Monday, August 23, 2010
Why Playing Claw Arcade Games is Important
This morning while drinking instant coffee and eating an egg sandwich, I wondered what I would write about. Nothing has really happened this past week besides the grim reaper camping out at the hospital. So I decided to put of writing and take out the rubbish bin and burn trash. I donned my gear so I wouldn’t get eaten by mosquitoes and traipsed outside to the garbage pit. As I was dumping out the trash near the edge of the pit, a spider on the side of the trashcan caught my eye. Unfortunately my irrational fear of spiders still exists, so I promptly dropped the trashcan…into the 20 foot deep pit. Now I guess one would just think, oh well, just go buy another trashcan, but being so wasteful doesn’t fly here. So I guiltily went back into the house and reiterated to Sarah what happened. In searching around the house, I found a coil of think wire, an iron hook, and some duct tape. In true MacGuiver fashion, I rigged together a fishing pole of sorts. So we started fishing. Coupled with humidity, the slant into the pit, and the smoke from the burning trash, the task seemed all the more daunting. After tweaking the contraption a couple times, and rotating around the hole, Sarah managed to hook the lip of the trashcan and pull it up. What a feeling of accomplishment! Lesson learned about being near the pit. And all of this before 8 a.m.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Tour Part Deux
Oloko ozali nini freckle? Ozana na freckle? Freckle Te. Wasn’t quite done with the freckle comments from Paul, it was just too cute. Respectively from Lingala to English: What is freckle? Do you have freckles? No freckles. But anyways, I’ll start where I left off. On to the surgical buildings. You walk back past pediatrics and toward the back on your right is the Bloc or operating building. It has three operating theaters, one mainly for putting on casts, and a sterilization room. Practically everything is reused. Washed and sterilized, but still reused, no wasting goes on here. To the left are the American wards (red, white, and blue paint on the buildings). First is the new surgery building which is either for pre-op or post-op patients, we haven’t picked a definitive name for it yet. Right now there are two recovering prostatectomies in there and an 18 year old who had some traditional treatment put on his leg, which caused a huge gaping ulcer/wound on the lower half of his calf. It’s on the mend. Last night we had someone come in for observation who had cut his foot with a machete and needed to be stitched up. It wasn’t too serious and he seemed to have pretty good spirits about the whole situation. That room is still undergoing some changes to be more functional as a close observation unit, but that will probably be some time before it’s really up and running.
Next is Chirugie Homme (Men’s Surgery). There are eight beds, four lined up on each side. Matthew is a young man in the second bed. He came in unconscious from a tree falling on his head. He had on open wound on the crown of his head and that periodically spurted blood because an artery had been broken. He was stitched up but since waking up, he had not be able to moved the lower half of his body, nor can he moved the upper half well. He has been in the hospital for about a month, so the surgeon is about to discuss what needs to be done next because we have done all we can do at our hospital. I don’t know the kind of person he was before the accident, but he is so kind. In the next bed is Simon, a chief of one of the villages who broke his leg. He has been trying to get to Brazzaville to have surgery, but they had trouble getting a plane ticket then the plane got cancelled, so he has been hanging out for about a month too. You can tell he is a little more high maintenance, but pleasant. His area is very clean, and his family brought him in a bedside table that has his radio and other personal items on it. He has a frank discussion with me and Dave about how much alcohol he usually drinks a day (2 liters!) and that it’s part of his job as a chief to do that kind of socializing, but he does take breaks. We explained to him that that was probably why he got such a crazy heart rhythm. He probably needs a pacemaker, but that’s definitely not technology that has made it here yet. Then there are the regular hernia repairs, appendectomies, and wound care.
And last is Chirugie Femme (Women’s Surgery). Eight beds in here as well. Cases in here are usually ovarian cyst removals, hysterectomies, oopherectomies, and I even saw a carpal tunnel repair the other day. Our last long termer left is Shelly. She is 9 years old, came in with a broken femur, and was put in traction. She is the cutest thing with the sweetest little voice. She likes to take her own temperature and read it out to you. She is just awesome. Her bone healed, but from being in traction, then in a cast, she had some skin breakdown, so now they are healing that wound, and trying to get rid of the foot drop she developed. Orthopedics is tricky here, that’s for sure. But her family is very attentive, so she is doing well.
