Pandemic Travel Brings Hope
Written by Program Director, Lindsay Doucette
One beautiful part of Latin American culture is the importance placed on the art of greeting. When introduced to someone new, you acknowledge their presence with a handshake and a kiss on the cheek. Even when passing in the hallway, you greet others with “good morning” or “good afternoon.” There is an intentional recognition and celebration of the presence of the other that can sometimes be uncomfortable to those of us from the United States accustomed to a certain level of personal space.
The arrival of the coronavirus pandemic has imposed a degree of separateness that challenges all communities, but particularly those in which human touch is such an important part of the language and culture. Nonetheless, when our neurosurgery mission team arrived in Bolivia last week, that same spirit of the joy of human presence was immediately palpable. Even through the masks and fist bumps, there was an intentional pause to express, “You are here. I am here. And our presence together brings hope.”
It was an honor to be able to bring hope through our decision to travel to Bolivia despite the inherent risks. In Sucre, the coronavirus outbreak has wreaked havoc on an economy normally supported by a healthy tourism sector. The owner of the Hostal de Su Merced in Sucre said we were the first guests in two years and so they happily rolled out the red carpet for us. Our taxi driver from the airport to the hotel shared that flights to Sucre had been cut in half since the start of the pandemic and he was having to find new ways to support his family. It seems our visit also brought hope for a return to normalcy for our medical partners who were eager to resume mission trips for the treatment of low-income patients who have been further impoverished by the economic impacts of the pandemic.
In our visits at local hospitals, we learned that the impact of COVID-19 has caused both an increase and a decrease in patients seeking medical care. At the Instituto Chuquisaqueño de Oncología, the number of women seeking attention for cervical and breast cancer has tripled in recent months. There is a backlog created by a surge of patients suddenly returning to hospitals with the lifting of quarantine restrictions. Meanwhile, our neurosurgical partners reported a decrease in spine patients because so many people are without the resources to pay for surgical care. Whereas in the past, people would organize a kermés, a small fundraiser to support a family member’s surgery, communities are now overrun with these types of fundraisers. Instead of one person in need of medical attention, there are multiple people in each family affected by COVID or other serious medical issues.
Traveling to Bolivia, we’ve also found a renewed sense of hope in the ability to be present with our colleagues during a time of global turmoil. After careful consideration of the risks and benefits of mission travel, as well as the logistical hurdles of testing and vaccination requirements, we decided to go forward with a neurosurgery and pacemaker mission trip this month, followed by a two-day staff retreat with the Solidarity Bridge and Puente de Solidaridad teams.
It is wonderful to see a deep concern for the common good displayed all around us in Bolivia. We see it in the doorman who sprays our hands with sanitizer as we enter a building, in the sanitization doormats for wiping feet as we come in from the street, and in the strict adherence to masking in every public space. There is a special care given to the easing of spirits as we cautiously enter this new normal—a demonstration of the human value of caring for one another.
We all must exercise flexibility in adjusting to the new and ever-changing realities around us. We are paying special attention to the new travel guidelines brought on by the emergence of the Omicron variant. However, in spite of all the hurdles and disruptions, it is inspiring to witness how the power of human connection and the joy of being physically present remains stronger than ever.
With international travel or without, our mission has been active throughout the pandemic, serving patients in need and lending support to medical workers on the front lines. We have ambitious goals to advance our surgical training initiatives and make surgery more accessible to patients in Bolivia and Paraguay in the years to come. Please consider making a year-end gift to support this important work.