That means good morning. I'm pretty much fluent in Indonesian now. I'm sorry it has taken a while to post a blog. The internet on the ship is very slow, and that is if we are lucky enough to catch it when it is working. But anyway, I went on my first MEDCAP last week. It was a 3 day 4 night MEDCAP which I feel very lucky to have gotten. Our transportation was an Australian LCH (Landing Craft Heavy) to our site in Moritai about 2 hours from where the Mercy was anchored. The ship was similar to the ones the allied forces used on D-day to storm the beach. The front of the ship has a door that drops down so soldiers could run out onto the land. The Aussies were great hosts as they fed us well and provided a place for us to sleep.
We went to two different locations on the island of Moritai. The drive on the first day was about an hour and took us along the coast of the island. There were many people in the streets seemingly awaiting our arrival. They were very friendly and excited that we were there. Our team of about 40 people worked well together and served well over a 1,000 people during the three days we were there. The pharmacy was super busy, but luckily, we had three or four Indonesian interpreters to help counsel the patients. One or two of the interpreters were actually Indonesian pharmacists.
The second location was at a school only about 5 minutes from the pier. There were a lot of kids running around keeping us entertained. People mainly complained of aches and pains along with some stomach issues. There were some infections as well that we were able to treat. It was a great experience and I look forward to getting to go out again soon.
This week I am not scheduled for MEDCAPs, but I will be heading inland for some other activities. Tomorrow, I head out to play some basketball as part of a community socializing activity. It would be nice if it was indoors but I'm definitely not counting on it; so, it will be interesting to see how long I last in 100 degree heat index. The following day I get to go on a tour of the area which will take us to various landmarks and to a beach. So I should have some more stories to come.
No comments:
Post a Comment