So those are just some of the people you might see if you took a walk through the hospital. And I forgot to mention this in the first one: I did change names for the sake of confidentiality, but it’s still the people. Time is winding down, just three and half weeks until I leave Imfondo for the capital! Time is curious thing, but a lot of new experiences and people have been packed in there. Who knew four months would feel like a snap?
Next is Chirugie Homme (Men’s Surgery). There are eight beds, four lined up on each side. Matthew is a young man in the second bed. He came in unconscious from a tree falling on his head. He had on open wound on the crown of his head and that periodically spurted blood because an artery had been broken. He was stitched up but since waking up, he had not be able to moved the lower half of his body, nor can he moved the upper half well. He has been in the hospital for about a month, so the surgeon is about to discuss what needs to be done next because we have done all we can do at our hospital. I don’t know the kind of person he was before the accident, but he is so kind. In the next bed is Simon, a chief of one of the villages who broke his leg. He has been trying to get to Brazzaville to have surgery, but they had trouble getting a plane ticket then the plane got cancelled, so he has been hanging out for about a month too. You can tell he is a little more high maintenance, but pleasant. His area is very clean, and his family brought him in a bedside table that has his radio and other personal items on it. He has a frank discussion with me and Dave about how much alcohol he usually drinks a day (2 liters!) and that it’s part of his job as a chief to do that kind of socializing, but he does take breaks. We explained to him that that was probably why he got such a crazy heart rhythm. He probably needs a pacemaker, but that’s definitely not technology that has made it here yet. Then there are the regular hernia repairs, appendectomies, and wound care.
And last is Chirugie Femme (Women’s Surgery). Eight beds in here as well. Cases in here are usually ovarian cyst removals, hysterectomies, oopherectomies, and I even saw a carpal tunnel repair the other day. Our last long termer left is Shelly. She is 9 years old, came in with a broken femur, and was put in traction. She is the cutest thing with the sweetest little voice. She likes to take her own temperature and read it out to you. She is just awesome. Her bone healed, but from being in traction, then in a cast, she had some skin breakdown, so now they are healing that wound, and trying to get rid of the foot drop she developed. Orthopedics is tricky here, that’s for sure. But her family is very attentive, so she is doing well.
So those are just some of the people you might see if you took a walk through the hospital. And I forgot to mention this in the first one: I did change names for the sake of confidentiality, but it’s still the people. Time is winding down, just three and half weeks until I leave Imfondo for the capital! Time is curious thing, but a lot of new experiences and people have been packed in there. Who knew four months would feel like a snap?
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Freckle (Hospital tour Part 1)
I want to give you a little peek into our hospital. You arrive in the front gate to the hospital grounds where the guards greet you from their palm covered peyote with a booming “Bonjour!” On your right is the administration building where we hold our morning report and where the doctors’ offices are located. Straight in front of you is the largest structure on the premises; going from right to left: chapel, laboratory, echo graph, radiology, pharmacy, and then is has a part of the building that juts backwards further into the hospital yard with the emergency room and triage. The emergency room sort of doubles as a critical care where the patients who are having seizures from cerebral malaria, need oxygen, or are unconscious are kept for a tad bit closer observation. If you keep walking from there you hit two buildings: maternity and the birthing suite, both of which I have only been in once because there is one nurse who is specifically assigned to those two and that’s just not my cup of tea. I did however witness on delivery, and it’s not so much the cushy pampered deliveries at home, but more like they are yelling at the woman to be stronger. So anyways, breeze by those buildings.
To the left are three building in a row, Congo wards (they have painted strips of red, yellow, and green at the base). First you come to Medicine Homme (men’s medical) which has six beds, two of which are in a semi private room and one in a private room. Right now we have a man with cervical spinal stenosis, one with opportunistic infections from HIV (Adam), and the other with tuberculosis (Charles). Adam had his three month anniversary at the hospital yesterday, and has been in a different building each month. He started out in Medicine Femme, then had to be moved to the old Medicine Homme to make room for a patient with drug resistant TB, then this past week when we moved to a new Medicine Homme, he had to move as well. I think he will finally get to rest there. He has HIV, an opportunistic infection of tuberculosis and the lymph nodes around his face and neck are swollen and infected. He is on a boat load of medications, but everyday he puts on a big smile and greets whoever walks in. Charles is a new arrival, but I knew him because he went on the trip with us to the Epena clinic a few weeks ago. He is in for tuberculosis which requires that you stay in the hospital for a month of treatment then are tested to see if you are still positive, if not you go home, if so you stay another month.
