When Hearts in Motion medical staff told 70-year-old Herminia
that she needed to go to the doctor, she nodded, and said she would go as soon
as she could.
But the volunteer staff knew she wouldn't.
But the volunteer staff knew she wouldn't.
Her blood pressure was extremely high --- 210/100 -- and with that level,
the medical staff said the woman could have a stroke.
In situations like this, the best the clinic can do is tell her to drink
water, give her a small baggy of Asprin, and tell her to see a doctor
immediately.
The organization also notifies the public health department, which is provides
care and medication for diabetes and high blood pressure. However the
department rarely has enough medication to care for those who need it, said Karen
Scheeringa-Parra the founder of HIM.
The HIM health clinic brings basic health care to villages where the
populations would otherwise have limited access to it.
When the volunteers asked Herminia if she knew she had high blood pressure, she nodded yes, and said she's known for awhile.
While the clinic can't offer controlled drugs like what Herminia needed,
they can deal with the basic health concerns such as colds and aches and pains,
which is one of the most common complaints.
"Everything hurts," most people say as they sit down with the HIM
medical staff and translators. They then begin to point to various parts of
their body.
Some say they get pain when they do housework. Others work in agricultural
jobs, even if they're in their 60s or 70s and their faces are deep with wrinkles. They have chronic pain in their backs, arms and legs.
Herminia, 70, came into the free HIM health clinic today and was told to see a doctor. Despite the medical staff's insistence, it's unlikely she will do it. |
Most leave the clinic with a baggy of ibuprofen and are told to take one pill
when needed with a glass of water.
Karen also told some volunteers to take people’s blood pressure – even if
it wasn’t needed - in order to make the patients feel secure when the medical
staff told they were healthy.
While most patients come in with minor health complaints or discomforts, other times, these health clinics reveals more horrendous circumstances such
as sexual abuse and family tragedy. During the clinic today, a middle-aged
woman came in complaining of chest pain.
When asked what circumstances
reproduces the pain, she said it happens when she was upset. She then explained that her brother had recently killed her son, leaving
her as the only caretaker of her elderly mother and another relative who was in
a wheelchair.