Finally time to talk about last Saturday.
On Saturday we go to the hospital in the morning to check on patients and then after lunch we have the afternoon off! Last weekend some of the guests were in Harare because they were leaving so I was basically on my own for the afternoon! Since I have arrived I have spent all of my time either at the hospital or at Kathy's house. Kathy said that it is safe to walk around here and that there was a dam beyond the school. I couldn't believe it, I had no idea there was anything like that around here.
I decided to go explore. It was a gorgeous day. The sky is so clear and blue here and it was the perfect temperature. If anything slightly warm even though it is winter. As I started walking I realized I had no idea where I was going, no cell phone to get back if I got lost and I was by myself. Awesome I thought. But I decided that I didn't want to miss the opportunity to explore so I kept walking. I asked directions to the dam as I went along. I was slightly nervous that I was walking through someone else's property because I'm not really sure what belongs to the mission/ hospital and what belongs to other people.
I walked along the dirt road and some trails. Along the way, there were fences made of sticks enclosing small gardens (not the season now but it was possible to see where it was). I made it to the dam, which actually looked like a pond. There were reeds growing in it and lily pads. It was quite pretty with the country side in the background and the mountains (hills?) behind it. I saw that there were some people fishing on the other side and I zoomed in to take some pictures. I was going to turn around but I decided to go over and get a closer look. When I walked over, there were two girls and a boy doing laundry on the side (there was a cement place- the dam part of it I suppose where they had their wash buckets and soap). I said hello and one of the girls told me to go over to them. I walked over and they introduced themselves and we started talking. Only one of the girls spoke good English (Tandi), the other two spoke a little. They had so many questions about what I was doing there and about the U.S. They did not believe me that I am 21, they were convinced that I was 24-25. I thought the same about them though and they were 18.
I asked where they live and they pointed to some huts (bricks on the bottom part- round walls, and a thatched roof). They said they go to the school that I had passed on the way to the dam. They wanted to know who my favorite actor and actress was, who my favorite singer is, what my favorite food is, etc. Tandi played some Beyonce on her phone and then asked if Beyonce, Jay-Z and Rihanna are evil. I said what? I think you have the wrong word. She said no, some people here think they are evil. I said I don't really know them personally but I don't think people in the U.S. think they are evil haha. Tandi then wanted my phone number for her cell phone (I asked her if she had electricity at her house and she said no, she charges her phone at the hospital). They kept saying that they wanted to go to the U.S. The boy asked about gardening jobs and the other girl asked about housekeeping jobs. Honestly I couldn't really understand everything they were asking. They said that my skin was beautiful and they wanted it. I said I thought theirs was, which they kept saying no no! They also could not believe that my hair is real- they can't grow theirs past their shoulders so if it is, they have extensions, a weave or a wig (which they thought I had).
Some other kids came as we were talking and they kept introducing me to everyone. They would talk in Shona and laugh (I'm sure about me and meeting me). Two little boys had caught a mouse in the fields and they wanted to pose with it in pictures (yuck!) We talked for about an hour and then they said do you want to come and see our houses? I was really interested in where everyone lives so after checking that it really wasn't too far (I had no clue how I would find my way back) we headed out.
The girls carried their laundry in the plastic bins on their heads! They were so heavy I couldn't believe it. We walked slowly back and they carried them the whole way. We walked along a dirt trail past fields where they grow maize. We got to Tandi's house and they had about 5 different buildings that belonged to them. It is kind of difficult to explain (still trying to figure out if the computer can handle uploading pictures). Two of the buildings were kitchens. In one they had all of their plates displayed on shelves on the walls. In the middle on the ground was a fire pit where they cook.
They store dried maize in a fenced in area that is on stilts (terrible description sorry!) that they use to make sudza, the main food here. Tandi's family also had pigs and chickens. Next she asked if I would like to see where they get their water. I said of course! We walked over and there was a pump and well under a big tree. A lot of girls and women were there getting water in buckets to take home. I can't imagine living without running water! Such a different life. I was so thirsty and Tandi offered me water but I decided I didn't want to be sick for the next few days so I politely declined (luckily we can drink the tap water at Kathy's house and the guest house). I asked what they do for fun and they said nothing really, they said it was really boring there. Honestly, I could kind of see that but at the same time it is so peaceful out here compared to our crazy lives in the U.S. There is something to be said for living a simple life.