The next building is Medicine Femme (women’s medical) where often times it is also an HIV/ TB ward. It has six beds, for which two are in their own private rooms (usually reserved for drug resistant TB or other more contagious cases). In the second private room is Anna, a middle aged woman with full blown AIDS. She came in extremely weak and weighed only 66lbs. It was a little touch and go for a while, but she is starting to slowly gain weight, and when I walked in the other day she was sitting up on her own and waved a greeting: HUGE improvement considering I was lifting her up so she cut sit to take her meds. Then there is Lilly. She has HIV and TB, but came in to the hospital with necrotizing fasciitis on her foot. The tendons were visible and it was almost to the bone. I was skeptical, but after being here for a month and half, through dressing changes and debridement, the skin had grown a healthy red over the tendons, and she was ready for a skin graft, which Dr. Fuka performed. I stood in to watch, and it was certainly the most interesting skin graft I have seen (well, only one I’ve see, but still). He used a straight blade razor and by hand, shaved off thin layers of skin from her skinny, skinny thigh and replaced it onto her foot. I saw Lilly’s foot the other day and it was looking so much better! The graft had taken well, and her foot was starting to look normal. However, since she also has other health complications, it is taking longer and she has also developed sores on her other foot, which look suspiciously like blisters from the premier infection. We only hope that since we are treating them from the beginning it won’t last long. She has a character for a mother the “cuoco” (grandmother/grandchild in Lingala depending on who you say it to) and her children are so adorable. Last Sunday the youngest latched on to me during and after the church service up until we left.
On to the last of the three buildings: Pediatrics. This is a building I tried to avoid when I first got here, because, well, I’m not the best with kids; however, as time has passed, I now will stop in there for visits and check in even if I am not working in there. There are eight beds, three of them cribs, and come vital signs or med pass, it becomes the wailing room. Often times it acts like a malnutrition and malaria ward, but there are cases of respiratory infections, burns, abscesses, and other maladies. Before you walk in you are likely to see a baby in a big bucket being bathed or one sitting on a small bucket completing his business…at least it’s being done outside. I am just going to single out two: David and Paul. David is 16 years old and has had HIV/AIDS since birth; he however, looks like he is a skinny 9 year old. He has outlived his mother, and it is amazing that he has made it to 16. He will sometimes try to keep other kids in line or do a little translating because since he has been there for so long, he knows the routine. However, we are trying to move him to Medicine Homme so he can be in less stressful environment. Right now we are trying to eliminate is ever persistent fever. Paul is 9 years old and is a gunshot victim from the rebel battles. He was shot in the spine, is a paraplegic, and is in the hospital to heal up the pressure sores on his backside. He has been there about two months, and when he first came he was pitiful just setting on his confining bed; however, about five weeks after he had been at the hospital, we found him a wheelchair. He is like a totally new kid! It took him a little while to build up the strength, but now he wheels around the hospital and has become a chatter box! He is absolutely precious and yesterday Sarah taught him the word “freckle.” Paul and Charles (new guy in Med Homme) are fast friends and Paul will wheel over to Charles and strike up a conversation. So yesterday, we periodically heard the word “freckle” in their Lingala conversation…hilarious!
I feel like I may be leaving out a few things, but it’s starting to get long so I’ll save the rest of the hospital for next time. But that’s just a small peek of what you see at the Pioneer!
To the left are three building in a row, Congo wards (they have painted strips of red, yellow, and green at the base). First you come to Medicine Homme (men’s medical) which has six beds, two of which are in a semi private room and one in a private room. Right now we have a man with cervical spinal stenosis, one with opportunistic infections from HIV (Adam), and the other with tuberculosis (Charles). Adam had his three month anniversary at the hospital yesterday, and has been in a different building each month. He started out in Medicine Femme, then had to be moved to the old Medicine Homme to make room for a patient with drug resistant TB, then this past week when we moved to a new Medicine Homme, he had to move as well. I think he will finally get to rest there. He has HIV, an opportunistic infection of tuberculosis and the lymph nodes around his face and neck are swollen and infected. He is on a boat load of medications, but everyday he puts on a big smile and greets whoever walks in. Charles is a new arrival, but I knew him because he went on the trip with us to the Epena clinic a few weeks ago. He is in for tuberculosis which requires that you stay in the hospital for a month of treatment then are tested to see if you are still positive, if not you go home, if so you stay another month.
