Chikungunya and Privilege

I just returned from a two day trip to the Department of Esquintla. In that region there are three communities in which we work, Sipicate, La Gomera and Las Palmas, and I was anxious to visit with families as it had been quite a while since I had last been there. But with Dale Beyer out of the country, this was the perfect opportunity to do some catching up with the families I love.

We did have some wonderful visits with families, and I was greeted like a valued family member each place we went. I love these people so much, and it was great to reconnect. However, three visits into Sipicate we realized that these people were struggling greatly. An illness called Chikungunya had struck the region, and every family we saw had at least two family members that had been stricken. This illness is carried through mosquitoes primarily and the symptoms are harsh. A high fever, severe headache, vomiting, and joint pain and swelling combine to wipe out a person for at least a week. And, in some cases, people were forced to the national hospital for treatment. In many situations, parents have been helpless as their little ones suffer with pain and fever that causes delirium.

This is a special concern for us as so many of the special needs we encounter here are caused by improperly treated fevers. A loving parent sees their child shivering, so they wrap him or her in blankets. Their fever rises, the brain is damaged by the high temperature and permanent disability results. So we spent time at many stops describing how to treat the fever when it comes.

As some turned to the national hospital, another crisis was revealed. For months the hospitals and health clinics have been without medicine and supplies. The government has not been providing these things to the government hospitals and clinics due to “a shortage for funds.” Yet somehow the rest of the government continues to function with no problem, paying the politicians’ salaries like clockwork. In some hospitals doctors and nurses have gone on strike to send a message to the government that they cannot work without medicine and supplies. (On a side note, we have been trying to arrange for the immunization of the children in our home for six months, but all the clinics are without the needed vaccines.) So many with Chikungunya showed up simply needing acetaminophen to control their fever, only to discover that the hospital did not even have that basic medicine. As a result, people are dying of very treatable illnesses.

I don’t know about you, but until recently I never thought about how blessed my family is to have access to Tylenol. If one of my children gets sick and their fever rises, I pull it off the shelf, give it to them, and 30 minutes later their fever has dropped. But many of the families with which we visited do not have the money for even that basic medicine. It is heartbreaking and sobering.

So, we were instructing families to dress their sick family members in light clothing and wipe them down with cool water to lower their fever. We did not have enough acetaminophen to go around, so that was all we could do. Of the 15 families with which we visited, 14 of them had Chikungunya in their household. And of those 14, most of them had two or more family members affected.

So, the next time you find yourself reaching for a bottle of Tylenol, give thanks to God. Because if you have it, you are blessed.

In lighter news, little Humberto joined our household last Wednesday and is doing great! After waiting for 3 1/2 for our court appearance, the judge signed the order to move him to our home based upon the recommendations of Casa Jackson and the court’s social worker. This was a huge answer to prayer, as we felt strongly that Humberto belonged in our home.

When we first met Humberto, we believed that he could progress far beyond his current condition. That is why we agreed to take him, knowing our home could provide the therapy, stimulation and education he desperately needed. He has spent most of his life lying in a crib, and the completely bald spot on the back of his head proves that. So, our work with him has begun, with the goal of getting him out of his crib and into the world that surrounds him.

One of our first tasks was to get him a wheelchair fitted perfectly for him. So the day after he arrived we picked-up a new chair from Hope Haven. I went to their shop expecting to pay $250 for the chair, only to leave with it for free thanks to the generosity of a sponsor I do not know. Jeremiah and I worked hard to adjust it to his very small size and place it on a tilt, as his neck muscles are not strong enough to sit completely upright. As he spends more and more time out of his crib and sitting upright, his neck muscles will strengthen and we will be able to remove the tilt.

In the week since he has been with us, we have seen him begin to use his hands more to reach, grab and manipulate. He is also showing signs of progress in his speech, using distinctive grunts for “yes” and “no”. In addition, he came to us with chronic breathing problems, but our doctor has changed his medicines and we have begun doing breathing treatments three times a day. The doctor visited yesterday and told us that he had significantly improved.

We are anxious to see what this little guy can achieve in coming days. We suspect his progress over the next three months will be rapid and significant. Thank you for helping us pray him into our home so this could become a reality!

On another high note, my daughter, Carissa, returned to Guatemala after a four month stay in the States. She was there speaking and raising funds for her future ministry in Uganda. We are so happy to have her back. But sometime in 2015 she will be leaving again to do more speaking and fundraising, so we are just going to enjoy the time we have until then.

That is all for now. Please pray for those families affected by Chikungunya and for Guatemala as a whole. I continue to see the suffering increase along with the corruption of the government. We need your prayers now more than ever.

Blessings!

Daryl, Wanda and the Crew