Off the Waiting List

In July of 2021 I, (Dr. Jason Frazer) met with Fransicia for the first time. She and her daughter came in to discuss her stomach discomfort.  After talking with me and showing me her ultrasound pictures, it was determined that she was suffering from gall stones. Her previous doctor had diagnosed these and scheduled surgery back in 2018. At the time the waiting list at the El Progreso local hospital was over 500 patients long. In 2020 the pandemic arrived and all non emergency surgeries were canceled. Because Fransicia’s surgery was elective, her case was cancelled.

In addition to her gallbladder pain, she was also fighting cervical cancer. In early 2021 she was able to finish her chemotherapy treatments. However her gallbladder was still giving her occasional pain. The patient waiting list for surgeries at the local hospital was even longer and she had little hope of finding relief there.

The healthcare in Honduras, and many developing countries, is determined by how much money you have to pay the doctors and the resources they would need. For example our patients who need mesh or metal plates must purchase these supplies themselves prior to surgery.

In July, she met our wonderful surgeon who had traveled from the United States to perform surgeries. At that time, for a few reasons, her surgery was postponed. We kept her on our waiting list in case a future surgical team could help her.

In October 2021 we had two surgeons fly from the U.S. to Honduras. The first was Dr. Hensarling, who is an orthopedist. The second was Dr. Robertson, a pediatric general surgeon.    He was generous enough to be willing to work on adult patients that week as well. After consulting for the first few days both surgeons felt they could add to their patient list. I then went to my waiting list from July and was able to call Fransicia.

She was very surprised and thrilled that she would finally be able to have her surgery. It was an unexpected blessing in her life. Thanks to previous donors we have a laparoscope, which means we could do her surgery with four small incisions, making recovery much easier with less pain.

After the surgery she did really well. She was pain free and eating normal foods within two weeks. After waiting three years to have this surgery, we were thrilled to offer this service to this wonderful woman. She is one of many we have helped over the past year to recieve life-changing surgeries.

I could tell you about Sandra, the sister of a church member, who needed a new plate in her wrist because the bone wasn’t healing. She couldn’t afford the plate, but we were able to purchase it and Dr. Henserling was able to put it in. Sandra now has a completely healed arm.

Penny was a 60 year old having trouble walking after a previous surgery on her knee. She had a metal plate that had come loose over time. Dr. Hensarling was able to remove the hardware, and now she is walking much better.

All three of these women’s lives were changed because of the Rearick Surgical Center. Our center is only successful because we have generous donors, dedicated nurses and surgical technicians, hard working doctors, and the best volunteers from our church. Each person that comes to the surgical center has specific skills they are able to use in order to change the lives of the people living here in Honduras.

More importantly we are able to share the gospel with patients and family members. We are able to treat them with compassion and pray with them at their bedside. From the moment we met them and through their surgery we show the love of Christ in a tangible way. Would you like to join us in changing the lives of people here in El Progreso, Honduras?

For 2022 we still need nurses and surgical technicians for our August and October teams. We have some great surgeons lined up. If you (or if you know of anyone) who would like to travel with us, sign up. For questions about any of the trips or the Rearick Surgical Center in general, email me, Dr. Frazer, at [email protected]