I said I needed to get home soon because the sun was starting to go down (it goes down at 6pm here right now because it is winter). They asked where I lived and said by Sister McCarty. Tandi knew exactly who she was and where she lived. The two girls said they would walk me back. Turns out we weren't that far because paths go in a circle back to the hospital. We walked back talking more and when we got there, the other girl asked if she could have some chewing gum (I had been chewing it earlier). I happened to bring a few packs here with me so I gave them one to split. They said they do the laundry every Saturday there so I should see them some other time! (Since then I have seen one of them walking by in her school uniform).
It ended up being such a great day and I got to see some of the surrounding area and how the people live around here. It is great to see how my patients live to get a better perspective. I want to explore more and make a visit to the Township that is close.
Thursday, July 5, 2012
Happy 4th!!
Happy 4th of July! Last night we celebrated the 4th of July here. Kathy had so many decorations up, looking around one would think you were in the U.S. not in rural Zimbabwe. Everyone came over for a big American style 4th of July. We had hamburgers, hot dogs, potato salad, and funfetti cupcakes with little American flags stuck in them for dessert (they were paper but one of the Zimbabweans asked if you eat them too).
After dinner and Bible study (something very new for me), we even had fireworks! We went out to the old basketball court (which is really surrounded by a lot of very dry plants and some overhanging trees). We all gathered around as Major got ready to light the fireworks. He said that you had to launch one of them into the sky by throwing it and everyone told him he was wrong. So he stuck it in the ground and lit it. I never even saw what happened, there was a flash of light and I screamed (in natural Chloe fashion VERY loudly) and we were all 10 feet back in the bushes. Turns out, you are supposed to throw it into the sky. It exploded all over the ground around us and everyone moved very far away after that. The fireworks show didn't last very long after that.
Zimbabwe is very new country compared to the U.S. We discussed that the U.S. and Zimbabwe both declared their freedom from Britain, however Zim only did so 32 years ago. Apparently people here are already forgetting independence day so they were all impressed that we still celebrate!
After dinner and Bible study (something very new for me), we even had fireworks! We went out to the old basketball court (which is really surrounded by a lot of very dry plants and some overhanging trees). We all gathered around as Major got ready to light the fireworks. He said that you had to launch one of them into the sky by throwing it and everyone told him he was wrong. So he stuck it in the ground and lit it. I never even saw what happened, there was a flash of light and I screamed (in natural Chloe fashion VERY loudly) and we were all 10 feet back in the bushes. Turns out, you are supposed to throw it into the sky. It exploded all over the ground around us and everyone moved very far away after that. The fireworks show didn't last very long after that.
Zimbabwe is very new country compared to the U.S. We discussed that the U.S. and Zimbabwe both declared their freedom from Britain, however Zim only did so 32 years ago. Apparently people here are already forgetting independence day so they were all impressed that we still celebrate!
decorations
4th of July Dinner- Clockwise from the back left: Noe, Dr. Kellert, Dr. Kajese, Jordan, Me, Rick,
Kathy, Major, Dr. Kabonzi, and Sue
Hope everyone had as great a 4th as we did!
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Busy Busy Busy
Hello!
I have SOOO much I want to write about, so much happens every day! I really want to catch up on the weekend- had a great time but I am too tired for now.
Today was a very long day. I have seen SO much and been learning so much (I try and look things up and ask tons of questions). I took staples out from a patient post c-section this morning and then sutures out from a patient's wound. I have been able to do lots of wound care here which is great!
I am pretty bummed because a newborn premature baby died (it was a day old) and I was watching the resuscitation. It is the first time I have seen a patient die and it was a baby. They see life and death differently here, especially in the first year of life so the level of urgency (or lack there of) during the resuscitation was difficult for me to watch even though there is nothing else that they could have done. It is very difficult for premature babies to survive here because they do not have the necessary supplies to help them (on that note if anyone is looking to donate to something they could use a neonatal resuscitation kit here!!!)
Anyway I will try to write about more happier things soon. It has been such a great experience here, I still can't believe I get to be here learning!
I have SOOO much I want to write about, so much happens every day! I really want to catch up on the weekend- had a great time but I am too tired for now.
Today was a very long day. I have seen SO much and been learning so much (I try and look things up and ask tons of questions). I took staples out from a patient post c-section this morning and then sutures out from a patient's wound. I have been able to do lots of wound care here which is great!
