Wednesday, July 17th 2019
Today was our fifth day in Honduras and we visited the village of Cordoncillo, Santa Cruz de Yojoa. This mountain community was founded in 1961, and it is now home to 340 people. The closest health center is a two hour walk, and the only transportation is by horse or pay for a ride into the city. There are fourteen kindergarteners and sixty-three elementary students.
Our day started out waking up from another hard thunderstorm, followed by a delicious breakfast and a quick, but bumpy ride to the village. This was the first time the village had a visit from our medical team. Despite some of the strange and odd looking things we were introducing to these folks such as de-worming pills and fluoride treatments, everyone, including the children, was brave and willing to allow us to help them.
One of the major challenges in this village is finding clean water to drink and use. The only water the families have are wells they dig themselves, most being about eight feet deep. The same unclean water is used for drinking, bathing, and washing their clothes. Due to the lack of clean water, our team saw multiple patients complaining of stomach problems and skin irritation. The good news is that Mountain of Hope is helping this community find a sight to dig a well in the near future.
Cathy Frank shared that several cases of probable Dengue Fever were referred to the clinic today. And Dr. Gentry observed that despite the general male and female stereotypical roles of males going out into the fields and women staying home to care for the children, the father of a baby came in asking all the questions about how to better care for his child. In contrast, while we usually see that men are the leaders in the villages, the women of this community seemed to take the lead in directing patients to stations and helping ensure that all the villagers who came for care today received it.
Bringing our day to a close, the young people worked on more friendship bracelets to share with some of children in the villages. We are looking forward to what tomorrow brings.
~Sarah Grace Clarke
