Home Remedies & Blindness

The last 2 weeks have flown! There were over 100 patients in the clinic the past 5 days. Most things were very minor but a few had me scratching my head and calling the states or saying, “go to the hospital!”
There are 2 viruses going around the school right now, one a cold, the other a stomach bug. I’ve been trying very hard to encourage hygiene efforts and home remedies. Working in a place where people make $3 a day you have to think about what you are teaching when you give a pill. Say you aren’t there and they get sick. Do they buy that medicine you gave them for the cold or do they feed their family? The other problem, taking medications is the culture. So when I tell the kids and parents to drink hot tea with honey (shown in many studies to be as effective as cough syrup) for cough, they just look at me like I’m nuts.
I’ve been telling all the kids to drink lots of clean water and juices, get plenty of rest and drink hot tea with honey, which I’ve been giving them to take home. So Friday, this precious 8 year old rushes into the clinic, gets right in my face and says, “I’ve been drinking clean water for 2 days just like you said, and I’m not better!” Nothing I could say would make her believe that her cold just had to run its course. She wanted a pill to fix it!
Then came an 11 year old who said he was blind in his left eye. He was completely believable until I asked when this started and he said “twenty four days ago.” OK what kid or adult for that matter would say 24 days? Most would say “three weeks”, “a little over three weeks…” So I called my husband, he explained how to examine his eyes and the kid honestly failed. But before I could do anything more he ran out to go to sports. Long story short, I requested to see his social worker but before the social worker came by, the boy comes in with yet a different problem. When I ask how his left eye is he says, “just this morning I started to see a little bit, I think it’s going to be OK.” This kid should be an actor!

Looking forward to starting again tomorrow! Have a good week!
Jenny