The next building is Medicine Femme (women’s medical) where often times it is also an HIV/ TB ward. It has six beds, for which two are in their own private rooms (usually reserved for drug resistant TB or other more contagious cases). In the second private room is Anna, a middle aged woman with full blown AIDS. She came in extremely weak and weighed only 66lbs. It was a little touch and go for a while, but she is starting to slowly gain weight, and when I walked in the other day she was sitting up on her own and waved a greeting: HUGE improvement considering I was lifting her up so she cut sit to take her meds. Then there is Lilly. She has HIV and TB, but came in to the hospital with necrotizing fasciitis on her foot. The tendons were visible and it was almost to the bone. I was skeptical, but after being here for a month and half, through dressing changes and debridement, the skin had grown a healthy red over the tendons, and she was ready for a skin graft, which Dr. Fuka performed. I stood in to watch, and it was certainly the most interesting skin graft I have seen (well, only one I’ve see, but still). He used a straight blade razor and by hand, shaved off thin layers of skin from her skinny, skinny thigh and replaced it onto her foot. I saw Lilly’s foot the other day and it was looking so much better! The graft had taken well, and her foot was starting to look normal. However, since she also has other health complications, it is taking longer and she has also developed sores on her other foot, which look suspiciously like blisters from the premier infection. We only hope that since we are treating them from the beginning it won’t last long. She has a character for a mother the “cuoco” (grandmother/grandchild in Lingala depending on who you say it to) and her children are so adorable. Last Sunday the youngest latched on to me during and after the church service up until we left.
On to the last of the three buildings: Pediatrics. This is a building I tried to avoid when I first got here, because, well, I’m not the best with kids; however, as time has passed, I now will stop in there for visits and check in even if I am not working in there. There are eight beds, three of them cribs, and come vital signs or med pass, it becomes the wailing room. Often times it acts like a malnutrition and malaria ward, but there are cases of respiratory infections, burns, abscesses, and other maladies. Before you walk in you are likely to see a baby in a big bucket being bathed or one sitting on a small bucket completing his business…at least it’s being done outside. I am just going to single out two: David and Paul. David is 16 years old and has had HIV/AIDS since birth; he however, looks like he is a skinny 9 year old. He has outlived his mother, and it is amazing that he has made it to 16. He will sometimes try to keep other kids in line or do a little translating because since he has been there for so long, he knows the routine. However, we are trying to move him to Medicine Homme so he can be in less stressful environment. Right now we are trying to eliminate is ever persistent fever. Paul is 9 years old and is a gunshot victim from the rebel battles. He was shot in the spine, is a paraplegic, and is in the hospital to heal up the pressure sores on his backside. He has been there about two months, and when he first came he was pitiful just setting on his confining bed; however, about five weeks after he had been at the hospital, we found him a wheelchair. He is like a totally new kid! It took him a little while to build up the strength, but now he wheels around the hospital and has become a chatter box! He is absolutely precious and yesterday Sarah taught him the word “freckle.” Paul and Charles (new guy in Med Homme) are fast friends and Paul will wheel over to Charles and strike up a conversation. So yesterday, we periodically heard the word “freckle” in their Lingala conversation…hilarious!
I feel like I may be leaving out a few things, but it’s starting to get long so I’ll save the rest of the hospital for next time. But that’s just a small peek of what you see at the Pioneer!
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Days off in Congo
Since we have a new schedule, Sarah and I have made it somewhat of a habit to walk across the lawn the Harvey’s for lunch on our off days. It gives us the chance to hang out with Claire and Isabelle since they are the only two over there after their brother and dad left to join their mom and sister in the states for a few weeks. Plus, their cook Serge makes the best food! We cut it a little short yesterday because Sarah and I had both made bread, challah (with a silent “c”) and oatmeal bread respectively. It’s as if we are brushing up on our domesticity. Anyways, we had to rush back over to see how our bread was rising and if it was ready to be punched down or put in the oven. I am happy to say we both produced some beautifully golden, soft, fluffy loaves of bread that tasted delicious! If we aren’t just preparing ourselves to be the best housewives on the block! But really we do have the best conversations in the kitchen, and it’s fun playing around with the ingredients of Africa.
