April 2003
CLINIC NOTES
On a slightly overcast Friday morning, three planes lifted
off from Santa Barbara and one from Camarillo. Due to a huge
wedding party at the Serenidad (500 guests), we stayed in town
at the Hacienda and Las Casitas hotels. There was a disco party
in the Plaza, so we were "serenaded" into the wee hours.
All ladies and gentlemen managed to get some shopping done and
we even got to play "Blitz". It just doesn’t
get much better!
On Saturday morning we were greeted by the usual pickups at
the "lengthened" Cadeje
runway. With four doctors we were able to treat all the patients
and dispense medicines. Jack Broms (orthopedic surgeon) treated
a patient with an ankle fracture and was able to make use of
Lola’s old fracture boot. What a great team!
The dental department was busy, as usual, with three dentists
and their assistants, plus a translator to help with the
flow of patients. There were the usual fillings,
extractions, denture fittings and even some teeth cleaning. Go, dental, go!
Brad Chmelka, one of our dedicated interpreters, recently wrote
the following:
In the three years that I’ve been a part of our team, the impressions that
are most lasting are those of the people we meet, help, and get to know. Not
being a "real" doctor (science doesn’t count), my roles are as
interpreter and occasional copilot. We interpreters are especially privileged
to be at the linguistic interface with our Cadejeño hosts,
which, during and outside the clinic, allows us to get to know each
other beyond just health
needs. I am especially touched by the warmth and dignity of the elders
and the openness and happiness of the children. There are always
special encounters that
become the highlights of any trip and this one had several:
- the bravery of 8 year old little Zaira in the dental
clinic, who unflinchingly endured a difficult (and her
first) tooth extraction and then promptly went out
to continue playing;
- our evening house call in San Juanico to check on 65
year old Juanquina Aguilar to be sure she had the correct
medicines
(she didn’t;
great job, Eric);
- meeting Virginia Murillo Aguilar, the 74 year old
founder, matriarch and restauranteur of San Juanico,
whose eyes light up the room as she tells her stories.
As always, we can’t say enough about the helpfulness
and hospitality of Jim Christopher and his wife Annie in Mulege,
who can solve practically any problem
that arises and who hosted us at their home with a delicious
barbeque after our arrival on Friday.
And though our plane remained in Cadeje/San Juanico Saturday
night, causing us to miss (back in Mulege) the usual mango
margarita reward for a job well-done,
we replaced it with near-drowning experiences, instead. Some reward…at
least for Eric McFarland and me (now locally known as Los AeroWipeout Kings),
who boldly, if unsuccessfully, tried our hand at emulating the fabled Juan
Grube hanging ten at Scorpion Bay.
Many thanks to all of our team, who make such important differences
in the lives of the people and families in Baja California Sur.
APRIL VOLUNTEERS:
PILOTS: Jim Gaskin, John Grube, Frank Heintz, Chuck Montague
MD’s: Jack Broms, Eric McFarland, Chuck Montague, David Rose
RN: Judy Jensen RMA:Lola Rosales (clinic coordinator)
DENTISTS: John Grube, "the Klein Duo"—Dick and son Bob
RDA’s: Melanie Lovett, Ruth Ann Quarles, Melodi Willis
TRANSLATORS: Brad Chmelka, Bob Openshaw, Lola Rosales, Susan
Grube, Dale Dixon
CONSTRUCTION/HELPERS: Jim Gaskin, Mike Crookston, Frank Heintz
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