Thursday, April 25, 2019
The NICU team has made it through another very meaningful day. Today was our first clinical day in hospitals here in San Pedro Sula. Joe Cram and Jojy George were at Hospital Mario Catarino Rivas, a public hospital with the goal of starting its very first respiratory team in the NICU.
Joe and Jojy had a productive day providing education for many nurses. They taught the settings of mechanical ventilation and the purpose of each setting.
For Joe, since he has been serving with Friends of Barnabas on several trips, he received some very special feedback. A Honduran family asked a doctor to share with Joe that what he did for their baby made a very big impact and his influence has stayed in their hearts. Joe stated, "for a task that seems so small, to know that it made such a meaningful difference is very rewarding." He continued to say that even educating one nurse and then coming back and seeing how that one nurse has trained so many others is how our work now is truly impacting the lives of so many more children.
Arun James spent his day in the NICU at Hospital Leonardo Martinez. This facility is currently preparing to accept patients that need mechanical ventilation for the first time. Arun spent a large portion of the day educating the nurses on setting up high flow nasal cannula, bubble CPAP, non-invasive ventilation, and invasive mechanical ventilation. Arun, along with the Neonatologist and Intensivist, are working to help the nurses get more hands-on experience with the ventilators so that they will become more comfortable and competent in the care they can help provide for their future intubated neonates.
Barry Young and Kendra Clingerman spent their day at the Instituto Hondureno de Securidad Social (IHSS: the Social Security Hospital). This hospital is completely dependent upon the government for funding and supplies. Therefore they have very limited resources. They have not had any way to provide non-invasive support besides a couple liters of flow through a nasal cannula or oxyhood. If a baby in this facility needs more support, he or she must be intubated and placed on a ventilator. Today Barry and Kendra introduced them to bubble CPAP and through being prayerful and resourceful were able to save a baby in respiratory distress from intubation by placing him on bubble CPAP. Even through the many challenges this hospital faces, the energy and excitement of the staff here is amazing.
Today has been a gift. A day in which our team has been able to see the bigger picture of the work we are doing and the impact that will continue beyond the days we are fortunate to spend here. We cannot express enough gratitude for all of the supporters of Friends of Barnabas Foundation, as this would not be possible without you. We ask for continued prayers for wisdom and guidance as we pray that we would continue to be a light for these medical professionals and the babies and families they care for.
~Kendra Clingerman