So yesterday when we were at lunch we planned what to cook for dinner. Claire has wanted to learn more about cooking and so she asked Sarah and me for some help. So since we had some ripe avocados and fresh tomatoes, we opted to have our weekly Mexican meal made in their kitchen. I prepped a few things, like washing veggies and crushing tomatoes while Sarah and Claire chopped and started on tortilla batter. It was fun to have out little crowd in the kitchen. Isabelle and I were on stools talking over her poetry book she had gotten for her home school curriculum, and we all chatted about movies we loved, songs we liked, and books we’ve read. It was so much fun to have a full kitchen. We tasted the food as it was coming along, figuring whether to add more salt, throw in a little more onion, or how much lime we wanted in the salsa. After our little kitchen hustle, Claire had completed totally fresh salsa and guacamole, flour tortillas and chips, corned beef (that we did cheat on by adding a taco seasoning packet), cheese, and fresh cucumbers. Probably one of our best Mexican nights ever! We had some really good genuine, tear-up laughs and left with stomachs content and hearts full. Our night humor what not quite done though. On our walk back across the lawn to our house, we have to pass under an archway of two large guava trees, from which ripe guavas are frequently falling from the heights. So just as Sarah, Joan, and I were just about through them, we hear a dull “thump” and we look back to see Joan with a hand on her head. She had become a victim of a falling guava, which resulted in hysterical laughter from me and Sarah and guava juice in Joan’s hair. We were all exhausted from our day (not that me and sarah had a rough day, but we never took sufficient naps after the night shift we came off of) so once back, we all crashed. Just another day in Congo.
So yesterday when we were at lunch we planned what to cook for dinner. Claire has wanted to learn more about cooking and so she asked Sarah and me for some help. So since we had some ripe avocados and fresh tomatoes, we opted to have our weekly Mexican meal made in their kitchen. I prepped a few things, like washing veggies and crushing tomatoes while Sarah and Claire chopped and started on tortilla batter. It was fun to have out little crowd in the kitchen. Isabelle and I were on stools talking over her poetry book she had gotten for her home school curriculum, and we all chatted about movies we loved, songs we liked, and books we’ve read. It was so much fun to have a full kitchen. We tasted the food as it was coming along, figuring whether to add more salt, throw in a little more onion, or how much lime we wanted in the salsa. After our little kitchen hustle, Claire had completed totally fresh salsa and guacamole, flour tortillas and chips, corned beef (that we did cheat on by adding a taco seasoning packet), cheese, and fresh cucumbers. Probably one of our best Mexican nights ever! We had some really good genuine, tear-up laughs and left with stomachs content and hearts full. Our night humor what not quite done though. On our walk back across the lawn to our house, we have to pass under an archway of two large guava trees, from which ripe guavas are frequently falling from the heights. So just as Sarah, Joan, and I were just about through them, we hear a dull “thump” and we look back to see Joan with a hand on her head. She had become a victim of a falling guava, which resulted in hysterical laughter from me and Sarah and guava juice in Joan’s hair. We were all exhausted from our day (not that me and sarah had a rough day, but we never took sufficient naps after the night shift we came off of) so once back, we all crashed. Just another day in Congo.
Monday, August 9, 2010
Antsy
Day shifts went along as smooth as expected for such an adjustment. 12 hour shifts are long anyways, but when you tack on walking that adds up to about three miles and the heat, it just makes it that much more exhausting. There are still little small flow of care issues that probably need to be addressed to make the transition complete, but we are taking baby steps in this process. It was starting to really mimic a western hospital. With the switch to 12 hours shifts, they started the “emergency room” back up as well as another place for more critical patients. There is still work to be done to set up a post-op/close observation unit. It’s difficult to do when electricity only goes to a few of the buildings. It was a lot of changes to make at once, but the staff seems to be handling it well.
