End of a journey

Many people here seen to have on average four kids and they're only in their mid-20s sometimes. I have my first IM injection which was birth control. Women stand in line with their vials of contraceptives that I drew up. Here in Panama all of the IM injections are give in the glutteus. Luckily I had a great nurse that showed me the right technique. My day in the ER was like an assembly line of injections. Many women come here to planificar or family planning. These injections are easier for compliance and last for a month. Some of the women have to walk for hours (or be carried in a hammock if they're pregnant) to get to the clinic. So the longer their birth control lasts the less they have to come to the clinic and the better the compliance.

Another thing that has surprised me is the stigma that is place on mental health here. Even though in the US many are unwilling to discuss psychiatric illness and are uncomfortable when it's talked about, in Panama it is almost unmentionable. When I asked one nurse what psychiatric nurses do she told me that they give meds and lead support groups. Then she said that if you stay in the field for more than ten years you'll go crazy yourself. Not very encouraging to potential psychiatric nurses.

One of the experiences that affected me the most was when we went to the orphanage. The kids there for the most part aren't adoptable. It's so sad that these kids have had such a rough start in life and all I can do is hope for the best.

Panama has taught me so much from the culture to its native Ngobe Bugle population. I know that we have done so much but when I go home in less than a week I'll be able to take a warm shower and eat out. Meanwhile many in the Comarca and other areas still don't have clean water to drink and the children run around with skin infections, lice, and sometimes HIV. I wish that I could fix all of their problems but that's not realistic. All I know is that I was able to help many of these people in small ways, assisted with the birth of a new life, and put a smile on a few faces.