I am pretty bummed because a newborn premature baby died (it was a day old) and I was watching the resuscitation. It is the first time I have seen a patient die and it was a baby. They see life and death differently here, especially in the first year of life so the level of urgency (or lack there of) during the resuscitation was difficult for me to watch even though there is nothing else that they could have done. It is very difficult for premature babies to survive here because they do not have the necessary supplies to help them (on that note if anyone is looking to donate to something they could use a neonatal resuscitation kit here!!!)
Anyway I will try to write about more happier things soon. It has been such a great experience here, I still can't believe I get to be here learning!
Saturday, June 30, 2012
The People
I have not really talked much about the people here.
Where the hospital is there are no white people except for Sister McCarty, Dr. Kellert and any visitors. Many people want to say hello although some just stare. The kids are the funniest. They virtually all stare at me. Some of them smile and want their picture taken and laugh. Yesterday though I got quite a different reaction. I turned the corner and a woman was walking her very young child and the toddler started screaming and crying when he saw me. Everyone was laughing but my appearance has never gotten that reaction before- at least not to my face ;)
Men dress in pants of any kind (although now that I think about it I haven't really seen any jeans here). Some men even dress in slacks, shirts and ties, although not really at the hospital. Women wear dresses and skirts mostly. They often wear beanies or some sort of hats on their heads. Or they wear colorful scarves tied on their heads. Everyone for the most part has been wearing a lot of layers because it is winter here- although I think most days have actually been hot (70 to at least 80). Sister McCarty said that there is not really Zimbabwean fashion, if anything they copy Zambia or where clothes like in the U.S.
The women carry many things on their heads- they really do! I have seen them even carrying full suitcases on their heads and they don't use their hands- I have no idea how they balance it!
They also don't really like spicy things here so I have been happy that I brought a bottle of sriracha to add to things. More on food later because I haven't really tried anything local yet.
People are very nice and often soft spoken. They mostly all speak Shona here in the rural area although some speak a little English.
People make their living from agriculture here. They grow a lot of corn or cotton (and this morning I heard there is a lot of MJ here too...). But they can usually feed their family with what they grow and then sell the rest. I have not really left hospital grounds yet so I have not seen the farm land.
Where the hospital is there are no white people except for Sister McCarty, Dr. Kellert and any visitors. Many people want to say hello although some just stare. The kids are the funniest. They virtually all stare at me. Some of them smile and want their picture taken and laugh. Yesterday though I got quite a different reaction. I turned the corner and a woman was walking her very young child and the toddler started screaming and crying when he saw me. Everyone was laughing but my appearance has never gotten that reaction before- at least not to my face ;)
Men dress in pants of any kind (although now that I think about it I haven't really seen any jeans here). Some men even dress in slacks, shirts and ties, although not really at the hospital. Women wear dresses and skirts mostly. They often wear beanies or some sort of hats on their heads. Or they wear colorful scarves tied on their heads. Everyone for the most part has been wearing a lot of layers because it is winter here- although I think most days have actually been hot (70 to at least 80). Sister McCarty said that there is not really Zimbabwean fashion, if anything they copy Zambia or where clothes like in the U.S.
The women carry many things on their heads- they really do! I have seen them even carrying full suitcases on their heads and they don't use their hands- I have no idea how they balance it!
They also don't really like spicy things here so I have been happy that I brought a bottle of sriracha to add to things. More on food later because I haven't really tried anything local yet.
People are very nice and often soft spoken. They mostly all speak Shona here in the rural area although some speak a little English.
People make their living from agriculture here. They grow a lot of corn or cotton (and this morning I heard there is a lot of MJ here too...). But they can usually feed their family with what they grow and then sell the rest. I have not really left hospital grounds yet so I have not seen the farm land.
Through the Wards
Today I got to sleep in since it is Saturday and we did not go to the hospital until later. It is the first time that I have really gone through the wards and seen the patients who are staying at the hospital (before I had mostly been doing clinics, watching surgeries and seeing outpatients with Dr. Kajese). I went on rounds with Dr. Kabonzi (still can't spell but I'm guessing). I was really hit today by the fact that I am in rural Zimbabwe. The wards are divided by male, female, pedi, labor and delivery, postpartum and a NICU of sorts. We started in the NICU which really isn't a NICU, just a place where premature babies stay with their mothers. I have never seen a baby so small in my entire life. Then again in the States they would not let nursing students in where the premies were. The room was quite cold because they really have no way to keep it warm. The babies are wrapped up under lots of blankets to try and keep them warm enough. They are supposed to be fed every 2 hours but there is no clock in the room and the woman have no way to tell time and the nurses are often too busy to remind them so the babies are often not fed as frequently as they should be.
