Last night was one of those surreal nights here. I’ve heard Haiti often referred to as the “land of a million orphans” but there are moments when the weight of that statement hits you.

Late last night, Mary O’Brien, one of our pediatric nurses and Dr. Melissa Angel ended up treating an abandoned orphan. This little one was obviously terrified but it didn’t take long for her to realize she was safe now. Mary and Melissa comforted her and helped arrange the social work this morning.

Take a moment and go hug your kids.

That’s how the day started.

Another busy day in pediatrics. Leigh Anne and Natalie diligently work away treating a variety of infectious diseases including meningitis. They haven’t stopped yet. It can be a real eye-opener, especially if it’s your first trip. Nurses Carla Pitman and Susan Morgan are in that boat. They’re driven by what they see. This place changes you. Humbles you as to how lucky we are in great north.

Still missing his luggage, Patrick Clarke went all MacGyver on us. He helped fix the ultrasound, the anesthesia machine and the downed CT scan… all with duct tape and some LEGOs. Kidding. Pat-of-all-trades.

Spent part of the afternoon helping to teach Haitian medical students with the local ortho surgeons. These guys will change lives here.

Tomorrow’s gonna be another big day. Thanks to our good friend Brendan Paddick, clean water engineers from Columbus Communications will be doing a site survey at the hospital for us. What a difference that’s gonna make. And tomorrow night the team’s been invited to a BBQ at the Canadian consulate. Nice little break there.

Night’s coming on. It’s tough to think about what lies out beyond the walls of the hospital. Sadly, most nights we have to turn people away because we’re way beyond capacity. You end up feeling a little guilty but that drives you to do that much more the next day.

G’night all.

– Andrew