Sheila McShane directs the medical clinic at the Diocese of Helena’s mission in Guatemala and wrote the following letter.

Family and Friends, When we opened our clinic in the 1960s, sickness caused by intestinal parasites was diagnosed frequently among our patients.

People did not wear shoes, so hookworms were commonly acquired as bare feet touched contaminated ground. With potable water almost nonexistent in the mountain villages and hygiene a real challenge, many different species of worms were present. Bloated stomachs, diarrhea and abdominal pain were very common in children. In those years, our diagnostic lab was considerably less of a resource than it is today. We did have a small, antique microscope, though, and our health promoters and we nurses were able to identify the eggs of parasites. We would take gallons of worm medicine to villages. All children got a dose.

Times have changed.

Now Clinica Maxena has an excellent doctor, and a very good diagnostic laboratory. Everyone wears shoes, although usually they are plastic sandals. Most villages do have access to water, but the water systems are poorly maintained and contaminated. There are more outdoor latrines than in past years. In some of the villages, however, many of the poor still lack this necessity. Parasites still exist.

Amoebas probably are the most common intestinal parasite identified in our clinic laboratory. Roundworm remains present in small children, but is not that common. The parasite ascaris can cause havoc for a child, inflicting much abdominal pain, nausea and diarrhea when worms multiply in the intestinal system.

I am writing this two days after a 7-year-old child arrived at our emergency room. Her name is Wendy, certainly not a common name among the Mayan people. She was weak and crying with abdominal pain when she came to us on Friday. The laboratory confirmed ascaris, the child was admitted to our clinic and our doctor administered hydration, and medication for pain and parasites. With the pain medication, the intensity of the abdominal cramping decreased. Wendy has been able to sleep at intervals. She has remained in the clinic during the weekend and our doctor will stop by to see her today, even though it is Sunday.

Wendy has expelled a few of the parasites. Her parents are with her 24 hours a day, wanting to care for her every need. In the absence of our clinic workers on the weekends, I provide meals for the parents, see that Wendy gets her medications and care for her.

She is one of nine children in the family and her father, like most field workers, is unemployed. When he arrived at the clinic, he told me immediately that he had no money. This is not an issue for us, although the reality is that our clinic is seeing more and more charity patients and feels the economic impact. In this instance, we will have the father work in our garden for a few days next week, to help defray the cost of medication and inpatient care.

To help us help others, we rely on our friends’ support. To donate online, visit the Diocese of Helena website at www.diocesehelena.org. When you give, please specify that your gift is for Clinica Maxena. I encourage you, as well, to visit us on Facebook. Thank you, and blessings.


Editor’s note: Shortly after McShane wrote this letter, patient Wendy was diagnosed with hepatitis as she continued to struggle with intestinal parasites. McShane said hepatitis was diagnosed with the help of a $60 ultrasound at Clinica Maxena.


Published in The Montana Catholic Online, Volume 27, No. 9, September 16, 2011.