"Oh DARIO"

From reading the many postings on our blog, I realized that the one person who has yet to be mentioned, but who fills a very important role during our time here in Panama, is our wonderful bus driver DARIO! Wells it’s pretty obvious that without him, our destinations would be extremely hard to get to, but the few things that stand out are, regardless of how crazy we “Americans” act on the bus, how long are clinics take to get to, or the fact that he sits and waits on the bus with no AC while we are busy at work during the day, he always has a smile on his face. Dario makes sure to count everyone before departing each and everyday, and I must add that he knows NO ENGLISH, but somehow with the very little Spanish we all know, we manage to communicate with him and he always makes sure to provide a very safe ride regardless of how chaotic and crazy the Panamian’s drive. Ms. Gottel was kind enough to present Dario with a Tampa Bay Devil Rays hat, which he wears everyday, and all of the students presented him with a key chain of his name bought in El Valle. As the title states, “Oh Dario” is our famous way of greeting him, which we like to say with a crazy Spanish accent. A sentence doesn’t do it justice, it’s actually quite hilarious. We did happen to gather some information on his life; apparently Dario only gets to see his family once a week, which is a two hour drive away from where he resides during the time he works as a bus driver. Overall, we couldn’t have asked for a better bus driver; he has made our trip very special and will always be remembered.

June 2nd- Our dinner with the USF Health facility

President Judy Genshaft and our famous "GO BULLS!"


Honored and awe struck are the two words that come to mind when describing tonight's dinner. As we headed to dinner at the Holiday Inn we had no idea the amount of honored guests that would joining us. We were blessed tonight to have the privilege of attending the gathering of USF Health as a whole and their presence in Panama and the City of Knowledge. Among the many distinguished guests were the deans from the USF college of Nursing ( and our assistant dean), Public Health and Medicine. The President of USF, Judy Genshaft, was also in attendance. Countless other USF Health facility were also represented tonight. It was wonderful to be able to sit and talk to these intellegent professionals from our USF Health program. Its pretty rare to get such a collaboration of colleges to work together for the greater good of their respected university and the community at large. We all left enriched by the experience and felt quite honored to be a part of the global aspect of USF Health.

Jessica Dorey

Christine Doherty - June 2, 2008

A lot has happened since my last blog!!
I turned 21 on Tuesday, and I had a great day!! I woke up to some of the girls making some pancakes, thanks to Melissa and her mix that she bought!! They were delicious! I really appreciated this treat! We went to the Arraijan clinic that day and I was able to observe some of the pediatric assessments and vaccinations. I decided that I love kids, and I would love to work in Pediatrics! Later that night I went to the Hard Rock Cafe with some of the girls for dinner. It was nice to have some American food!! This was also a wonderful treat that I appreciate! :)

Wednesday we went to the same clinic, and I was able to give vaccinations to children. This was a great experience because I have not been able to work with children yet in our clinical setting back in Florida. On Wednesday I was able to experience Occupation Health with Tania. This day was so exciting because we were able to go to different farms and give vaccinations to the workers. The workers were very appreciative and gave us gifts!! They gave us eggs, mangos, and lemons! I also enjoyed it because we got to ride in a truck and see so many different animals, such as monkeys, bulls, cows, goats, sheep, horses, and more!! It rained, I got very dirty, and it was very smelly, but I still had a great time because it was such a different experience!!

Friday we helped out with a health fair at a local school. At the health fair I gave more vaccinations to children, walked around the community to give vaccinations, and I gave my first Pap smear!! It was an interesting experience!! Some of the other students also took blood pressure and surveyed the homes in the community at the health fair. All of the children were very cute!!


Saturday was a FREE day!! This was amazing because we went to Isla Grande, which was beautiful! We took small boats over to the island and we relaxed by the water. I was able to snorkel for the first time, which I enjoyed, but it was very difficult!! The mask did not fit right and I did not actually have a snorkel because they ran out. I was scared the whole time, but it was an adventure!

Yesterday we went to see the Emberja tribe, which was also on a island where were had to take a boat in order to get there. This was very interesting because we got to learn about their culture and their health care. On of the women had a cut, and she had a leaf wrapped around her leg. She said that it would heal the wound. This is different than what we would do in Florida.

This week has been exhausting, but today was a free day until tonight. I have just been doing homework and getting organized. We will have a dinner tonight at a USF reception!

Hello to everyone back home!! I miss you all and love you!! xoxo


-Christine Doherty

Here are some pictures from our day at Isla Grande and our mobile clinic!!!!

Isla Grande

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Courtesy of Cristina Penzabene = )

Isla Grande

So I know it's a day late but I just had to talk about my amazing experience at Isla Grande. It took us a little while to get there but boy was it worth the wait. It all started with a breath taking boat ride to the island. I've never seen water so perfect. We arrived at the Banana Resort where we spent the day basking in the sun, eating amazing food, snorkeling, and just relaxing. I couldn't have asked for anything better. I only wish that my friends and family could have been here with me.

Best wishes from Panama!

Cristina Penzabene

Embera Village

Today was definitely an unexpected treat. We had a different tour guide named Juan, a well informed Panamanian who even spent some time with the natives from the Embera tribe and he knows their dialect as well as english thank goodness ;-) The day in Embera village was a far cry from the Panama city life. After a bumpy ride 1 hour ride out of the city we ended up in the Jungles off the Chagres river, a very important water source in Panama. The place where they lived is actually in a national park that is protected by the government, which means they have a permanent residence free from the fear of deforestation. The people from Embera looked different from any other population I have seen in Panama so far...and that says alot because Panama is such a melting pot of people. They wore short loin cloths made with brightly colored plastic beads they buy in the city and their skin was a tan clay colored tone, similar to the soil that was on the ground. It was kind of unreal, almost like I was in a national geographic documentary. We hiked through the muddy slopes of the mountains to a secluded waterfall were we met other travelers from different countries. After the hike to the waterfall, we made a pit stop to the main village area where the embera tribe lives. The huts were large and well made, from palm trees, I think. The villagers danced and sang for us and had a little presentation about their culture, translated by Juan our tour guide. As I looked around, I wondered how could they have proper access to health care when they live so far from the city. By appearances they looks healthy and well nourished; the children looked clean and happy, even though everyone was barefoot and barely clothed. I found out that they would travel to the city for major medical events like births or serious injuries. Other minor health care needs would be treated by the medicine man who is the oldest sage in the village. I was amazed by things they made by the natural materials they had at their disposal. They carved figurines from coconuts, and rosewood as well as amazing intricately weaved baskets and face masks. These pieces of art were their main source of income because they sell them to tourists like ourselves to survive. I found out that the government would not let them hunt for game other than fishing and they even had to ask for permission to cut down a tree! It kind of made me feel that their way of life is controlled and not organic in a sense. They did not seem to mind because the people were gracious and very warm. We were treated to a meal of fried plantains and fish, as well as bananas and the sweetest pineapple I have ever eaten. Then they performed tribal dances with drums and flutes and they even got some of us to participate. I am so thankful I got the opportunity to be in Panama to do my clinicals because it has been such a rewarding experience. Time flies by sooo fast here, I can´t believe we have less than a week left...

Tara Casimir