These are exciting times for Hospital Loma de Luz! (11/11/2001)

As you are probably aware, we are nearing completion of the construction of

the hospital, a project that began almost 10 years ago.  We hope to occupy

and use the front half of the hospital as a clinic and outpatient surgery

facility in the next couple of months.  We plan 2 more teams the beginning

of December to complete any construction needs and to help us move!

 

In January, we will have 5 permanent missionary doctors; 2 family docs, 1

pediatrician, and two surgeons.  We hope to expand our clinic services to 5

days a week, and surgery to 4-5 days.  It will probably be at least another

2 years before we become a "hospital" with regular in-patients.

 

The week after Thanksgiving, the Cornerstone board will be traveling to

Honduras to meet with all the missionaries.  It will be a time to give

thanks and to discuss the transition from the construction mode, to

increasing focus on patient care.

 

We have been busy, not only with patient care, but with administration

responsibilities as well.  Currently, we are preparing a report: "Where we

were, where we are, and where we hope to be."  We have been gathering and

analyzing data related to patient cost and clinic growth patterns.  This

data should help us project a budget for clinic expansion and estimated

costs of operating a hospital.

 

In addition, we have been communicating with government officials concerning

professional and facility licensure and legal requirements that affect us.

The legal hurdles may actually be bigger than the financial!

 

The government defines a hospital as a medical facility that provides 24

hour in-patient care.  To achieve this status, we need to have on staff

licensed professionals: a pharmacist, a lab technologist, an Xray

technologist, and many nurses.  Currently, as a clinic, we can operate the

lab and pharmacy with our locally trained non-professionals under the

direction of a physician.  Once we become a "hospital", we must meet a

different standard.

 

Furthermore, the labor laws are very restrictive concerning duty hours,

employee benefits, minimum wage, and nationality of workers.  If we hire one

Honduran professional, we then need to employ 95% of our professionals as

Hondurans.  We are unclear, and so is the government, if the 95% includes

missionaries who "volunteer" their services.  We are attempting to obtain

written legal interpretation of these laws.

 

So, our long-term needs will include continual sources of medical supplies

and equipment, financial donations, and personnel.  The personnel needs will

probably be met via a combination of hiring Honduran (which will require a

substantial budget) and the recruitment of additional missionaries (which

will require fund raising, language acquisition, and housing construction).

 

Please keep us in your prayers as this new phase of development will

certainly present challenges that will tax our human resources.  We know

that God already has this under control.  We need to seek His wisdom and

guidance, and avoid getting ahead of Him.

 

Dave Drozek

 

Thoughts from Honduras