… a constant fact of life. It actually boggles the mind to consider the complexity of arranging schedules, transportation, security, meals, water, supplies, equipment and more for a shifting portion of the 1500 people on board the USS Kearsarge. Groups are going to different locations and doing different tasks and almost all of it gets done, even if not in the most time-efficient manner. Engineers are going somewhere to build a school or repair a damaged clinic, medical teams are going to 3 different sites, sometimes with dental or optometry or dermatology or surgery or veterinary. [View Full Entry]

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A different clinic today, held at the large regional hospital. We had 6 physicians from the Kearsarge and 4 from the Colombian military. I was happy for the latter when my first patient had molluscum contagiosum, a contagious (but not generally dangerous) skin condition. In the US we use electrocautery to treat it, but I learned that here where that's not available, they suggest the mom pick the top off each little lesion, pulling out the root, then apply iodine to keep it from spreading. I didn't bring a copy of Where There Is No Doctor but I imagine the described [View Full Entry]

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I made it to Santa Marta from Tampa, Florida and have been immediately immersed in the work of Project HOPE. This project is part of the US government's mission called Continuing Promise 2008, a humanitarian mission to Central American and Caribbean countries April through November 2008. In addition to the medical teams with primary care and surgical components, there are dentists, hygenists, optometrists and veterinarians. The engineers are building schools, clinics and playgrounds. The USS Kearsarge has ~1500 personnel aboard, with US Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps staff, as well [View Full Entry]

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Hello to all my friends and relatives. I am embarking on another adventure, this time with Project HOPE to provide health care to people around the Caribbean. After spending a few days visiting with my son, Daniel, in Florida where he goes to school, I’m flying to Colombia to join the Project HOPE staff, medical personnel from other agencies (Operation Smile is one - they do cleft lip and palate repairs) and a large contingent of US sailors aboard the USS Kearsarge (check out the link - this ship is amazing! And explore t [View Full Entry]

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20 June 2006 On the way to Gilgit at last. Karim had to come by road because two “confirmed” flights were canceled due to weather. So this morning at 0400 I set off in the FPAP Land Cruiser with the driver and 4 other passengers for the journey of less than 630 km (378 miles) that will take us 14 hours or more. As we left the city of Islamabad and traveled toward Rawalpindi we were enveloped in one ravine by cloud of noxious, foul-smelling smog. There is incredible pollution here, with thousands upon thousands of vehicles of all sorts, none [View Full Entry]

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More random thoughts: 1) The Musharraf government instituted an anti-corruption program in 2002. Apparently this led to an intense training program of the traffic police in Islamabad. Everyone I talk to seems to be very pleased with how courteous and helpful they are now. 2) Just saw a road sign saying “Civilized people avoid unnecessary horn blowing. “ But it’s clear that the purpose of the horn blowing is to let the drivers, motorcyclists and unawares pedestrians that one is creating a third lane or traveling within inches of the other person’s right or left rear [View Full Entry]

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After 31 grueling hours of travel Seattle to JFK in New York to Dubai to Islamabad (delayed flights, only had one check-in bag and it didn’t get to Islamabad - wonder where it DID go???) I am literally half-way around the world, with a 12-hour time difference. It’s not Kansas! Random thoughts: the young taxi driver told me this am: he’s highly educated, but lost his good-paying job 1 ½ years ago. Now works driving a cab for 2500 Pakistani rupees a month (about US $ 41-42), says it takes about R 4000 a month to maintain a family of 3 [View Full Entry]

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Hi! I’m Nancy, from Seattle, Washington, the state on the west side of the United States (not Washington, DC, the US capital on the east coast). I just arrived in Islamabad, Pakistan today to start a 12-week adventure and wanted to share something about it with you. I am a Family Physician who quit practice after 21 years at a migrant and community health center in eastern Washington State to go back to school. I am getting a Master’s in Public Administration at the Daniel J. Evans School of Public Affairs at the University of Washington in Seattle. The summer’s advent [View Full Entry]

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