The "Christmas Breeze" Is Coming

One of the best things that has happened over the past couple of weeks is that the weather has cooled a bit.  The temperature during the days is still in the 80s with a heat index in the low to mid 90s but it is much better than a heat index of 115-118 degrees everyday!  It is also cooling down at night to the mid to upper 60s which makes for great sleep.  You will still sweat during the day, particularly if you are in the sun, but overall it is a welcome relief.  Everyday now I find myself thankful for the wonderful temperature and the lack of the oppressive heat.  I actually have appreciated my surroundings a bit more and understand why some people like to vacation in Belize.

Now that school is in full swing, we have begun planning our health education and community outreach for the year.  This past week I met with all of the principals of the 7 schools in the Punta Gorda area (not the villages) as well as with the head of the Ministry of Education's Health and Family Life Education agency to find out how we can help provide health education to the school children in the Toledo district.  It will start this next week with the small school in Cattle Landing (on the outskirts of P.G.).  They have less than 30 students but many are infested with lice.  We have asked that all the parents come to the school in the afternoon so that we can educate both parents and children.   We plan on treating all of the individual students at that time.

Bill and I met with Dr. Solomon, the local Ministry of Health dentist, last week.  Dental needs often seem to outweigh medical needs in the Toledo district.  Hillside does not have a dentist but has tried to facilitate some dental care.  Dr. Solomon was very anxious to have Hillside help in providing dental care, particularly in the villages.  Last year a private donor provided enough fluoride for us to treat all the young children in the villages once.  Our goal is to do that again this year and this time include the children in the Punta Gorda area.  Hillside had applied for a grant from the American Academy of Pediatrics to fund the fluoride but we just found out that it was rejected so we will need to look for other sources of fluoride.  Dr. Solomon did give us clearance to use the dental chair that is in the San Antonio clinic as well as the mobile dental unit when we go out to the villages if we have a visiting volunteer dentist.

We have an eye doctor in town this month.  He is a volunteer from Australia working with Belize Council for the Visually Impaired (BCVI).  They are a non-profit group that provides free eye exams as well as treatment for a nominal fee.  They try to have an optometrist here in Punta Gorda for a few days each month and an ophthalmologist a couple times a year who can do cataract surgery and other procedures.  When they are not in town, we have to send people to Dangriga (a 2 1/2 - 3 hour bus ride away) so it is nice having an eye doctor for a consistent time, even if it is brief.

Rio Blanco