Hondurans: Overall, the Honduran people I have met, and have taken care of, are very nice and welcoming. I have not had any patients complain to me about how long they waited, or how expensive things are, or other things I frequently hear in the United States. They rarely complain about the treatment plan, or what is available. If they can’t afford payment, we work something out and they seem grateful. Another thing I have noticed is they don’t seem frustrated or annoyed at my broken Spanish. I feel like if the roles were reversed, and I was talking to a doctor, as a patient, who didn’t understand what I was saying, I would get annoyed. Another thing that I have noticed is how many young women are pregnant. Well, young by my standards.
Many women who are as young as 16 are either pregnant, or have children. I have asked about whether sexual education is available, and I have gotten various responses. It ranges from “yes it is available but no one listens,” to “there is nothing, we are working on it.” I think the Honduran government has mandated that sexual / prenatal education be made available in schools, but there are no punishment if they don’t provide it, so no one does it. To me, that is too young, and it bothers me. However, most of these girls seem happy and it is the norm. I am not sure if their education is interrupted because of the pregnancy. There are a few women who are really upset when they discover they are pregnant. The clinic hosts prenatal classes throughout the year and frequently is full. There are contraceptive options at the clinic but I personally have not had any patients request them. I know others have prescribed them, and actually one placed an IUD on a patient recently.
People from the United States: I feel like there are two kinds of Americans here. There are a lot of people that have moved to Roatan to retire, and they typically live in resorts or in secluded areas. I am really surprised how many of these people don’t speak Spanish, and have no desire to learn Spanish. One of my patients told me, “I don’t speak Spanish because everyone here speaks American.” She then asked for a med refill on Ambien. I was a little too surprised to remind her that “American,” isn’t a language. I have a hard time understanding their motivation for not learning Spanish. Yes, learning a new language is hard, but after all, they are moving to a Spanish speaking country on their own free will. And not everyone speaks English. There have been plenty of situations where knowing some Spanish has been handy. I have seen a few of these people as patients, and they typically are a bit more demanding, but still nice enough.
The other kind of American I see here are people who have moved here to work. They are fascinating. Many people have sold everything, and moved their entire family to live and work here. They work either in the medical field, or in the tourism business like running restaurants or dive shops. They typically are earning a Honduran salary (which isn’t much), and are working on speaking Spanish and really trying to integrate themselves into the culture here. I met one physician today, who is a retired ENT from the USA. He knew he was going to move here, and has been working with a private tutor for 1 year. I think moving here to work permanently is a bold step, and I admire them for their courage.