The pediatrics ward was heart-wrenching. This entire trip is life changing but I think one of those life changing moments happened in the pedi ward today. There were 12 beds and then more mattresses on the floor inbetween. Mothers are in bed with their children, most of whom are very small (<3 years old). There were 2 older children with terrible burns on their legs from hot water (accidental). Apparently that is very common. There were also a few who were malnourished and many who were dehydrated from gastroenteritis (also common here). All of these patients are in the same room, bed next to bed. Seeing young children with AIDS was so sad (that does not even begin to describe it). A boy had AIDS and TB which is a common combination here. They try and keep the TB patients separate from the other patients but it is nothing like in the U.S. There are no negative pressure rooms here, they simply try and keep the doors open for fresh air. (Even when we see patients in the exam room, patient privacy is compensated because the door must stay open for the protection of the doctor). When you walk in a room, there is no bottle of purell, no boxes of gloves in every size, sinks with soap in every room, face masks. There is nothing. Nurses do not feed their patients and wash them, it is up to the family members to take care of them in this way. Hospitals in the U.S. are really 5 star hotels compared to this.
In the mens ward there was a patient with a CD4 count of <1. A normal CD4 count in a healthy person is over 1,000. Patients here are treated for HIV/AIDS when their CD4 count is <350. With the medication, it is hoped to keep them around 500. I did not even know that it was possible to have a CD4 count so low. I had to ask the doctor, "you mean just the number 1?!" He said yes. I have also seen a few people with CD4 counts under 40 since I have been here.
All HIV/AIDS medication (ART treatment) and TB treatment are free here (the government pays for them, and they get many donations from global funds). Many of the patients do not want to be tested so by the time that they come in, their CD4 counts are very low, meaning they basically have no immunity. They often will need anti-TB meds first and ART cannot be started while they have active TB. The TB meds take 6 months and then ART will be started. If the patient is already on ART when they get TB then they will have to change their ART regimen because TB and the TB meds mess it up.
Many of the patients need xrays for different things such as injuries from carts crashing (I'm not sure what exactly they are called, unfortunately I still miss a lot of what is said because of accents and people are very soft spoken here.) and also they need xrays for TB. Xrays here cost $20 which is very expensive and most of these people cannot pay it. On a side note, U.S. money is used here because the Zimbabwean currency is worth nothing now. There are a lot of $2 bills here which is interesting (I remember thinking how cool finding one at home was when I was little). It really makes me think about all of the things I have wasted $20 on in my life.
We are done for the hospital for today but Dr. Kabonzi told the nurses to send someone to get me if there is a delivery and he told them that I am supposed to do the entire thing and even suture them up if needed. I laughed like ya right and he said you have to get your hands dirty while you are in Africa.
The pediatrics ward was heart-wrenching. This entire trip is life changing but I think one of those life changing moments happened in the pedi ward today. There were 12 beds and then more mattresses on the floor inbetween. Mothers are in bed with their children, most of whom are very small (<3 years old). There were 2 older children with terrible burns on their legs from hot water (accidental). Apparently that is very common. There were also a few who were malnourished and many who were dehydrated from gastroenteritis (also common here). All of these patients are in the same room, bed next to bed. Seeing young children with AIDS was so sad (that does not even begin to describe it). A boy had AIDS and TB which is a common combination here. They try and keep the TB patients separate from the other patients but it is nothing like in the U.S. There are no negative pressure rooms here, they simply try and keep the doors open for fresh air. (Even when we see patients in the exam room, patient privacy is compensated because the door must stay open for the protection of the doctor). When you walk in a room, there is no bottle of purell, no boxes of gloves in every size, sinks with soap in every room, face masks. There is nothing. Nurses do not feed their patients and wash them, it is up to the family members to take care of them in this way. Hospitals in the U.S. are really 5 star hotels compared to this.
