It may be hard for the reader to imagine a whole hospital being turned over to people from another country who want to carry out a cleft lip and palate mission, but that is what happens in Huehuetenango. For a whole week each year, Dr. Oscar Marroquin and his partners take emergency cases only in order to free their private hospital to serve Iowa MOST and it patients. Not only do they provide the space, but they make a plea to their entire staff -- nurses, administrators, cooks, custodians, lab technicians, sterilization techs, laundry workers -- to volunteer to work extra shifts to be able to effectively handle the large patient load generated by this mission. And the hospital staff answers the call to the last employee! Nurses take on extra shifts during the night, cooks and laundry workers do back to back turns, personnel in the pharmacy and labs extend their hours, medical personnel take a turn as cooks. The staff support is immeasurably beneficial.
It is difficult to adequately thank the doctors and their loyal staff for providing what Dr. Canady rightly calls this "hidden jewel." One of the expressions that gets used again and again on our mission to describe the various partnerships is "somos un equipo" ("we are a team"). In Huehuetenango, our team doubles its size and strength. Thank you, Hospital de Especialidades! Mil gracias! A thousand times, thank you!
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