Today was my third visit to Site 0947. Out of all of the four sites, 0947 has the friendliest and most outgoing workers. The workers and children would always have a smile on their face, and would come out in droves when the Dr. Baldwin was in town. The first time I made a medical visit there I saw over 90 people (mostly children), the second time over 110 and today I wasn’t sure what to expect. I packed my medical box to the brim with vitamins, toothbrushes, and medications. I was really looking forward to seeing if the patients I had evaluated and treated in weeks past had made any improvement with my treatment. For me, being able to treat those in need and then witnessing improvement in their health is the most rewarding part of being a doctor. I was able to experience it this day with many of my Lao patients. One child who could not even open his eyes because his eyelids were infected, swollen, and pus filled just two weeks ago, was completely healed, smiling, and playing with the other children. He was no longer an outcast. Another child who had fallen ill with malaria was back on his feet again, fever free, after a few doses of the expensive wonder drug Fansidar. I had treated a teenage girl a week prior who came to me with a large downward gash in her left heel which left her Achilles tendon exposed. She had walked several kilometers, without shoes to see me, and her wound was filled with dirt, grime and bacteria. I irrigated it thoroughly and stitched it up and gave her some antibiotics. She returned to me today, infection free, and the wound healing well. She was almost ready to get her stitches out! The beauty about treating infections in the 3rd world is that there is virtually no antibiotic resistance. Basic penicillin will kill just about anything. If only it were still that way in the States….
I saw many patients throughout the day with positive outcomes- rashes cured, ear infections gone, worms destroyed. It felt great. To top things off, at the end of the day the village chief told me through a translator how grateful the villagers were for all of my help. He appreciated all of the time I spent with his patients and said that I was the best doctor he had ever seen. Knowing that he probably hadn’t seen too many doctors in his day, I wasn’t quite sure how to take that. Nevertheless, I took it as a compliment. It was deeply rewarding.
