Spring Break Not Fun In Sun
Dan Noble’s spring break plans brought sighs of envy from his friends at Post Falls High. Hot sun, sandy beaches, cheap accommodations.
But eyes widened when Dan said he wasn’t going to Haiti for its tropical amenities but to practice medicine. His uncle, a California orthopedic surgeon, arranged for Dan to join a church group on its annual medical mission. The group included three doctors, a nurse, two teachers and an engineer.
Dan’s the kid who can’t wait to dissect the fetal pig. Bones and body systems fascinate him. He can’t remember a time he didn’t want to be a doctor.
His trip to Haiti only reinforced his desire. He began his week at the end of March in a generously stocked, squeaky clean Oakland, Calif., operating room watching his uncle repair a spine and knee.
Two days later, he followed doctors into hospital rooms in Haiti and watched the cockroaches scatter.
“It was so dirty,” he says, sadly. “And the care wasn’t very good. Sometimes nurses wouldn’t change dressings.”
The operating rooms were clean but anesthesia and medical equipment were scarce. Dan scrubbed, slipped into a mask, cover-up and booties and stood ready to help.
He held a patient’s nearly detached hand while doctors rebuilt the man’s wrist. He served as traction, pulling a man’s leg while doctors reconstructed a fractured femur.
He watched doctors blindly feel their way through surgery, relying on instinct and experience because no X-ray was available in the operating room. He saw patients awaken toward the end of surgery and bear the pain because no more anesthesia was available.
“It was amazing what I saw,” he says, a smidgen of awe in his 17-year-old voice. “That trip changed the way I look at things.”
Dan didn’t leave Haiti with an overwhelming urge to return to the poverty-stricken island nation. He saw too much infection, too little medication, food, care.
But the tough working conditions didn’t diminish his interest in medicine - at least American-style.
“I hope this experience will help me get into medical school,” he says. “I’m glad I went to Haiti, but I don’t want to be doing that all my life.”
Full-meal deal
Bette Price, a reading teacher at Coeur d’Alene’s Fernan Elementary, decided to squeeze in a vacation over spring break even though her budget was tight and her husband had to work. She stocked up on food and took her teenage daughter, Kaytlyn , and two of Kaytlyn’s friends to Seaside, Ore.
Bette and the girls vacationed so frugally that they decided to treat themselves their last day in Seaside to a fancy dinner at a restaurant overlooking the ocean. They dressed to the nines, drank mocktails, dined on salmon and talked and laughed for two hours.
Neighboring diner Jim Ashburn was so impressed with the good time Bette and the girls had that he paid their meal tab. Turns out that Jim works with Bette’s husband and had taken his mother to Seaside for the week.
“We were ecstatic,” Bette says. “It made a big impression on the girls.” And on Jim’s wallet.
The hunt is on
Good deeds are memorable. Just ask Coeur d’Alene’s Florence Morrison. Florence was grocery shopping at Tidyman’s last week when she realized she’d dropped her list and all of her coupons. She didn’t worry long. A woman demonstrating food found the list and coupons and hunted down Florence in the store to return them.
“I wish I knew her name. I wanted to thank her,” Florence says. Maybe she’ll get the message.
What’s the funniest thing that’s happened to you while shopping? Picked up the wrong bag? Lost your car in the parking lot? Chuckle out something funny for Cynthia Taggart, “Close to Home,” 608 Northwest Blvd., Suite 200, Coeur d’Alene 83814; fax to 765-7149; or call 765-7128.
, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo