LaPlaine Clinic

Above you are the faces of some of the patient's at the Laplaine Clinic. In the background stands Michael, discussing methods he can use to further benefit the patient's at the Clinic with Kristen, our mentor.

Today's day was varied, and challenging. As the five of us entered the LaPlaine Clinic ,we were greeted by the smiling faces of our patients'. The doctor residing over the clinic ushered us into the corner and proudly announced to the patients, "These are the health-care professionals I told you about! They will teach you about some of the problems that may bring you here! Listen to them!"

And with that, she was off. We were whisked into the front of the room and asked to present the topics we had spent the greater part of the last few weeks "Becoming the experts" in, and thus spent the next our discussing topics such as hypertension, Chronic Kidney Disorder, wound management, immunizations, and nutrition. Our patient's listed with rapt attention, nodding their heads in approval when they understood and asking questions of us when they didn't.

The next hour played out the scene I mentioned earlier. We spoke with our patients, interacting with them, asking questions and obtaining relevant medical histories. Although we met only briefly, we established relationships that we feel will be integral to the professional character we will develop as our careers blossom.   Gratitude for our contributions brought a fierce joy in the servitude for our patients, and we all walked away from the experience feeling blessed for the opportunity.

Lastly, we spent an hour working with the local pharmacist, Kent. From him, we learned the difficulties of a pharmacist in Dominica, and how his job branched out into much more than simply the dispensing of medication. He recounted a story to us wherein the previous week he had been asked at 3:00 A.M. to provide hospital for a clinic in a nearby-village when they had an unexpected delivery late into the night.  Out of curiousness, we asked if this meant he was on call.

Laughing, he looked at us and said, "No, I'm not on call. I'm simply there whenever I'm needed."