Luis worked all day Wednesday in what he told Kelly was a stomach ache. He asked us in the evening for something to help settle his stomach and bring his high fever of 102 down. We suspected appendicitis and offered to take him to the doctor, but he said he would wait until Thursday morning. Late that evening he asked us to take him to the doctor. We went to Guaimaca where he was told to go immediately to Tegucigalpa for possible appendicitis. We were SO worried because he had been suffering with this pain for more than 24-hours.

Thank God we knew a surgeon who made some calls and lined-up a great surgeon at a private hospital in Tegus. When we arrived at this hospital that I had never heard of, I have to say that on more than one occasion, I was ready to walk out of that place. First of all, there wasn't anyone to be found. I searched throughout the ER, walked into their storage area, and even their ambulance parking area. NO ONE! Finally, after I texted the surgeon, employees starting surfacing. They ran labs, took Luis upstairs immediately, and he had surgery at midnight. They even brought this massive comforter when we asked for a blanket.

They had no way to pay for this private surgery and the options at the public hospital would have been worse. At the private hospital, he had laparoscopic surgery which is less invasive. Had he gone to the public hospital, he would have been at higher risk for infection, most likely would have had a traditional surgery, would've stayed multiple nights, and it would have been a huge issue for Oneida since she wouldn't have had a place to stay. Not to mention we all would have been in a dangerous area while we waited outside for news following his surgery.

The private hospital was definitely the way to go. The costs for his surgery and all related costs was $2,120. Not bad compared to the USA, but really high and out of reach for the general population.