Stuck

Today marks 8 weeks since I arrived here in Santiago. I think it has all crashed down today and my shoulders feel heavy with the weight of it all. It's that moment when you are totally and utterly overwhelmed and you are at a loss of what to do next. That's exactly the point where I don't want to be, but yet here I am.  stuck. You know, unable to move, shut down, stagnant, at a dead end, helpless and just plain stuck.

Our mobile clinic has grown, yet you reach that point where you have to look at quantity and quality. We want to be able to serve people well. When Jesus fed the multitude they were well taken care of. He attended to not only their spiritual needs but their physical hunger as well. We want to care for our patients well...  there are those days that you meet patients who need specialty care, lab tests, imaging, etc, you don't have the right medicines or enough of the medicine and you just feel helpless.  How I wish for the IRIS system in Chicago to refer patients to the County Hospital. Yep, there was a LONG wait, but at least they were on the list, and at some point you knew their name would be called. Here, there is no list, there is no computerized referral system, no comprehensive referral network, there's NOTHING. So, what do you do with the patient who whispers that she is HIV positive, or the 18 year old with the history of thalassemia with a grade 4 systolic murmur that she says was never heard previously, or the 10 year old little girl who has a "ganglion cyst" with atypical symptoms like edema, decreased range of motion and pain. Let me not forget the many, many pregnant moms, who have no prenatal care, many of whom will deliver at home by themselves. You just feel stuck. What to do?

You pray. And pray. And pray. I'm starting to work on a resource list. Easier said than done, but I know there has to be other health ministries on the island. It's time to start looking for connections, people who will help and partner with us in providing care to our patients. It gets a little complicated by race relations on this lovely island. A large percentage of our patients are Haitian, and sometimes that feels like a bad word. I have a student who hides out in the other classrooms because the neighborhood kids pick on her that she has a Haitian teacher.  So, she doesn't want to be in my room anymore. yes, I know I'm not Haitian, but the bullies don't know that and that's all that matters to this 5 yr old. Besides, it shouldn't even matter!!!  Yes, Haitian can feel like a bad word to a kid and to many adults. .. There's also the kid who has a Haitian mom and a Dominican father. He decided last week that he was going to be Korean because he is tired of the teasing, and at least he would know "what" he is and can help people like our Korean pastors help people. This teasing at the school yard level has its root in the prevailing attitude towards the Haitian immigrant here. So, even though I'm looking for connections, you know, people who are on the ground already doing health ministry, yet, we have to make sure they are willing to see our patients, regardless of race.

At this moment, it feels like a big task, but I serve an even bigger God, who can give direction, vision, insight and provide what we need. Ministry here in the DR has been a blessing, but I have to be honest that today is one of those tough days. That's when I come to you, my friends, so, you can unite with me in prayer. The persistent prayer of the righteous will be effective. Here are some specific requests:

1. Pray for referral specialists who will collaborate with us and love our patients regardless of race.
2. Pray for laboratory services-- We desperately need access to some basic point of care testing and some simple hematology and chemistry panels, urinalysis, rapid HIV testing and follow-up. I'm praying for a Christian lab owner who will give our patients a discounted pricing and for increased financial resources to cover the costs of some in clinic testing.
3. Pray for strategic planning and vision for the mobile clinic.
4. Pray for race relations on the island.
5. Pray for financial resources. Pray about how God may use you to support one of these projects.
6. Pray that we will demonstrate Christ's love to all patients who trust us with their health needs.