Pura Vida!

Program Wrap-up Meeting

Well, we are done working at Hospital El Progreso.  We managed to get a few more machines repaired our last few days, and had a nice send-off from the maintenance staff.  We headed to San Pedro Sula on Friday evening to meet everyone else for dinner, and headed to the airport at 4:45 Saturday morning.  Our flight got into Managua at about 9:30, and we got to the hotel at about 11.  The conference started shortly after that, and it was fantastic to see all of the other students! 

However, I was not terribly impressed with the conference proceedings.  We were briefly introduced to the EWH board and administration, and while they seemed to be generally nice people, most student's interaction with them was very limited.  A few students were interviewed by either members of the EWH board or industry sponsors, but instead of having free-flowing conversations about our experiences, exchanging thoughts on what we thought could be improved for coming years, and being able to provide meaningful feedback about the program, we were asked a series of cookie-cutter questions that were not followed up.  It seemed to me as though the administration was more concerned about giving the appearance of accepting feedback instead of being really interested in what we had to say, but others may have gotten different impressions.  It is really a shame, since in my discussions with the other students, I have heard dozens of simple things that might really improve the program as a whole.  I am sure that we will find a forum to pass these thoughts along, whether they are welcome or not :)

The bulk of the conference was filled with student presentations, some of which were quite remarkable.  In particular, the final group to present had made a really impressive video and written new lyrics to a couple of songs, which they sang with gusto.  It was a terrific way to wrap things up.  Things pretty much tapered off from there, with people gradually heading to the airport to fly back home. 

As the program was finishing up, it kind of started to sink in that our impact at the hospital was meaningful for them on the short term, but will probably have very little long-term impact.  This week, the hospital will still be without a BME technician, and the broken machines will start piling up again.  I guess I had not really considered what would happen when we left, but it was a tough realization to accept.  But looking back on things, I think it would be very difficult for people in our position (non-experts who don't speak the language and don't have any authority) to make a long-term impact here.  If I get a chance to contact people who are going on the trip next year, I think that (and a couple of other things) is something I would make sure to pass on.

Overall, I really enjoyed my summer in the program.  I learned a lot about the developing world, engineering, NPOs, and a lot about myself as well.  I have a lot of terrific memories of the machines that we fixed, places that we visited, and things that we saw, but my most cherished memories will be of the people that I met.  The other EWH students that I got a chance to get to know and spend time with really made the program entirely worthwhile.  I will not soon forget the conversations/debates/philosophical arguments that we had, or the frequent rants about mundane frustrations, or the jokes that we shared at each others expense.  It was a very unique group of individuals, and I hope that we are able to keep in touch!

But enough sappy reminiscing.  This week I am back in Costa Rica, getting in my kicks before I get back to the US.  Tyler is coming in to San Jose tomorrow, and we will be heading to the Caribbean coast.  (I am sure we will get into a little trouble, but hopefully not too much...)  I am really looking forward to traveling and hanging out this weekend, and then really looking forward to seeing the family on Sunday!

I might update again, or maybe not.  Regardless, I hope you have enjoyed some of the stories and thoughts.  I have certainly enjoyed providing them!  Thank you also for your support, it has been very much appreciated.  If you are thinking about taking a trip to Central America and have any questions, please let me know!

I look forward to seeing everyone back in the US.  I hope that your summers have been going well too!

Adios,
-Eric