In the mens ward there was a patient with a CD4 count of <1. A normal CD4 count in a healthy person is over 1,000. Patients here are treated for HIV/AIDS when their CD4 count is <350. With the medication, it is hoped to keep them around 500. I did not even know that it was possible to have a CD4 count so low. I had to ask the doctor, "you mean just the number 1?!" He said yes. I have also seen a few people with CD4 counts under 40 since I have been here.
All HIV/AIDS medication (ART treatment) and TB treatment are free here (the government pays for them, and they get many donations from global funds). Many of the patients do not want to be tested so by the time that they come in, their CD4 counts are very low, meaning they basically have no immunity. They often will need anti-TB meds first and ART cannot be started while they have active TB. The TB meds take 6 months and then ART will be started. If the patient is already on ART when they get TB then they will have to change their ART regimen because TB and the TB meds mess it up.
Many of the patients need xrays for different things such as injuries from carts crashing (I'm not sure what exactly they are called, unfortunately I still miss a lot of what is said because of accents and people are very soft spoken here.) and also they need xrays for TB. Xrays here cost $20 which is very expensive and most of these people cannot pay it. On a side note, U.S. money is used here because the Zimbabwean currency is worth nothing now. There are a lot of $2 bills here which is interesting (I remember thinking how cool finding one at home was when I was little). It really makes me think about all of the things I have wasted $20 on in my life.
We are done for the hospital for today but Dr. Kabonzi told the nurses to send someone to get me if there is a delivery and he told them that I am supposed to do the entire thing and even suture them up if needed. I laughed like ya right and he said you have to get your hands dirty while you are in Africa.
Friday, June 29, 2012
Work at the hospital cont.
I decided to post that because I was afraid the electricity was going to go out and I would lose everything.
Thursday cont.
In the morning I watched part of a surgery that Dr. Kellert performed- a woman had a fistula between her vagina and bladder and Dr. Kellert fixed it. This is a big problem in Africa because of prolonged labors or labors that don't go well. It is fantastic for Chidamoyo to have an OB/GYN doc now to do these surgeries.
I was seeing patients with Dr. Kajese again when the other doctor (can't spell his name today lol) came in and said there was an interesting case in the Theatre. We both went. An old man had been working in the field and he bent over and one of his cow's horns had speared him in the bum! It seemed so painful and yet the man had walked into the hospital. The other doctor sewed him up and I got to watch. (There are lots of doctors and nurses in the Theatre here).
Then a woman needed a C-section inthe Theatre (operating room) and Dr. Kellert performed the section. It was the first time I had seen a c-section. It was so amazing to see (and interesting in comparison right after a vaginal delivery). When Dr. Kellert pulled the baby out it had the cord around it's neck and she quickly pulled it off. The nurse was then handed the baby. It was not crying and I looked over and my heart dropped because I honestly thought the baby was dead. It wasn;t moving and it looked blue. The nurse was trying to get it to breathe and again I panicked. Kathy walked into the OR and started giving the baby oxygen. She said "this kid should be crying because he was born in Zimbabwe, he's not because he thinks he was born in South Africa." After what seemed like eternity the baby started doing better and he ended up being just fine.
Thursday was quite busy and I was amazed by everything I got to do and see in one day (CD4 counts, injections, a vaginal delivery and 3 surgeries).
Today (Friday) was another very interesting and exciting day.
We started off in the Theatre where Dr. Kellert removed a benign ovarian tumor from a woman that was larger than a baby! It was so amazing to see the before and after- she looked 9 months pregnant when she entered and looked normal when she left.
I also sat in with Sister McCarty today when she was doing HIV/AIDS antiretroviral medication counseling (the treatment is called ART). This was fascinating because I got to learn all about the medications and also about peoples perceptions of AIDS here because she had to explain to them about taking their medications. Many people do not want to get tested so they wait until they are very sick to come here and then the medications don't work as well and they often have another disease such as TB by then because their immune system is not properly functioning.
Thursday cont.
In the morning I watched part of a surgery that Dr. Kellert performed- a woman had a fistula between her vagina and bladder and Dr. Kellert fixed it. This is a big problem in Africa because of prolonged labors or labors that don't go well. It is fantastic for Chidamoyo to have an OB/GYN doc now to do these surgeries.
I was seeing patients with Dr. Kajese again when the other doctor (can't spell his name today lol) came in and said there was an interesting case in the Theatre. We both went. An old man had been working in the field and he bent over and one of his cow's horns had speared him in the bum! It seemed so painful and yet the man had walked into the hospital. The other doctor sewed him up and I got to watch. (There are lots of doctors and nurses in the Theatre here).
