Haiti Reflections

Adventure to Haiti

The process of getting to Haiti was an adventure in it of itself. Our original plan was to fly out of Detroit Saturday night and arrive in JFK for a layover. We were then supposed to fly out to Port au Prince Sunday morning. However, as soon as we got to the airport, we found out our flight was delayed due to a winter storm in New York. No big deal, we'll just arrive a bit later. Our team passed the time playing Heads Up which was hilarious (Mo's awesome pole vaulting and Ardi's picnic panic). Around the time we were supposed to board for our delayed flight to JFK, we found out our flight had been cancelled. Thanks to our fearless trip leaders (Megan and Michal) though, we were eventually able to reschedule our flight to Haiti at the expense of a clinic day. We decided to leave all our drug and supply bags (and my personal suit case) at the airport since it was a hassle to transport them around. Little did we know, we would soon regret this.

Leaving the airport after the cancellation

Lost luggage

Before we left the airport Saturday night, Delta promised us multiple times that our checked bags would be rerouted with us to Atlanta. However, when we got to the airport Sunday afternoon we discovered that our bags had been sent to JFK. This wasn't a huge problem since Delta promised us that our bags would make it to Haiti Monday morning before we arrived. Without my personal suit case, I quickly scrambled through the airport to find a tooth brush and toothpaste. Then, we made our way to Atlanta

Night in Atlanta

We arrived in Atlanta Sunday night without any major issues. At this point, our team was already pretty exhausted from the events of the past two days. Although we lost our luggage, it was nice not having 40 lb medical bags to lug around. We quickly made our way to the motel and set aside our personal belongings and hit up the Atlanta night life. We found a popping restaurant/bar called Spondivits (aka Spondilytis) and had a blast. We ate seafood as the M4s and doctors helped prep us for what conditions to expect in Haiti. Around 2 am, we left our new found favorite ATL restaurant Spondivits (#spondivits4lyfe) and hit the beds.

ATL really loves their seafood

Lost luggage cont.

It was now Monday morning and we left for the the airport. We got in pretty early so I hit up McDonalds for some good 'ol Sausage McMuffin. After another flight delay (#delaysondelaysondelays), we eventually made our way to Haiti. Once we got to Port Au Prince, our team excitement was pretty palpable. However, all that would soon disappear once we got to baggage claim. Upon arriving there, we found out that our medical bags were still at JFK. Immediately, our team began to wonder if we would even be able to hold clinic the following day. We had already lost a clinic day due to weather issues and the last thing we wanted was to lose another clinic day because of Delta's incompetence. Luckily though, once we got to Father Rosevelt's house, we quickly took stock of the supplies the M2 trip left us and decided we had enough to start clinic the following day.

Clinic days

On Tuesday morning, you could sense the excitement within the team. We were finally starting the medical work we came to Haiti for. As we walked to our clinic site, we passed crowds of Haitians who had been there since 5 am. It was a little daunting to see so many people but everyone was up to the task. We quickly set up our pharmacy and started to take in patients. Within a couple hours, we were up and running at full speed. It was crazy how fast everything came together and rewarding to see how invested everyone was to providing the best possible care. We were all super tired but you could tell no one really cared - everyone just kept hustling and giving it their all. We also got a nice surprise when half of our medical bags came in Tuesday afternoon (the other half ended up in Miami for some reason), thus allowing us to continue clinic on Wednesday.

Setting up clinic

My personal belongings arrive

Although it was great that our medical bags were finally coming in, there was still a glaring issue. My personal suit case (and Cletus' suit case) still hadn't made its way to Haiti. Normally, I wouldn't have too big of an issue with this. However, it was 90 degrees during the day and ridiculously humid, so you can imagine how sweaty my clothes and boxers got. Luckily though, my teammates donated me some of their clothes (thanks PT for the shirt and Megan for the bball shorts!) and let me use some of their shower stuff (thanks Taz and Liz!). I was also able to get some nice Haitian apparel and boxers via our emergency trip fund (side note: i can't tell you how great it feels to switch into fresh boxers after four days). Finally, my luggage arrived on Thursday (took five days) and it basically felt like Christmas.

My new bright green Haitian shirt (on the left)

Clinical skills

Amidst all the issues our team was having with medical bags, everyone was learning and growing at an exponential rate. We all got opportunities to interview patients, perform physical exams, present to the M4s/doctors, diagnose conditions, and work the pharmacy. It was awesome seeing how all the M1s were able to prescribe treatments on their own by the end of the trip. We really had come a long way since the start of the trip and I can honestly say we're going to become better doctors because of this trip. By Friday night, we had to wrap up clinic and it was honestly bittersweet. We were all happy we got to serve hundreds of Haitians but we were sad to say goodbye to our new Haitian friends (#besttranslatorsever). We ended the night by playing soccer with some local kids on what had to be the best backdrop for pickup soccer ever (Haitians mountains on one side and a view overlooking the city on the other)

Crazy backdrop for soccer

New Friends

After coming back home, I’ve been asked a couple times what were some of my favorite memories on this trip. I’ve definitely enjoyed clinic days, late night conversations, and our crazy games (SCISSOR BAGGG). But I think one of my highlights has definitely been getting to know my classmates more. Honestly, when I first found out who was on the Haiti team I wasn’t quite sure how I felt - I really didn’t know any of them all that well. A lot of them were pretty outgoing whereas I’m a little more reserved/shy. Even as we were at the airport, I still had my reservations. By midweek though, all the concerns I had were gone. I quickly realized my teammates (and classmates) were some of the most caring people I’ve ever met. The amount of sacrifices we collectively made to ensure that locals got the best possible care really brought us together. I can honestly say now that I love my team. Even though we’re all different and a little crazy, I truly think that they’re some of my closest friends at school now (#haitifamily) 

Best team ever

Going home

It’s been a day now since I’ve gotten back and it still hasn’t really registered that I’m home. It almost seems surreal and I’ve had to ask myself a couple times if I really went to Haiti at all. I’ve been extremely blessed by the opportunity I’ve had to serve hundreds of Haitians in Morne De L’Hopital. However, I realize that unless our group is able to provide reliable and sustainable care, we’re only putting a band aid on a larger issue. I’m not sure what the solution will be, but I do believe that EMR is a step in the right direction. Hopefully, I’ll get a chance to go back to Haiti in December - but until then, I’ll continue to apply the lessons I learned in Haiti to become the best doctor I can be.

#HaitiFamilyForLife