Reflections on Zika, P.S. The Mosquitos got ME.

July 28

Zika. Lord have mercy upon my poor soul. Never would I have thought that I would have gotten Zika. Towards the end of the day, I remember being in the office itching. I just thought that maybe I was itching as a result of my needing to take an after-work-bath. However, the itching did not subside. In fact, it worsened. I decided to go to sleep. That has been my answer to everything for this entire trip—sleep. It is always too hot to do anything else. Eat. Sleep. The other day, I felt so tired that all I could was sleep. I slept from 4 in the afternoon to 3 o’clock in the morning the next day. One thing that I do well is listening to my body. If my body tells me to sit down, I sit. If my body tells me to stand, I stand. I felt abdominal pain; I felt like there were 10 people jumping up and down on my stomach. There is nothing wrong with taking time for yourself.

Now when I woke up, my roommate broke out with this horrible rash. Even before that, he was experiencing extreme fatigue, lack of appetite, fever, and joint pain. I knew something was off, but I stayed away from him. Part of my problem was the complacency that I built over the time that I have spent here. I started to sleep less under my mosquito net and put less mosquito repellent on.

For me, it all started with an itch. After that, it all went down hill. Rachel, my project coordinator told me that she noticed I had pink eye. I went over to the mirror and I looked so crazy. As that day progressed, the rash became more apparent. But I had to push forward because I meeting that day with the Community Health Care Workers.

This meeting that I did with the community health care workers was crucial because it would be the last time that I would have to speak with them about cleaning up the work that they are doing and the errors that I have been finding in their work. This meeting was also about motivating them and encouraging them to continue to the positive work that they are doing in their community. More importantly, I wanted to show them that the work that they are doing has real-life applications to the analysis and painting a holistic picture of the community that they work in.

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How did the meeting go ? It went well ! From what Madame Roline said, the manager of the community Health Care Workers, it was “Captivating and Elightening.” I am sure it was because I wanted the community health care workers to walk away feeling motivated about their job. I even ran into one of the workers in the meeting who told me “Thank you.” Normally, when I am in a place, I am always aware of my surroundings , but for some reason I did not recognize this CHCW. It was almost as if he was a Chameleon, blending into his surroundings. I wonder if other workers assume this position in their communities? Do they stand out ? Do they make themselves known ? Although I was itching throughout the entire meeting, these community health care workers made me forget about Zika. All the pain that I was feeling for that day simply went away.

 

What do you do when you don't have the key

Today was another intense day. The importance and lack of medication in Haiti is a major issue that has to be addressed. A lot of patients have the issue of hypertension and high blood pressure. Most of the patients today encountered a stroke that has left them paralyzed. It was just the most heartbreaking thing because this could have been prevented. The root of the issue is the lack of importance placed on taking medicine and remaining calm. As Dr. Close explained to me, the patients are used to dealing with issues that “go away” such as infections. However, the patients do not understand that high blood pressure and hypertension do not go away. As a result, the patients do not understand that they have to come back and get more medication once their medication is finished. They think that once their pill bottle is empty, their problem has gone away. This is not true. But another problem is the lack of access to the medication. These patients do not have the money for this medication and they are facing the consequences for it. It was heartbreaking to see a father who can barely talk or walk and tell his daughters that he will need a lot of love and support at home. His daughters told me that it has been months since he has taken his medication and he complained of headaches all last week and blacked out this morning.

It has been an interesting experience understanding how patients with diabetes manage. They tell the doctor how the stress of not having a job has factored into them not eating and following their regime. Some patients struggle with not having access to insulin. There was another patient whose needed dialysis in Port Au Prince—an entire three hours away. The distance was a roadblock and the lack of funds was a roadblock too. It is tough seeing patients who could be treated and healthy but are so far away from medicine that could change their lives.