MSF (doctors without borders) offered to take some of our more long term patients to give us some relief. It was kind of sad to have them go. One of the boys had been there since December, and I think it was hard to him to leave as well since this had been his home for the last seven months. There was another child that they were going to take --had a gunshot wound to the spine, resulting in paraplegia, with pressure sores that we have been trying to heal for about two months--but when they came to pick him up, they said that they had already tried treating him before and could do nothing else. So he will be staying with us for quite some time now doubt. One of the other patients that left is one that came to us knocking at death’s door from an infected appendectomy procedure. It took a couple surgeries and lots of dressing changes, but he was able to take a few shuffling steps before he left. I just hope he continues on his recovery road.
It’s round two of night shifts tonight and tomorrow. Still not that excited about nights, but once they are over we will practically be in the middle of August, meaning I will be back in just one month! I have loved my time here and it has been so blessed with peace and joy, but my mind is starting to shift towards home a little. Oh, and no more skyping, pictures, or lengthy internet use for us…ants got into the modem at the hospital and ate the insulation or something to that effect so the internet no longer works. We just have our tiny, expensive usb modem, but at least it’s something! Joe took the hospital modem back to the states with him so hopefully when he gets back (in a month) it will be back up and working for those who remain here, because by that time I’ll be in Brazzaville! Some days are still stifling here, but the mornings and evenings are usually cool and breezy. I hope everyone at home is having a lovely, and what I assume is a hot, August!
MSF (doctors without borders) offered to take some of our more long term patients to give us some relief. It was kind of sad to have them go. One of the boys had been there since December, and I think it was hard to him to leave as well since this had been his home for the last seven months. There was another child that they were going to take --had a gunshot wound to the spine, resulting in paraplegia, with pressure sores that we have been trying to heal for about two months--but when they came to pick him up, they said that they had already tried treating him before and could do nothing else. So he will be staying with us for quite some time now doubt. One of the other patients that left is one that came to us knocking at death’s door from an infected appendectomy procedure. It took a couple surgeries and lots of dressing changes, but he was able to take a few shuffling steps before he left. I just hope he continues on his recovery road.
It’s round two of night shifts tonight and tomorrow. Still not that excited about nights, but once they are over we will practically be in the middle of August, meaning I will be back in just one month! I have loved my time here and it has been so blessed with peace and joy, but my mind is starting to shift towards home a little. Oh, and no more skyping, pictures, or lengthy internet use for us…ants got into the modem at the hospital and ate the insulation or something to that effect so the internet no longer works. We just have our tiny, expensive usb modem, but at least it’s something! Joe took the hospital modem back to the states with him so hopefully when he gets back (in a month) it will be back up and working for those who remain here, because by that time I’ll be in Brazzaville! Some days are still stifling here, but the mornings and evenings are usually cool and breezy. I hope everyone at home is having a lovely, and what I assume is a hot, August!
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Kitchen Capers
So we have been getting progressively better in the kitchen, some nights are better than others, but we have returned to having Mexican night once again! I just don’t go in the kitchen while the evil pressure cooker is on. Thankfully my hand is healed, and you can’t even tell I was attacked. But we found avocados the other day, so we had fresh salsa, guacamole, fresh tortillas, and a can of corned beef, which we added a pack of taco seasoning, and it made the taco meat taste just like taco bell! That’s gourmet stuff here! But really adding the other fresh stuff to it, really did make it delicious. Our second Mexican night was bean burritos, with a European flair. We made beans, then added sautéed eggplant, okra, and green bell peppers (a rare find at the market!) with some fajita seasoning. An odd mix, but it tasted delicious! We then made refried beans with the leftovers…we are getting quite creative. We have also made chili, and then our basics of stuffed bread, and spaghetti. I am surprised at the variety of stuff we can manage. We even splurged the other night and brewed up some sweet tea!
Brenda Marsh has got to be one of the best bakers I now know! She hails from New York, and is Dave’s wife, who is a nurse at the hospital. We are in Africa and she turns out some of the best sweets/dessert I have tasted! We have just commissioned her take make us brownies once a week. And when you can make good brownies when there isn’t even real cocoa powder, I feel that says something. However, I have yet to find a cook who can hold a candle to Serg, the Harvey’s cook. He is Congolese, and turns out the best food. We had electric catfish the other day with a ratatouille and it was one of the best meals I have eaten here. Considering he knows the foods, and the flavors of Africa, he can come up with the best stuff, and the bread he makes is perfect. He has his own boat so he goes out on the river himself to catch the fish. Talk about some fresh food.
