MOA recently delivered the 4th sea container to Guatemala. The container was shipped on April 5 and finally made it thru Customs and the duty free process and was delivered to the Hospital in Amatitlan on June 7. It was filled with hospital medical supplies that included pallets and pallets containing basic items such as syringes, needles, dressings, TED hose, adult diapers, shoe covers, non-skid hospital socks, wheelchairs, walkers and crutches. There were also cases and cases of various knee, elbow, wrist and ankle splints and dressing supplies. We also shipped 3 anesthesia machines, a table top autoclave, commercial ice maker, coffee makers, potable water dispensers, various and sundry tools and supplies for the maintenance workers, two motorized adjustable exam tables and two stretchers. There were also cases and cases of water filters that will provide clean potable drinking water for hundreds of families.

It also contained a refurbished fluoroscopy unit that was donated by Mr. Arnold Bates, President of Medical Imaging Solutions. This is an essential piece of equipment that will greatly improve our efficiency in the operating room and will allow us to do procedures that will be significantly less invasive than the techniques currently employed.

The maintenance department at the hospital in Amatitlan had precious few tools and supplies to carry out their duties and Mr. Troy Weaver set about collecting all of the items on their “bucket list” which were shipped as well. These included an air compressor, saws, brooms, mops, toolbox and tool chest. Troy and Mandy Weaver (Amanda is Troy’s better half) were the driving force needed to prepare the items for shipping.

While the unpacking and storage of the supplies in Guatemala required a fair amount of work, it paled comparison to the preparation required to ready the container for shipping. EVERY item had to be counted and collated, and the expiration dates checked and recorded. We received approximately 6 pallets of supplies donated by Northwest Georgia Health Systems in Gainesville, GA; the sorting was complicated by the fact that a particular item might be distributed into 10 or more boxes on multiple pallets that needed to be sorted into manageable aliquots to minimize the paper work associated with preparing a spread sheet for importation. This process required days and days of work and were it not for the tenacity and dedication of Troy and Mandy Weaver, this task would still be unfinished. Not only were they instrumental in the sorting and documentation of the supplies, they showed up ready and willing to help load the sea container.

To assist in the unpacking and to insure that some the items that were earmarked for a specific department was distributed as intended, Don and Stacey Smith accompanied me to Amatitlan for what was pretty much a whirlwind trip. We arrived late Tuesday evening, supervised and assisted in the unpacking of the trucks on Thursday and left Amatitlan Friday morning to head back to the States.