After way too many hours of trying to find the best deal to Santiago (the second largest city in the DR), I ended up with a ticket on a direct flight to the capital, Santo Domingo, on Delta(no charge for extra bags! A rare thing today!) It seems if you fly into Santo Domingo and take a bus ride two hours north (for a mere $8) you cut your plane ticket price in half. At first I was a little nervous about this, my espanol being far from perfecto, but the more I think about it the more I feel at peace about it.
I was talking with the midwife heading the group yesterday by phone and she was going over a list of things we need and will be buying when we arrive in the DR. When she told me that we would need to bring two gallons of water each day to the hospital with each team (we will be in teams of three) I asked why. She said "Well, the water very rarely works there." When I inquired about how they sterilize equipment for cesarean sections she told me of how they puncture a bag of IV fluids and wash them that way. Oh my. Is this the same country that one hour from where we will be has five star hotels on beautiful beaches?
I am busy collecting supplies to fill my two 20 gallon totes that I will take with me. If you haven't seen the list yet, here is what we need:
feta scopes
BP cuffs
stethoscopes
Gloves sterile and non sterile size M and L (costco is a good place to buy these).
Instruments (check your local hospital for donations of used ones)
o Scissors
o Needle holders
o Hemostats of all types
o Forceps of all types
* Chux pads (disposable or washable)
* Baby blankets
* Photo paper / 4x6 for moms to get picture of baby
* General OB / L&D items
* bulb syringes
* surgical cloths
* thermometers
* ambu bags (I like www.statmedical.com, they give me a 20% DISCOUNT for humanitarian aid
Single, double, queen and king bed sheets top only
o No holes or stains
o Please cut double, queen, and king sheets in half and hem them
· Pens (lots of these to hand out to doctors)
· Notepads (small to also hand out to doctors)
· Spanish books or info on pregnancy, birth, PP, breastfeeding
· We really need an NRP book in Spanish but many speak English as well.
· Snacks
· Powdered drink mixes (emergency C, zip fizz, etc)
· Clorox wipes or other disinfectant wipes
· Syringes and needles of all types and sizes
· Towels for the mothers
· Hand sanitizer
· Feeding tubes French 8 or 10
· Large nightgowns for the moms to change into. Short sleeves, moomoo style
· Hospital gowns
Depends
Wash rags (for mothers)
Spanish Bibles
Onesies (newborn sizes)
If you have anything you wish to donate, contact me and I would be happy to pick it up or give you my address to mail it to me.
