 Julia Tao
We drove to Seine Bight today and set up inside Calvary Church. We started seeing patients at 8:00 AM, and saw about 50 patients in total. After ending at 4:00 PM, we went back to Placencia and the students fished on the pier and were able to catch sight of some dolphins.
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Julia Tao
The group went on the Maya Medicine Tour today. We saw many different types of plants and were even able to make corn tortillas, as well as our own "bug spray" by combining different crushed plants. After lunch, we participated in a Maya ceremony. We then drove to the Spice Farm and took another tour where we saw and ate many different types of plants. An interesting berry called the "miracle berry" affects the taste buds and makes sour food taste sweet. Afterwards, we drove back to Placencia and ate at Dolce Vita before returning to Sunset Pointe. Julia Tao
The group drove from Sunset Pointe to the Golden Stream Village Clinic. We started seeing patients at 8:00 AM. The students once again took doctor orders and watched a specific doctor. There were a lot of people at this clinic, and the doctors and students had to work at a very fast pace. We ended at 3:00 PM and then drove back to Sunset Pointe. Dr. Zhang-Cheng Thank you for the prayers about the hot weather. Last night it rained so the weather was under 100F. Today we travelled 1.5 HR to another town called Bella Vista, where we saw total of 80 patients today! I saw mostly children with lots of fever and rash. I ordered rare tropical diseases like Malaria and Typhoid. There was a girl had a skull fracture sitting in the front seat of car without car seat. A mom travelled to Honduras to this clinic so her baby from cerebral palsy can get care. In order to receive physical therapy, she has to ride a bus for another 5 hours. Nathan took history and examined three patients on his own. Nate Cheng Today, we drove from Placencia all the way to Bella Vista, another clinic that people come to from miles around. This really warmed my heart to know that many even walked across borders just to see us doctors. As Dr. Im's assistant, I called patients, blew up balloons, saw patients, and even learned how to diagnose a patient properly through investigative questions. These try to find something symptoms of infection. But we must remembers that it is only through God that we can save our patients. For instance, when we arrived at Bella Vista, the Lord provided us wonderful and amazing staff, including exquisite performance by nurses, clerks, doctors, and even health officials. We appreciate God's blessing to give us such wonderful people and for opening the hearts too the indigenous Belizean to Medical care, and more importantly, Christ Jesus. "'Not by might nor by power, but by my Holy Spirit,' says the Lord Almighty." Zechariah 4:6 this verse in Zachariah truly comes to show that it is only by the works of God and our faith that we can be saved, helped, and love so that we can not only enjoy our life on Earth to glorify God and to enjoy our time in heaven to carry out his works Julia Tao
The ABC group took a boat and then drove to the Independence Polyclinic. We started seeing patients at 9:00 AM. Each student followed a specific doctor, taking doctor orders and observing their actions. Many patients who came in had rashes from the heat, and the students were able to watch a fractured arm being set in a cast. We ended at 3:00 PM, and took a taxi and the boat to get back to Sunset Pointe. Dr. Zhang-Cheng Today we took a boat to a nearby town called Independence. There is a small clinic called Independence Polyclinic where we have seen more patients than yesterday. The patient population was mostly indigenous people from Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras. They mostly spoke Spanish. We saw pregnant women, children with rash and fever, and young people with different ailment. There was a 30 year old young man just suffered from a stroke. He never had rehab because the nearest hospital was 5 hrs away. Because the clinic is set up for procedures, we also performed wound stitches, nail removal, and plasters for a fracture arm. It was very busy and we started to feel heat exhaustion. The mangrove islands were beautiful and undeveloped. Julia Tao
In the morning, the ABC group set up a clinic in the main village. At 9:30 AM, people started to arrive. Students checked the patients' vitals before sending them to the appropriate medical specialist (a general family medicine doctor, a pediatrician, an ER doctor, and a dentist). We ended at around 3:30 to 4:00 PM and then went back to Sunset Pointe. Dr. Zhang-Cheng First clinic in Placentia Community Center was in a big room with 4 tables and some chairs. The students took vitals and chief complaints from the patients and triage them to the different doctors. A lot of children have never seen a doctor nor received any vaccines. Some adults developed blurry vision and cataracts possibly due to lack of sunglasses but have work in the intense sun. Dental cavities were also big issue due to lack of oral hygiene and too much lime minerals in the water. Eventhough we worked in a room over 100 degrees without air conditioning, we were so excited to help the indigenous people from 9 AM to 3 PM with steady steam. Local people are like families and treat us medical team members with hospitality and great appreciation. All of them received medications, toothbrush, prayers and bibles.  Julia Tao
The ABC participants took a red-eye plane flight from LAX to Belize City. After a few hours of driving, we checked in at Sunset Pointe in Placencia, Belize. The doctors then taught the students the methods of checking for vital signs. Dr. Zhang-Cheng Our very first Agape Belize Cure team arrived in the Belize city airport. After over night flight from Los Angeles, everyone was tired but very excited. Our team was composed of Dr. Mary Tao pediatrician, Dr Jessie Zhang Family Medicine, Dr Brian Im Emergency Medicine, and last minute joined by Dr Wei dentist. The student organizers are Julia Tao and Nathan Cheng, co-presidents of ABC and secretaries, Ryan Tao and Matthew Cheng co-VP and treasures. At the airport custom check point, a Belize officer checked through our luggage with lots of medications. Initially he wanted us to pay environmental tax for $30. Then he started flipping through the Gideon bibles we brought. We told him that he can keep one to read. He was very happy and let us through the custom without paying any money. After picked up a van from the airport, we drove to get empanadas from a local bakery. We met a Boyscout leader and his daughter. He told us that the Belize Boy Scouts can train and lead all the way to 23 years old. His neckerchief was a gift from Japan. We stopped by a Belizean Ivan's house. Dr Mary checked out his new born daughter's rash and helped his aunt and grandmother as well. After 5 hours of van ride in the heat, we arrived at Pointe Placencia in Stann Creek, Southern Belize. We went to this restaurant called Wendy's to eat lunch, then nate caught 2 small fish but released them due to their size. After dinner, we got icecream made of real fruits. The flyer on the wall is about our clinics which will start tomorrow. |
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