• In the first 17 days more than 15,000 patients have been attended in field hospitals and house calls. • More than 200 surgeries, 90 of them major
TEXT AND PHOTOS BY LIURKA RODRÍGUEZ BARRIOS—TO tell the story from the beginning would mean going back to the morning of May 31st, the date on which 135 members of the Henry Reeve Medical Contingent left for Indonesia, hit by an earthquake registering 5.6 degrees on the Richter scale. The majority of the participants recently returned from Pakistan, where the Cuban presence lasted seven months, due to an even stronger earthquake that devastated that Islamic country. Some of them had arrived only a few hours before taking off, backpack on shoulder and carrying all that humanism requires in these circumstances of urgency and solidarity.
The farewell could not be more inspiring. The President dedicated time to converse with the participants and wished them success on the new mission and a victorious return with new experiences, memories, and much more: the satisfaction of having contributed to alleviating a natural disaster situation.
The participants landed in the Solo airport in the central island of Java, accompanied by their tri-colored national flag. With the brigade came 60 tons of medicines and equipment, as well as two field hospitals, which will be erected in the two places worst affected by the earthquake: Prambanan and Gantiwarno, in the Klaten district 440 kilometers from Jakarta, the country’s capital.
Only a few hours after arriving, and without even resting from a day and a half in flight, the first 20 brigade members took their place in the vanguard of the Gantwarno field hospital, christened Che Guevara. Thirty minutes from there, according to the Java custom of measuring distance by travel time, the other was assembled under the insignia Antonio Maceo. Both hospitals were tremendous hits.
EMERGENCY, AGAIN
This Asian nation has been severely pummeled by natural phenomenon. The tsunami of 2004, which resulted in more than 100,000 deaths in the region, is still remembered with panic.
Three of the brigade members experienced that event and therefore are now on familiar terrain. Dr. Orlando Díaz was in Banda Aceh and he remembers those intense times. The Cubans worked in shelters and a policlinic. “Among the most common problems were respiratory infections, dermatitis, mycosis, and chronic illnesses like hypertension, diabetes, and asthma. There we set up a watch system to prevent the outbreak of transmittable illnesses, which included daily inspections of the making and distribution of food and giving educational talks.
“On that occasion there were only 25 participants and the people appreciated the Cuban aid. Here the expectations have grown, since the volume of activity will be much greater. The fact that we are in the midst of a vaccination campaign against tetanus is a sign of progress in the area of hygiene and epidemiology.”
According to Dr. Orlando’s impressions of this instance, the sanitation tasks oriented toward the community will have a stronger impact, since instruction will be done one on one. They will also diagnose and treat chronic, non- transmittable illnesses and they have expanded the maternity program. All this will improve the people’s quality of life and notably raise health indices.
During the first 17 days more than 15,000 patients have been attended in the two field hospitals and in house calls. More than 200 surgeries have been performed, 90 of which were major.
Dr. Arelys Dorta, deputy director of medical assistance said that the principal causes of death include acute respiratory infections, trauma injuries, arterial hypertension, intestinal parasites, scabies’s, diarrheic illnesses, and pneumonias. The majority of those who have received attention have been over 15 years old.
Surgeon Alier Navarro stated that orthopedic cases are the most common in relation to the earthquake, especially fractures of the hip and humerus. However, they have also performed thyroid, hernia, and appendix surgeries. All operations have had satisfactory results and the patients are recovering well.
The young doctor Arlenis Barroso recalled with vehemence the 3.4 tremor that happened just a few days after initiating the medical program, in a small town a few kilometers from the Ganiwarno field hospital. She described the destruction caused by the great earthquake and pointed out that none of the 77 houses that once existed there remained standing, only a store, used as a food warehouse. The day of the tremor there were more than 60 people in line to receive care. Suddenly the shaking began and the children screamed in terror and ran toward the forest. Their memory was of the earthquake was still very fresh. They seem to be calmer now.
LIKE HER OWN CHILDREN
When Matawape saw the caravan of Cubans arriving he was far from imagining how much his life and that of his family would change, amidst this misfortune. He had lost nearly everything, except his happy face, which appeared to be that of someone who had never suffered any hardships at all. He anticipated his appreciation for that troop of white gowns and a singular heart.
The daily expressions of gratitude have been uncountable. One of the most notable is demonstrated by the experience of three intensive care nurses: Cira, Adelfa and Liset, who received a pregnant woman suffering a retained placenta. One, or rather two, lives were saved. The mother named her daughter Fidelia.
Another episode occurred in the intake lobby. A patient who had recently undergone surgery was recuperating in bed, half-dressed. When one of our physicians suggested she cover herself due to his presence, the old woman responded that everyone there was already like her own children.
The pediatric care is especially renowned. The Cuban doctors review the names of the Javanese children and they recognize each one individually among the multitude that comes for consultations. They distinguish themselves with their natural grace and cure all types of physical or psychological conditions. With emotion they retold the story of Sita, the 8 year old girl who was hit hard by a wall in her house: she had facial wounds, loss of upper teeth, scratches on her arms and a fractured femur. She was immediately transferred to the operating room. She has already returned home and her family is grateful.
A group of new doctors remarkable for their youth and responsibility, who make up the backbone of the brigade, tend to the details that characterize a field hospital.
While some put their souls into attending patients, Yorgel, Osbel, Yaíma and Savyly —belong to the most recent generation—, seek out supplies for the encampments: the necessary medicines, food, and other provisions. They are the good faith “kamikazes.”
It is impossible to leave out mention of the four “artists” of the field kitchen, who are in charge of feeding 135 Cubans with special preference for soup and yucca in garlic and sauce with lime. In the afternoons they brew coffee and on Sundays serve their most exquisite Cuban dishes.
Indonesia, my love
The island of Java is considered the heart of Indonesia due to its population density. It has an area of 130,000 square km. If it were itself a country, it would be the second most densely populated in the world, after Bangladesh, with 840 people per square kilometer.
A jutting volcanic mountain range crosses the island, the ashes of which have provided fertile soil for the people to till. Acacia and bamboo are among its enchanting flora, while the Asian Lesser One-Horned Rhinoceros, the Java Tiger and the Java Leopard diversify the island’s fauna.
When the sun’s rays dip below the horizon, the Cubans take advantage of the unique setting to share time with neighbors, sports fans and good health. The mutual interest to learn words in each other’s languages is evident, amidst this borderless, common language of humanism.
In rest, there is always time for celebrate one’s family by recognizing anniversaries, special dates, and good news. There are some who keep journals in order to record this “imaginary page, in the dwelling place of the sun,” between temples and volcanoes of dreams to tell.
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