Case Histories

We are trying to work with both critical and acute problems in our mission. The medical and dental clinics see this clearly as they treat everything from cuts and burns to fevers and diarrhea. Other complaints have included hernia, dysentery, infected insect bites, rheumatism, poor vision, tendonitis, parasites,scabies,diaper rash, lower back pain, urinary tract infections, arthritis, headaches, coughs, colds, infections in the ears, respiratory infections, nasal infections, worms, nerve damage due to old injuries, gastritis, allergies to many things, ears plugged with wax, contusions on the leg, all sorts of pre- and post-natal issues.

Everyone gets vitamins, most get worm medicine, and we give away a lot of cold and cough medicines. The pharmacy does a big business in antibiotics and medicines for small babies with diarrhea. We give out all sorts of aspirin, acetaminophen and ibuprofen. In addition, we have dispensed 30 – 40npairs of glasses each day.


Here are a couple of the more unusual cases we have had this week.

"The Boy Was Small, But the Pea Was Large"
A woman came to the clinic with her young son. She needed help from the doctors because he had a pea stuck in his nose. The boy and his grandmother were shelling peas and grandma was watching him and the baby. While she was distracted, the boy put a pea up his nose. Now it was stuck there. No amount of snorting or blowing could dislodge it, so she came to the Methodist Clinic for help. After discussing the situation a number of strategies developed, but none were successful.

Finally the case was handed over to David, the dentist. He is a practicing oral surgeon so has the techniques and experience for this delicate operation. He used a long thin dental tool and considerable skill to remove the pea. The boy (and the pea) went home. He was wiser (we hope) for the experience.

“Marco and the Woman with a Curse”
A woman came in appearing listless and tired. She was not able to look other people in the eye and complained of trouble sleeping. She was crying and generally seemed to be very troubled. She had been feeling this way for some time.

She told of going to church, but they told her there was nothing physically wrong with her. She was a sinner, they said, and her troubles were the result of her sinful nature. She needed to be freed from sin by confessing her unworthiness and receiving absolution. She tried, but this did not help her.

Next she want to see the curandero, the folk doctor. He said the problem was with her heart. Someone had put a curse on her and it was effecting her heart. This did not help much, so she came to the Methodist Clinic to see the doctors from the USA. Once our doctors determined that she had no unusual physical problems, her heart sounds and blood pressure we normal, they called in Rev. Marcos, one of the local Methodist pastors working with us. He spent about an hour talking and comforting her. When they were done she realized that the problem was spiritual and needed a spiritual cure, but not from a curandero. Hearing that she was a good person and that God loves her made a difference in her whole demeanor. Yes, Marcos' patience and pastoral care provided another way of curing some of the things that burden people. God is good, even in the heart of rural Panama.

">A Folk Cure for Toothache”
Overheard in the dental clinic: “The way we cure a toothache in our villages is this-- a man who has been bitten by a poisonous viper and lived must heart a nail uintil red hot. Then the hot nail is put in the hole in the tooth. This will stop the pain.” The patient said he preferred our dentistry, although it was also a little painful sometimes.