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A microscopic monster
could not be locked out
with padlocks or deterred
with pepper spray.
All the traps in Honduras
could not kill every mouse
on the mission compound.
by Donald G. Smith, Jr., M.D.
Public health scares are not unique to developed countries like
the United States. Shortly after arriving in Honduras, my family
and I were living about 30 yards behind the Evangelistic Faith
Missions clinic in San Luis. One morning I was called to the clinic
for an emergency. The patient was a 12-year-old boy who had
been carried in by his father. He was in severe respiratory distress
and had a very high fever. Within seconds of seeing him I was
struck by the fact that he was in shock and about to die. His color
was gray and his skin had multiple areas that looked like bruises.
His lungs were full of fluid and he was literally drowning. His heart
was racing but each beat was so weak his pulse could hardly be
felt. Oxygen and intravenous fluids had been started.
Medical trainers in the United States use various sayings to
impress the danger of shock on medical students. Statements
such as “shock is shocking” and “you should be shocked when
you see shock” sound trite but are intended to reinforce the
severity of this condition. In medicine the word “shock” indicates
a collapse of the main systems such as the heart, lungs and kidneys.
There is no time to be wasted and action must be taken
immediately. Shock is often seen following major trauma and
heart attacks, but it can also be seen in overwhelming infections.
I stared at this young man with both terror and helplessness.
The American doctor had arrived on the scene
and the national nurses looked at me while the father
cried, moaned and hugged his now comatose son.
©2009 istockphoto.com / 7343759
SEPTEMBER 2009
05