Monday, September 21, 2009

Project C.U.R.E.

It is amazing how many medical supplies come along with having a trach and ventilator, not to mention a central line and g-tube! I knew when Milo was going to get his trach out and decreased the amount of supplies I ordered but my house was still swimming in medical stuff. Some of it was just odds and ends but there was a lot of good usable supplies that I refused to just throw out. One day I was pondering just what I was going to do with all these left-overs and one of Milo's nurses from Children's told me about an organization that the hospital works with (Thanks Nicole!). I investigated further and gave them a call to make sure they would take what I thought was a sizable donation. They were gracious and said they would take anything I had to offer. After spending weeks gathering supplies from every corner of the house I had my donation ready to go, 3 boxes & 2 paper grocery bags.

This week I had the privilege of donating Milo's extra medical supplies to Project C.U.R.E. This is a wonderful organization that sends medical equipment and supplies to areas of the world who are in desperate need. I drove up to there warehouse, the big door of the loading dock was open and I was amazed at the size, it was huge. I unloaded my donation in the doorway and what looked so big at my house looked like a meager offering sitting on the loading dock of the warehouse. Several volunteers were busily working inside sorting donations into there allotted bins, it looked like a daunting task. Some of what I could see looked like outdated equipment by our standards but I'm sure it was in fine working order and would help save lives half a world away. There was a sign that said that said the next donation truck was going to Belize, I wondered how long it would take before that load would leave for it's destination. After a few minutes a very nice gentleman came out and had me fill out paperwork about what I was leaving (for tax purposes). He told me that because of the generosity of health care organizations, groups and volunteers a 40 foot container (size of a semi-truck trailer) left the warehouse every week bound for those in desperate need. He said that as big as the warehouse was the stock turned over quickly and about $400,000 worth of medical supplies left every week. As I was leaving he handed me a copy of their newsletter.

Later that day I read the article on the front, I was moved and humbled. One of the places that Project C.U.R.E. donated to was a maternity hospital in India. The article said that at this hospital about 3 in 10 babies were born prematurely. Due to of a lack of resources the babies were placed in metal bins beside their mothers, left to fend for themselves. The mothers and babies would leave the hospital less than 24 hours after birth no matter how small the baby was. Project C.U.R.E. was able to donate several isolets and supplies to this hospital to help these innocent babies have a fighting chance.

Stories like this make me realize just how lucky we are to live in a country of such privilege. If Milo were born in a country like that he would not have survived more than a few hours at best. At times I complain about the health care here and insurance and equipment suppliers but I need to remember it is a privilege to have access to medical care, the availability of insurance and public aid. There is considerable talk about our "broken" health care system in this country and don't get me wrong it definitely needs some work but this week I am just overwhelmingly thankful that in our country we have access to such wonderful hospitals equipped with the latest technology, doctors, nurses and other health care professionals. I hope our meager donation will help to save the lives of a few people around the world or at least improve their well being just a little.

If you get a chance please check out the website for Project C.U.R.E. (www.projectcure.org) If you have any extra medical equipment setting around your house think about donating it, there are donation centers around the country. If you are able, a monetary donation will help them with the shipping costs. If you have some extra time consider volunteering and please spread the word to your friends, co-workers and family about this wonderful orginazation.

Friday, September 11, 2009

Little Monkey

Friday we had the freedom of not having a nurse. You see when we have a nurse it is a great help but things have to be done on a schedule. There is a little bit of room to wiggle but not a whole lot. So we had a lazy day, a slow start to the day. After our rather enjoyable morning we set out to investigate a new place to play. I had head about it a few months ago but we just hadn't made it there yet. This new place (or at least new to us) is called Little Monkey Buziness, it is designed for kids from crawlers up to about 6 years old. There is a large play area with several different playscapes, an art room, a party room, a snack bar with smoothies and coffee for the big people as well as some snacks and they have free wireless internet. All that for a reasonable $7.50 per kid to play as long as you can stand it. When we got there around 11:30 there were only about 3 other kids, so it was great for us to be able to explore the equipment without having to worry about holding up other kids or big kids being too rough. Milo found a little boy and girl (twins) close to his age who he played around quite a bit, found out they just turned two but both were bigger than Milo :0) We stayed a little over an hour but then it was time to head home for lunch and a nap, it was definately time. We had great fun and plan on going back for more fun in the future! Next time we'll get there a little earlier so we can stay longer.

Here's a little video I made about our adventure. Some of the pictures are not that great and it's my first attempt at making a video with windows...Enjoy.