Just a little spiel on food. If you’re curious to know, Sarah and I did survive on night shifts, but our one of two days off in between was pretty much a catch up on sleep day. Definitely not my favorite time to work, but thankfully we only have to do 6 more this month. A lot of work still needs to be done with organization and maintenance of the system, but I think that’s going to be a progressive task.
Brenda Marsh has got to be one of the best bakers I now know! She hails from New York, and is Dave’s wife, who is a nurse at the hospital. We are in Africa and she turns out some of the best sweets/dessert I have tasted! We have just commissioned her take make us brownies once a week. And when you can make good brownies when there isn’t even real cocoa powder, I feel that says something. However, I have yet to find a cook who can hold a candle to Serg, the Harvey’s cook. He is Congolese, and turns out the best food. We had electric catfish the other day with a ratatouille and it was one of the best meals I have eaten here. Considering he knows the foods, and the flavors of Africa, he can come up with the best stuff, and the bread he makes is perfect. He has his own boat so he goes out on the river himself to catch the fish. Talk about some fresh food.
Just a little spiel on food. If you’re curious to know, Sarah and I did survive on night shifts, but our one of two days off in between was pretty much a catch up on sleep day. Definitely not my favorite time to work, but thankfully we only have to do 6 more this month. A lot of work still needs to be done with organization and maintenance of the system, but I think that’s going to be a progressive task.
Monday, August 2, 2010
Night Shifting
This month we have started a new schedule…12 hour shifts. What I am used to in the states, but still, it’s a different kind of work here so I was curious to see how that would go. It goes work two nights, off two days, work two days, off two days, work two nights, and so on. Thank goodness Sarah and I have a twin schedule, we thankfully survived the first night shift, but I am not so sure how I’ll make it to night two on only four hours of sleep after being up for 28 hours straight. We started off by taking a taxi since we didn’t want to ride our bikes in the dark…fun experience, got to see a little of Impfondo evening life. The night experience wasn’t all that bad though. It’s just a lot of foot work walking around to all the wards taking two sets of vital signs and three med pass times. Luckily the generator was on for the first set of rounds so we could have electricity, but after that, it was difficult to juggle the flashlight, chart, meds, and trying to step around the family members sleeping on the floor. It looked like a camp ground in each building complete with mosquito net tents and straw mats. We had three people come in during the night. One was a kid with malaria that was having seizures, another was a guy who had a concussion, and the last one came in the morning. It was a kid who had been throwing up and had a fever, so I performed the basic vitals routine, did a hemoglobin and paracheck and lo and behold, I diagnosed him with malaria! Not that it’s that hard to figure out with a 15 minute malaria test, but it was the first kid that I had done the whole work up on so that was good. We got him hooked up with meds and hopefully on the way to a speedy recovery. It difficult to guage the malaria kids, because sometimes the parents don’t bring them in until they are comatose or seizing, so it’s good when they actually bring them in before that stage, but better when they bring them in at the first signs so nothing too serious happens.
The rough part was the morning report after we got off work…I totally didn’t make it. Every time I nodded off I “woke up” to someone giggling at me, but I didn’t care, I was exhausted! Then we had to wait around an hour or so for someone to drive us back, which ended up being another little tour through the neighborhood of Impfondo to pick up people to take to the airport. Finally we were dropped off in front of the mission, and with weary steps made our way to the house, where I took the coldest shower ever since I have been here. It really didn’t matter though, I was so tired I just fell into bed after that. So night one was manageable, even with the wall I hit about 3am; I just hope I can make it to midnight tonight. I’m off to make as strong of a cup of coffee I can make with instant coffee powder.
The rough part was the morning report after we got off work…I totally didn’t make it. Every time I nodded off I “woke up” to someone giggling at me, but I didn’t care, I was exhausted! Then we had to wait around an hour or so for someone to drive us back, which ended up being another little tour through the neighborhood of Impfondo to pick up people to take to the airport. Finally we were dropped off in front of the mission, and with weary steps made our way to the house, where I took the coldest shower ever since I have been here. It really didn’t matter though, I was so tired I just fell into bed after that. So night one was manageable, even with the wall I hit about 3am; I just hope I can make it to midnight tonight. I’m off to make as strong of a cup of coffee I can make with instant coffee powder.
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