Hello! I am sitting here getting eaten by mosquitoes so let's make this short...I started back in the hospital this week and Monday and today (Wednesday) were fairly brief. They are both public holidays so we didn't have any surgeries scheduled. Yesterday, I was with Dr. Rasmey in the OR and observed his cholecystectomy. Today, I started my day visiting with Dr. Oukreth. He is a great man who is always smiling. He barely speaks english but is fluent in spanish so we get by pretty well speaking spanish to one another. He explained to me that he went to med school in Cuba and so that's how he learned spanish! We visited for about 45 minutes this morning and there was something in our conversation that I found to be wonderful so I wanted to share it with all of you. You see, Cambodia is a very poor country. There are also ways to make a lot of money...I saw a Rolls-Royce outside of the market the other day and everywhere I look in Phnom Penh, I see a Lexus. But, we are surrounded by a lot of poverty as well. The hospital that I work in is affordable for a lot of Cambodians but I was told during my first week working there that this is the "hospital for poor people". While talking with Dr. Oukreth, he told me that the ICU is full of patients that have complications after surgery. A lot of people experience infections or are in need of medications that the hospital can't provide. I expected these type of conditions but what really surprised me is that he explained that a lot of the problem is the nursing staff. They're underpaid (they make $100 per month) and can't afford food a lot of the time. Since they aren't getting proper nutrition, they run out of energy and this affects how well they treat their patients. I asked what a doctor makes at this hospital and he said $200 per month. I knew this couldn't be accurate because most of the doctors drive nice cars and have iphones and ipads. I asked how they afford their nice things and he explained that at this specific hospital, they make $200 per month. They work there in the mornings/early afternoons and in the evenings, they work in private clinics where they can charge more and that's where they make good money. I asked him why they work in the hospital when they are making such great money elsewhere. Dr. Oukreth sat back and smiled. He responded "Leslie, it's because we have a conscience. We need to take care of our Cambodian people. If we worked in private clinics all of the time, who would take care of the poor people here? So, I work some of the time in the private clinic to make money to pay for my family and my things and then, I work here to help my people. If they can't afford treatment or surgery, that's okay! We will do it anyways." I thought that this was a great way to start my day! We all work hard and make money to live our lives and support our families. It's well-deserved and hard-earned money! But it's also so important to take some time out of our days and reach out to the people that need a helping hand every once in awhile. In a country that has a huge gap between the wealthy people driving a Lexus and the poor who are malnourished and begging for food, it was encouraging for me to meet a lovely man that counts his blessings and uses his knowledge and skills to help those in need.