Update from Brittany Orcutt in the Dominican Republic

Brittany emailed us an update on how things are going and how we can be praying for her. She is doing some pretty exciting stuff. Whenever you can take a second to pray for her, and the people that she is serving.

Well today I stuck my finger in a hernia! It was great! There is a medical team here from Louisville that is doing 27 surgeries over the next couple of days. They came Sunday and it is been busy ever since. I was able to scrub in to one of the surgeries, which means that I was completely sterile so I could touch the patient and everything. I was able to see the hernia and put my finger in it. I also got to hold things and cut things. It was so exciting and has made me more confident about choosing nursing. Tomorrow I think I will scrub in for a hernia of a 5 month old, and a gull bladder removal! We are working at the medical clinic next to the church, where I started working. The staff is letting us use some of the recovery rooms and the surgical room. Some of the patients have been from the church and the surrounding community and a few from Santo Domingo. But for those who live close we have been able to give them information about the church and start planting seeds. So it feels wonderful to be fulfilling physical along with spiritual needs.

Before the American team came I was working at a rehabilitation clinic and a hospital. I loved working at the rehab center, all the employees are so great and really love their jobs. They do physical therapy for children and adults. Some come in with birth defects and some have had accidents. There are a wide range of people so it is really fun to work with them. I have learned a lot of stretches and ways to work the muscles. In the hospital I have been observing some of the same things as in the clinic. But after my experience with the American team I will hopefully be able to do more. I am learning more about IVs and may put one in tomorrow. It is a lot easier to learn how to do things in English then it is in Spanish. So this group came just in time! It has been great working along side of them.

I have also continued helping with the English lessons and have stayed busy with different church activities. Next week is holy week so I am not sure how much work I will be doing. And on Thursday the teens of the church are going to camp for the Easter weekend. I am looking forward to that a lot. It will be a great time to get to know the church youth better, and a good spiritual growth time for everyone.

If you could pray for the patients that we have worked on, that they will all recover quickly. And that the seeds we have planted will grow and flourish, and that God will begin to work in their lives. Also if you could begin praying for the camp. That it will challenge the youth and that God will grow in them. That they will have complete faith and trust in Him and that God will restore their lives.

Thank you for all your prayers and encouragement and enjoy the snow!!!

Brittany