I made it to the clinic safe and sound! Thanks for all the good vibes sent my way! It only took me a colectivo (basically a cab that takes multiple groups of people where they need to go, except it looks more like a truck - pictures to come!) and a taxi to get there the first time!
The clinic I have worked in this week is fairly small, containing two doctors and two nurses to run the entire show. The first hour of the day I work with the nurses taking vitals. All of the vitals are done manually and all of the paperwork done by the nurse is handwritten. At the University of Michigan Hospital, we do everything with machines and computers, so this had been my greatest culture shock thus far.
Once that hour has passed, I work with the doctor for the next three. The doctor I have been paired with this week sees about 10-18 patients per day. Most of our patients consist of pregnant women coming in for a check up. I have been able to listen to their baby's heartbeat and feel how the baby is positioned inside the womb. Everything we did in this clinic felt similar to my OB class, just this time everything is in Spanish. I help the doctor out by filling out some paperwork, but other than that, I spend most of my time trying to figure out what the patient and doctor and saying to each other. Over here, the patient-doctor relationship is extremely casual. Also, since the doctor does not see too many patients within a day, he is able to spend more time with each of them. Sometimes families will come in all together, and he will check them out all in one appointment. The doctor does not speak much English, but he still tries to explain everything to me.
My Spanish is getting slightly better, I spent at least 75% of the day translating from Spanish to English in my brain. Between that and the heat, I am exhausted by the end of each day. Lucky for me, when the scheduled portion of the day is done, Bonnie, Yvonne, and Rosie (the three other volunteers on the trip with me), are always ready to do something fun! Yesterday we ate gelato then went to go see a movie on the beach! One of the hotels puts this event on every Wednesday night. This week they showed "When Harry Met Sally." It was the ultimate girls night. Tonight, Rosie and I ended the afternoon on the beach.
Sorry no pictures this time, just wanted to give an update on what life has been like here so far. I'm living in paradise!
The clinic I have worked in this week is fairly small, containing two doctors and two nurses to run the entire show. The first hour of the day I work with the nurses taking vitals. All of the vitals are done manually and all of the paperwork done by the nurse is handwritten. At the University of Michigan Hospital, we do everything with machines and computers, so this had been my greatest culture shock thus far.
Once that hour has passed, I work with the doctor for the next three. The doctor I have been paired with this week sees about 10-18 patients per day. Most of our patients consist of pregnant women coming in for a check up. I have been able to listen to their baby's heartbeat and feel how the baby is positioned inside the womb. Everything we did in this clinic felt similar to my OB class, just this time everything is in Spanish. I help the doctor out by filling out some paperwork, but other than that, I spend most of my time trying to figure out what the patient and doctor and saying to each other. Over here, the patient-doctor relationship is extremely casual. Also, since the doctor does not see too many patients within a day, he is able to spend more time with each of them. Sometimes families will come in all together, and he will check them out all in one appointment. The doctor does not speak much English, but he still tries to explain everything to me.
My Spanish is getting slightly better, I spent at least 75% of the day translating from Spanish to English in my brain. Between that and the heat, I am exhausted by the end of each day. Lucky for me, when the scheduled portion of the day is done, Bonnie, Yvonne, and Rosie (the three other volunteers on the trip with me), are always ready to do something fun! Yesterday we ate gelato then went to go see a movie on the beach! One of the hotels puts this event on every Wednesday night. This week they showed "When Harry Met Sally." It was the ultimate girls night. Tonight, Rosie and I ended the afternoon on the beach.
Sorry no pictures this time, just wanted to give an update on what life has been like here so far. I'm living in paradise!
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