Mission Completed…

Medical Outreach of America just completed our 4th surgical mission to Amatitlan, Guatemala and as usual, it proved to be a most rewarding and humbling experience. This was a strictly orthopedic/dental mission that dealt with very difficult cases, which is usually the situation; the patients don’t usually seek medical attention unless they are in extremis or their condition progresses to the point where they simply can’t tolerate it any longer. The lack of intra-operative/immediate perioperative imaging made the cases a bit more stressful, but the cases went extremely well. This could not have happened without the incredible performance by our anesthesia staff, Dr. Justin Scott and Ron Woodward, CRNA and our surgical assistant, Bethany Huckaby. Of course, a surgical mission wouldn’t be a surgical mission without surgeons; I am privileged to have shared surgical duties with my long time friend and practice partner, Dr. John Brunette. Our pre-med and medical student (Aaron Lee and Stephen Milhollin) were invaluable in assisting with retraction and positioning.

Our team was absolutely amazing and I can’t begin to express my gratitude and admiration for the exemplary job they did! Dr. Fu Wong worked long, hard hours in the dental clinic performing extractions, but also performing countless beautiful restorations.

Several spouses joined us this spring (Suzie Woodward, Laura Brunette, Kirsten Scott and Sandy Atwell) as did Dr. Wong’s son Nathan, his nephew Aaron and my daughter, Dr. Kristen Rivas, which allowed a cohesiveness of the group that was extremely refreshing. The young adults did an awesome job; it was incredibly rewarding to see the enthusiasm and spirit for the hard work that was required. I know that the future of volunteerism is safe in their hands!

Our non-surgical team members kept the surgical supplies inventoried and organized and ran countless trips from the supply room to the operating room to keep us supplied. They also dispensed 400 pairs of reading glasses (provided at a steep discount by Restoring Vision – www.restoringvision.org ) which will greatly improve the patient’s ability to perform simple, seemingly mundane activities such as threading a needle, mending a shirt or reading a label. I applaud the tireless efforts of Ms. Laura Allgood who helped facilitate the many efforts in carrying out these duties.

The hospital in Amatitlan has been operating under extreme circumstances for the past several months as the most basic of materials were either in very short supply or completely unavailable due to lack of funding. MOA partnered with the hospital and purchased nearly $22,000 worth of supplies to help keep the operating rooms operational. The supply list included such basics as dressing and casting materials, sterile and non-sterile gloves, sutures, IV tubing, assorted essential medications and foley catheters to name but a few. The hospital staff worked long hours without receiving additional pay to assist us in caring for the less fortunate. We couldn’t have done our work without the staff going above and beyond to assist us in preparing the rooms for surgery, cleaning and sterilizing instruments and providing additional instrumentation for difficult cases.

While I may not have mentioned every team member by name, this does in no way diminish their importance; everyone performed multiple roles and all performed at a level of intensity that only comes from the heart and I am proud to have been a part of this incredible team! Guys, many, many thanks for the donation of time, effort and talents that made this mission a success!! You are the best!!

Ed Atwell, M.D.