bed when we get there (at least I will). The group is very excited and eager to start this adventure. Will try and blog when we get in but it may be late or it may be once we get up in the morning (depending on Internet access). Tomorrow we get to sleep in with breakfast at 8 am, the other days breakfast is at 6:45 am! We have medical clinics Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and Thursday we get to tour the local hospital. Friday is ziplinng and SHOPPING! Saturday we have to leave again at 5 am for the airport.
Julie