Who are we and what are we going to be doing?
This summer, I am joining a
Medical Missions team to the Amazon Jungle of Peru through Global Partners, the
missions arm of the Wesleyan church. Although
part of me is really interested in sustainability of healthcare, this trip is
really centered on meeting the more immediate health needs of the Amazonian
indigenous peoples. Because our focus is
on immediate needs, we are going to be holding medical clinics in several rural
villages along the Amazon. The team is
comprised of an interdisciplinary team of dentists, doctors, nurse
practitioners, nurses, public health students, EMTs, and students. Because I am getting my Masters degree in
Public Health with a concentration in Global Health, as part of my schooling I
am going to be collecting some research data regarding gastrointestinal (GI)
parasites which can be used in the future to make these short term medical
trips more holistic and sustainable.
What is the clinic set up?
We have 5 stations in each of our
clinics, a triage station, pharmacy station, dentist station, medical station,
and a Gospel station. The triage station
is where the GI parasite data will be collected as well as the gathering of
basic medical information for use by the clinicians. The pharmacy station is where all the
medications we bring with us are set up, organized, and dispensed. The dentist station is where dental work is
done, because hygiene is virtually nonexistent, we mostly just pull rotting
teeth rather than doing other dental work.
The medical station is where the doctors and nurse practitioners will be
treating physical needs and prescribing necessary medications. The Gospel station is really the most
important. Providing free healthcare
functions not only as an inlet for the missionaries to make first introductions
and begin building relationships with people in villages, but functions as an
act of goodwill that begins to build trust with the people there. Those relationships turn into life-changing
conversations, new believers, and the seeds of new churches springing up all
throughout the rainforest!
St. Francis of Assisi said,
“Always preach the Gospel; when necessary use words.” By caring for the physical needs of people,
the love and compassion of God is made manifest in places where the name of Jesus
has never before been heard. The
full-time Global Partners missionaries in the Amazon Rainforest accompany our
team into every village talk with people as they wait in line to be seen in
clinic. Each and every person that comes
through the door is prayed for by the missionary by and receives a Bible in
their language.
What are our methods of travel?
Of course to get to Peru we are
going by airplane to the country’s capital of Lima. While in Lima we travel by Flipper bus. Because we are traveling to the jungle which
is located in the northeast of the country and Lima is on the central coast, we
will also go by airplane to the largest jungle city of Iquitos. Throughout the city of Iquitos we travel by
mototaxi which is like a converted motorcycle with a covered seat - these are much like the Thai Tuk-Tuks and were originally shipped to the Peruvian jungle from India. To get to the villages we go by large boat
and canoe-like boats with motors.
Everywhere we are we tend to do a lot of walking which is pretty fun in
the cities especially. In 2011 I led a
team to the same area in August which was during the dry season, and when we
went to one of the villages we had to hike about an hour through the jungle to
get there which was awesome; we were able to see a lot of Peru that most
travelers don’t get to see.
How do we bathe, eat, and sleep?
We usually set a base camp in one
of the villages so we don’t have to take all of our stuff with us
everywhere. We take a bigger boat from Iquitos to get to the base camp, and then to get to all of the other smaller villages we take the smaller boats. In that base camp, we sleep
in army hammocks which are hammocks that have netting built in to prevent mosquitos
from getting in. That is sometimes a challenge because we Americans are heavy so ally of us hanging could make the small, poorly built houses fall down. Sometimes we use blow-up mattresses on the ground, so we partially hang and partially lay on the ground. It sounds really uncomfortable, but its actually not all that bad. The heat in the middle of the night is the worst part about it - I've never sweat so much as I do in Peru. We also bathe in the
Amazon River where the natives also bathe – in safe areas hopefully free from piranhas
and other dangerous animals. The river isn't all that clean, but it isn't any different than swimming in any lake in the US - other than the possible dangerous animals of course. Every trip we go on we bring a couple of cooks
with us, who are associated with the Wesleyan church in Iquitos, along with several live chickens.
There is nothing like eating foods that are normally eaten in Peru like
fresh fried chicken, plantains, yucca, and local fruits.
Where do we go to the bathroom?
In Lima and Iquitos they have indoor plumbing and have normal bathrooms. They might not be as fancy as you are used to in the States, but they are very nice in comparison to what you get in the jungle. One strange thing that you have to keep in mind is that many of the houses in Iquitos have a delicate plumbing system with small pipes so when you go to the bathroom you have to throw the toilet paper in the trash can. Yeah that really does get pretty disgusting. Just make sure that you don't throw away anything that you didn't mean to because you aren't going to want to put your hand into the trash. In the jungle, most of the villages have at least one latrine or outhouse that is basically just a toilet bowl and a barrel of river water to 'flush' with. Most of the village people don't use the outhouse though, they just go in the jungle which is why parasites from the fecal-oral contraction are a problem.
Why do this?
There is nothing like helping
people, especially using your talents.
It takes a lot to live in the jungle, sleeping in hammocks, and bathing
in the Amazon River, but helping people and meeting some of their basic needs
makes it worthwhile. It is hard to see children malnourished or with medical problems, and just being able to put a smile on their face rocks your world. I recommend this to
anyone to get out of their comfort zone and do something for others. It is also a way of sharing the Gospel using your whole self instead of just your voice. When there is a cultural barrier and a language barrier, sharing Christ using your actions and your heart is an unbelievable spiritual journey.
