The Hospital - San Pedro Sula, Honduras

Hospital Mario Catarino Rivas

It's now my third time visiting and volunteering at the hospital and it still astounds me how unprepared I am to handle what I see and experience. Catarino Rivas is the 2nd largest public hospital in Honduras and handles cases from the Northern/Western half of the country. Given the recent political turmoil and Honduras' status as one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere, the hospital is severely underfunded. The pediatric ward, where we've been spending most of our time, has been drastically undermanned given the recent nurses strike (the nurses, who pour their lives out for the kids, had not been paid in months) and underfunded (prior to some medical supplies donated a few years back, veterinary syringes were being used and shared because they couldn't afford normal ones). When we first arrived on Monday morning, a child had just died due to an overdose of medication given by student doctors (who are there to replace fully-licensed nurses).

Yet, when we arrive each day, we're greeted with smiles and open arms. From children who have suffered more than we likely ever will in our lifetimes. And very simply, all they want to do is hang out, color, or make crafts.

Really, who are we to be so honored? And how do you reconcile the simple joy of the children and the very harsh reality of their sickness and potential deaths? How do you retain hope when medicine is lacking, doctors are undertrained, and coffin stores are across the street waiting to make another sale?

One of the biggest frustrations we have working at the hospital is the inability to really change things on a macro scale. I think much of the team has grasped that and understood that our goal will be to change things on a scale where we can make a difference. And sometimes that's just putting a smile on a kid or entertaining a child awaiting surgery or chemo. So we'll try and do that knowing that even small differences are differences nonetheless.