We’d love to stay in touch with you and keep you up to date on our life and work in Guatemala. We’ll be posting regular updates here, on our blog, but we’ll also be sending out e-mail newsletters.
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Hello Brian and Kelly,
I have attended Good Sam many times with my daughter’s family, the O’Neils. In fact Mike and I were present at your wonderful ordination service. I would very much like to follow your experiences in Guatemala. Godspeed to your family in this ministry.
June Jackson
Thanks, June. We look forward to keeping you up-to-date on our life and work in Guatemala! Blessings.
Hello,
When I was serving in a U.S. Army field medical facility in Honduras in the 1980s, we were throwing all our trash out on the slope of a nearby hill, as recommended by the local mayor. We did not realize until much later that many local people were going through our trash in search of leftover food or any other useful items. We did not mind that part, but we realized that we had also been throwing out medical supplies, such as IV lines, that had been used (and were contaminated with blood and other body fluids).
When you go to work with people who live by gathering trash, it is possible that some of it may consist of contaminated items such as IV lines, or even needles and syringes discarded by IV drug users. Before you depart, it would be good if you can attend a class on blood and body fluid exposures and how to prevent them, perhaps through the Red Cross.
In brief, although everyone worries most about HIV transmission, that virus is actually quite delicate and dies very quickly upon exposure to the air. If someone is stuck by a needle containing HIV virus, the chances of that person becoming infected is only about 0.1%. If a person’s eyes or mucous membranes are splashed by blood contaminated with HIV, the risk is even lower, 0.01%. Of greater concern with these kinds of exposures are hepatitis B and hepatitis C. The hepatitis B virus can remain viable for a week or longer even after the blood has dried. The hepatitis C virus is not nearly as robust as hepatitis B but may survive for a little while longer in open air than HIV.
Since you will be working with people who are gathering trash, you might be accidentally exposed to their blood if they have cut themselves and then they e.g. shake hands with you and you have a superficial cut on your hands. It would be a good idea if you and your family receive the hepatitis B vaccine. If someone becomes infected with hepatitis B virus, they can not only become chronically ill with hepatitis, but can go on to develop liver cancer. For further information, I suggest you consult https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/bbp/default.html and https://www.in.gov/isdh/files/BBP_American_Red_Cross_Fact_Sheet_xps(1).pdf.
Best of luck to you in your mission and God bless you.
Sincerely,
Jonathan Green, member of All Saints Episcopal Church, Tacoma
Major, US Army Medical Specialist Corps, Retired
PA Retired
Master of Public Health
Thanks, Jonathan, for the information and the concern. Work in the dump presents numerous environmental and biological hazards. We are well aware of the health risks, not only to those working in the dump, but also potential exposure to us. Safe Passage has comprehensive health services for their students and families and manage the risks very well. Safe Passage operates a health services clinic (https://www.safepassage.org/what-we-do/family-and-community-services/) and partners with Shared Beat to provide more in-depth health care (https://www.sharedbeat.org/programs-3.html).