| A Sacred Journey to Chulucanas, Peru
Recently I had the privilege of leading a group of volunteer healthcare professionals on a medical mission trip to Chulucanas, Peru, as part of the Global Health Ministries organization. The team consisted of 30 volunteers from Catholic Health East Hospitals from Maine to Florida with some members joining us from Kansas. The goal of the trip was threefold: to establish, supply and operate a health clinic, to offer practical education to the in-country partners, to visit the homes of patients unable to come to the clinic and to send a delegation of five volunteers to serve the people in the mountain parishes. The volunteers were each required to carry 100 pounds of medications in their luggage and were allowed to bring only three changes of clothing in a carry-on suitcase!!! Eycarramba!!! After a 28- hour trip via three planes and a truck into the desert, we unpacked the medicines and sorted them into plastic baggies for distribution to the patients. Each person was seen by a physician, then sent to the make-shift pharmacy, lab or physical therapy department. The team members assumed various roles and helped out wherever needed. As the team leader, I was responsible for making all the travel arrangements, managing the finances, assigning daily tasks, coordinating the patients, planning the schedule, leading the processing group sessions and preparing the evening prayer. In the midst of all my assignments, I found time to talk with the people, distribute stickers and balloons to the children, blow bubbles to keep them from crying and take Polaroid photos of those who were dying so that their families would have a remembrance of them. Among the challenges faced by the team were the extreme heat, the lack of a water supply (no rain for the past seven months), and the total absence of sewage systems, trash disposal and electricity. The living quarters were minimal (to say the least). We also had to adjust our “first world” impulse to “fix” situations with money, expediency or control. We quickly learned that “third world” problems cannot be resolved during a two-week mission. It was a start, however, and there will be follow-up care of the people by in-country medics and a surgery team from Global Health Ministries that will travel to Chulucanas in October. Among the blessings experienced by the team were the faces of the people who clearly radiated the Presence of God in Chulucanas. Although the 3,000 people who were treated by the team were victims of dire, indescribable poverty, their deep faith, simplicity, ability to wait for long hours without complaining, an inner peace and a deep sense of hope permeated their beings. For those who participated in this endeavor, it was indeed a sacred journey.
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