Then a woman needed a C-section inthe Theatre (operating room) and Dr. Kellert performed the section. It was the first time I had seen a c-section. It was so amazing to see (and interesting in comparison right after a vaginal delivery). When Dr. Kellert pulled the baby out it had the cord around it's neck and she quickly pulled it off. The nurse was then handed the baby. It was not crying and I looked over and my heart dropped because I honestly thought the baby was dead. It wasn;t moving and it looked blue. The nurse was trying to get it to breathe and again I panicked. Kathy walked into the OR and started giving the baby oxygen. She said "this kid should be crying because he was born in Zimbabwe, he's not because he thinks he was born in South Africa." After what seemed like eternity the baby started doing better and he ended up being just fine.
Thursday was quite busy and I was amazed by everything I got to do and see in one day (CD4 counts, injections, a vaginal delivery and 3 surgeries).
Today (Friday) was another very interesting and exciting day.
We started off in the Theatre where Dr. Kellert removed a benign ovarian tumor from a woman that was larger than a baby! It was so amazing to see the before and after- she looked 9 months pregnant when she entered and looked normal when she left.
I also sat in with Sister McCarty today when she was doing HIV/AIDS antiretroviral medication counseling (the treatment is called ART). This was fascinating because I got to learn all about the medications and also about peoples perceptions of AIDS here because she had to explain to them about taking their medications. Many people do not want to get tested so they wait until they are very sick to come here and then the medications don't work as well and they often have another disease such as TB by then because their immune system is not properly functioning.
Work at the hospital
Hello! It has been difficult to catch up on blogging because when there is electricity it is usually either the middle of the night or when I am at the hospital. Kathy told me that the electricity is probably going to go off soon so this will not be written as well as I would like :)
BTW I forgot to mention for those who don't know that Sister Kathy McCarty is the head nurse and matron here at Chidamoyo, basically one of the big bosses and she is awesome.
I have now spent 3 full days at the hospital and it has been the most amazing experience of my life. A normal days schedule at the hospital goes like this:
6:30 am I eat breakfast with Sister McCarty and Dr. Kellert (and any other guests here)
7:00 we go to the hospital (close up the dirt road)
7:30 am Devotions (prayers, some beautiful singing in Shona)
8:00 am start the days work
10:30 am Tea
1-2pm Lunch (go to Kathy's to eat- she has a chef and she cooks so there is always great food!)
4-5 pm end of the day
On my first day at the hospital (Wednesday) there was an Antenatal Clinic at the hospital. This is where they give pregnant women information about pregnancy and other health factors. I took the blood pressure of about 50 women in a row. They are weighed, have their BP taken and other important information written down for their pregnancy. I was slightly nervous at first because there were so many women waiting for me and there was only 1 BP cuff but it went well and I finally finished them all. It is amazing how patiently people will wait for hours for medical care here.
After that I went and saw patients with Dr. Kajese. He has been great with letting me sit in on his examinations and explaining to me what is going on (most people speak the language Shona here and not as much English because we are so rural here). Today he showed me how to look at xrays of TB patients and see that they have it from examining their lung xrays. Dr. Kajese sits in the exam room and one patient after another comes in. He writes what is wrong in a notebook that they carry around- quite different than the computer charting that we have at the hospitals in Boston! Sometimes the notebooks are torn and covered in dirt. He also examined a man with an enlarged prostate today and showed me everything on the ultrasound machine (looks slightly out of place in the exam room, but fantastic that they have this machine).
Yesterday (Thursday) there was a Well-Baby clinic at the hospital. Again women were lined up with their babies to get them weighed and vaccinated. With one of the nurses that works at the hospital we again saw around 50 patients. We gave them vaccines for various things such as measles and polio. Let's just say after 50 vaccinations I have never made so many children scream and cry and I am very much improved at giving injections.
On Thursdays they also take CD4 counts for HIV/AIDS patients to see how they are doing on the medication. I was taught to take blood from the patients' veins and put it in the tubes to be tested. Turns out the hardest part for me was tying the tourniquet (idk how to spell it). I could not seem to get it tight enough! There will be lots of practice for me over the next 5 weeks though.
