Diving and Clinic

Went on my first dive here on Monday. The doctors were doing a certification dive with the dive shop next to our apartments, so I decided to tag along. We went to a site called Overheat Reef in the Roatan Marine Park. Saw stoplight parrotfish munching on coral, 2 huge barracudas, pretty queen angelfish, and thousands of others. The latin names of coral we learned in Belize kept popping up in my head. Couldn't we have just learned the ordinary names? I'm not going to get out of the water and say "Oh boy did you see that Diploria labyrinthiformis?" Great dive, excited to do lots more! 

I have worked at the clinic 2 days now. Yesterday was overwhelming. The Global Healing clinic is one office at the Roatan Hospital Publico, which is a run down building without even running water.

When we walk in in the mornings at 8am the lobby is already filled with sick kids and parents. They don't have appointments, but arrive early in the morning to get a number in line. I collect the charts from admissions and prepare them with the necessary forms for the doctor visit. Then call the patient and parent in, measure their height, weigh them, take temperature, and ask their chief complaint. We have one local doctor, Mario, and the two ped residents from California. Most of the kids have parasites, upper respiratory infections, or are malnourished. 

We get through the patients pretty fast and have been done by 11:30. So I have the rest of the day to hang out on the beach! Went snorkeling in Half Moon Bay today, but got out after realizing I was surrounded by 4 jellyfish!

Now I'm going to a yoga class at a studio down the street in a grass hut structure with wood planked floors, open air, and surrounded by palm trees. Pretty awesome.

Here's a photo just after sunset last night....