Thank You!

We would like to thank all of those who have helped to make this trip possible. First of all to the Rotary Club of Clemmons for paying Amna's expenses on this trip. Also to General Electric for loaning the compact ultrasound unit for the last three trips. To Forsyth Technical Community College for their continued support and for helping to make all of this happen. Thanks to all of you for your kindness and support through your thoughts, kind words and most of all your prayers. All are important in this effort, so thank you very much.

A word from Amna:

This was all very interesting pathology. I have not run into or observed a normal heart which was good for my experience despite the fact of the sad situations patient are facing here with the poor healthcare system.

Considering the fact of being born and raised in Sudan, Managua was not a complete shock for me. However, Leon is something totally different I have not personally experienced before!!
I am very glad to have the opportunity to come and be part of the medical team here in Leon and thankful for all of those who have contributed and supported the trip in each and every way.
I encourage each and every student to come if they got the opportunity. It is a great experience and will definitely enrich your knowledge in so many ways.

Pictures and News About The Trip

Each trip there's something new to see. Each trip we find more people to help. Each trip someone learns something new. I continue to be amazed at how the Lord works in our lives! I'm sorry that we weren't able to write more on this trip, but the amount of work that we did in the three days that we were there didn't allow us much time, or energy for writing when we got back to the hotel.

Of the 56 patients that we examined on the Vivid i machine that was loaned to us from GE, we found 20 patients that are in need of surgery. Dr. Paar and Dr. Rose are doing all that they can to make that happen so please keep these patients and their families in your thoughts and prayers.

We had quite a few medical students on this trip which made the experience even better. It was really cool learning from each other. This was especially a good learning experience for Amna because it is a setting that she would not typically find herself in as an echo student. Our students are not typically involved in the routine patient assessment so they may not be real clear on what goes on before we do the echo. And the medical students aren't typically involved in the echocardiogram so they are not always aware of the challenges that the sonographers face during the exam.

Many of the diseases that we saw here were very uncommon in the United States, especially in adults. Congenital heart disease is typically repaired either shortly after birth or within the first year of life. We saw several older children and even adults with congenital defects who were in desparate need of repair, and some who were beyond repair. The majority of patients that we examined were rheumatic heart disease patients who are in need of valve replacement.

Once again we were able to walk around the neighborhood in the mornings before we went to the hospital. That is definitley one of the most rewarding parts of the trip. The children were very excited to see the gifts that we brought. We were also amazed at how much the number of kids grew each day that we went out. By the way, if any of you would like to contribute to the next trip, they love the baseballs, frisbees, jumpropes, cars, stuffed animals and anything else small and packable.

Of course no trip would be complete if I didn't take a picture of my trusty friends. I didn't see one cockroach until the last day of the clinic and it didn't take long to understand why. I think this one ate the rest of the little ones that we usually see.

Day 3

Another very busy day, twenty six echoes for each team. Amna did a lot of scanning today and I'm sure she learned a lot. She's learning new ways to do echo.... fast! We saw a lot of pathology once again, most of it rheumatic heart disease. Amna should be able to recognize that on any patient now.

We went for a walk again this morning and gave out more baseballs, equipment, frisbees, jumpropes and of course, lots of candy. We had the opportunity to play baseball and frisbee with the kids who seemed to love it just as much as we did.

Here's Amna now, but be sure to read the attachment at the end of this blog. I received this from Gail Allred today and it fits perfectly with this.

One more good day for me, I have scanned about 8 patients today and found cool pathology beside rheumatic heart disease and few congenitals we can not wait untill we come back and share what we have. the most cool part of the day that i have made it to the (OR)
it was cool to see the whole procedure and the surgeon was so nice that he took the time to let me look inside and explained all the anatomy to me, it was so cool. I have been to the OR so many times but it was the first time to get this close. We walked around the city and went to the markets, we have a lot of pictures to share hopefully soon.

Ponder this....

It all depends on how you look at it??!!!

One day, the father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to the country with the express purpose of showing him how poor people live. They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be considered a very poor family On their return from their trip, the father asked his son, 'How was the trip?' 'It was great, Dad.' 'Did you see how poor people live?' the father asked. 'Oh yeah,' said the son. 'So, tell me, what did you learn from the trip?' asked the father. The son answered: 'I saw that we have one dog and they had four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden and they have a creek that has no end. We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night. Our patio reaches to the front yard and they have the whole horizon. We have a small piece of land to live on and they have fields that go beyond our sight. We have servants who serve us, but they serve others. We buy our food, but they grow theirs. We have walls around our property to protect us, they have friends to protect them.' The boy's father was speechless. Then his son added, 'Thanks Dad for showing me how poor we are.' Isn't perspective a wonderful thing? Makes you wonder what would happen if we all gave thanks for everything we have, instead of worrying about what we don't have. Appreciate every single thing you have, especially your friends! Pass this on to friends and acquaintances and help them refresh their perspective and appreciation.
'Life is too short and friends are too few.'

Day 1 & 2

We arrived yesterday after a very safe and uneventful trip. Thank you for all of your prayers and support! We were very tired after three hours of sleep and twelve hours of travel. We pretty much just had dinner and went straight to bed.

Our first day at the hospital was extremely busy. We scanned twenty patients in eleven hours, non-stop. Lunch was brought in by one of the med students. All of the scans were abnormal in some way. Most of the cases were rheumatic heart disease but there were some other very interesting cases also. Words and pictures simply cannot describe this experience and this country. The people here are absolutely amazing, all of the poverty and disease but no one ever complains. We had some patients sitting in the waiting area of the clinic the entire time that we were there but no one complained about the wait. They were simply thankful to be getting the care that they need. No matter how much we do here, I always wish that I could do more, and I will keep trying

Seeing others enjoy this experience for the first time is one of the most rewarding experiences for me. Its hard to describe the sense of compassion that you feel and develop for these people and the passion that we all have for our profession. Everyone who comes to help leaves with a compassion to do more, wherever they can, not only in Nicaragua. There is no greater blessing than to be able to share the gifts and abilities that you have with someone else. Not only have I been able to teach Amna a little, but also the medical students and nurses as well. It is amazing to see everyone working as a team and learning from each other. No one is inferior or superior, we all share our talents equally and hope for the best!

And now, here's Amna....
Wow we are here in Nicaragua!!!
It is sure so different to me to see how people live in a miserable conditions, they do not have most of essential needs for living and they are still happy. Their value of life is in being together and not worrying about what they do not have, they do not think in "got to have it box"it is very neat and touching to see how much confidence and satisfaction some of these people have in themselves despite of their very poor or unhealthy look! they wear smile a real one like they have got it all.
Wow, this is wonderful to witness and experience unlike tales and pictures.I am so glad to happen to be here...the sense of security that i felt here in Nicaragua is something i have missed for a long time and I did not realize it untill I have . I experienced it a gain I wonder why people go to jail here it seems too secure .Doors are open all day long and people gathering outside their homes throughout the night!!