Thursday was a very busy day. I also saw Dr. Kellert (the OB/GYN doc now working here originally from California) do eversion on a women (turn the baby from breech position using her hands on the outside of the stomach). This was the first time I had ever seen this and she was successful! I also happened to walk into the Labor and Delivery room and there were two nurses there with a patient. I asked if she was going to have the baby soon and I saw my answer- the baby's head was crowning! The woman was not on any pain meds and yet she was not making a sound. There were just two nurses quietly standing with her. Everyone was so much calmer than my experience at Mass Gen. There were no monitors on the baby or anything. The woman had the baby and it was weighed, dried off and placed on the bed next to her. Then the nurse sewed up her laceration! It was amzing because at home the doctor would have done this but here it is the nurses job to deliver the baby. Then the mom stood up and got in a wheelchair and went to the next room! I personally was starting to panic because I had never seen anything like it- everyone was so calm and I was getting worried that too many contractions had passed and the baby had still not come out even though it had been crowning. I have a lot to learn here.
BTW I forgot to mention for those who don't know that Sister Kathy McCarty is the head nurse and matron here at Chidamoyo, basically one of the big bosses and she is awesome.
I have now spent 3 full days at the hospital and it has been the most amazing experience of my life. A normal days schedule at the hospital goes like this:
6:30 am I eat breakfast with Sister McCarty and Dr. Kellert (and any other guests here)
7:00 we go to the hospital (close up the dirt road)
7:30 am Devotions (prayers, some beautiful singing in Shona)
8:00 am start the days work
10:30 am Tea
1-2pm Lunch (go to Kathy's to eat- she has a chef and she cooks so there is always great food!)
4-5 pm end of the day
On my first day at the hospital (Wednesday) there was an Antenatal Clinic at the hospital. This is where they give pregnant women information about pregnancy and other health factors. I took the blood pressure of about 50 women in a row. They are weighed, have their BP taken and other important information written down for their pregnancy. I was slightly nervous at first because there were so many women waiting for me and there was only 1 BP cuff but it went well and I finally finished them all. It is amazing how patiently people will wait for hours for medical care here.
After that I went and saw patients with Dr. Kajese. He has been great with letting me sit in on his examinations and explaining to me what is going on (most people speak the language Shona here and not as much English because we are so rural here). Today he showed me how to look at xrays of TB patients and see that they have it from examining their lung xrays. Dr. Kajese sits in the exam room and one patient after another comes in. He writes what is wrong in a notebook that they carry around- quite different than the computer charting that we have at the hospitals in Boston! Sometimes the notebooks are torn and covered in dirt. He also examined a man with an enlarged prostate today and showed me everything on the ultrasound machine (looks slightly out of place in the exam room, but fantastic that they have this machine).
Yesterday (Thursday) there was a Well-Baby clinic at the hospital. Again women were lined up with their babies to get them weighed and vaccinated. With one of the nurses that works at the hospital we again saw around 50 patients. We gave them vaccines for various things such as measles and polio. Let's just say after 50 vaccinations I have never made so many children scream and cry and I am very much improved at giving injections.
On Thursdays they also take CD4 counts for HIV/AIDS patients to see how they are doing on the medication. I was taught to take blood from the patients' veins and put it in the tubes to be tested. Turns out the hardest part for me was tying the tourniquet (idk how to spell it). I could not seem to get it tight enough! There will be lots of practice for me over the next 5 weeks though.
Thursday was a very busy day. I also saw Dr. Kellert (the OB/GYN doc now working here originally from California) do eversion on a women (turn the baby from breech position using her hands on the outside of the stomach). This was the first time I had ever seen this and she was successful! I also happened to walk into the Labor and Delivery room and there were two nurses there with a patient. I asked if she was going to have the baby soon and I saw my answer- the baby's head was crowning! The woman was not on any pain meds and yet she was not making a sound. There were just two nurses quietly standing with her. Everyone was so much calmer than my experience at Mass Gen. There were no monitors on the baby or anything. The woman had the baby and it was weighed, dried off and placed on the bed next to her. Then the nurse sewed up her laceration! It was amzing because at home the doctor would have done this but here it is the nurses job to deliver the baby. Then the mom stood up and got in a wheelchair and went to the next room! I personally was starting to panic because I had never seen anything like it- everyone was so calm and I was getting worried that too many contractions had passed and the baby had still not come out even though it had been crowning. I have a lot to learn here.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)