Saturday, September 8, 2007
La Sala de Emergencia y Escalando Con Cesar y Jaime
The hospital has been treating me well. I'm getting a ton of experience and was able to work in the ER for 12 hours on Thursday. One man was rolled in that day, no breathing and no pulse. They did CPR for about 40 minutes and then finally gave up. Pedro was only 54 years old. In the first ten minutes I was so hopeful. . . desperately watching the machine to see if his heart would start back up again. It was amazing see the dozen or so people working together to help him, taking turns doing CPR. It was hard to see his wife come in later that day to be confronted with the awful news. I think I may have felt sadder for her than I did for him. Despite so many differences in various cultures there so many similarities. . . hardship, death, smiles, love, play, saddness, laughter, friendship, family. I find we are more similar than we are different.
So I managed to deal with the inevitable. . . I had one awful night of stomach illness two nights ago. I spent the the majority of the day in bed yesterday. Last night Zarela (the woman who runs the hostel I am staying in) wanted me to come to the living room to introduce me to two local climbers, Jaime and Cesar. I staggered downstairs to meet them and was invited to go bouldering with them the following day. Today the three of us went climbing at an area only the locals know about. I don't think I could get back to the same place if I tried since these boulders are quite off the beaten path. The granite boulders were great despite being a bit spread out. I was a bit tired, not surprising given the day before, but I managed and it was fantastic. We plan to go to another place tomorrow that I've been wanting to check out, Los Olivos. I'll keep you posted.
So I managed to deal with the inevitable. . . I had one awful night of stomach illness two nights ago. I spent the the majority of the day in bed yesterday. Last night Zarela (the woman who runs the hostel I am staying in) wanted me to come to the living room to introduce me to two local climbers, Jaime and Cesar. I staggered downstairs to meet them and was invited to go bouldering with them the following day. Today the three of us went climbing at an area only the locals know about. I don't think I could get back to the same place if I tried since these boulders are quite off the beaten path. The granite boulders were great despite being a bit spread out. I was a bit tired, not surprising given the day before, but I managed and it was fantastic. We plan to go to another place tomorrow that I've been wanting to check out, Los Olivos. I'll keep you posted.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Alex and Delphina
I've been enjoying the hospital as I already mentioned, but I have come to adore this one boy, Alex, who was recovering from surgery on his hip. Such a sweet heart. He is always smiling and hanging out with the nurses, helping out or getting in the way; either way we all love him. I bring the kids chocolates every day and Alex always comes up smiling and asking for another one. I make him wait (otherwise he'd have chocolate every ten minutes) and then later tell him it's time for his medicina and hand him a chocolate. His smile gets even bigger and brighter. Sad thing for me is that he got well after two weeks or so of being in the hospital, so he went home before I could even take a picture. Cute little Alex, 10 years old.
Today after work I rushed over to Huanchac to get a little bouldering in before any afternoon rain. A local woman, Delphina, came up to me at one point and mentioned that she needed pills. I spoke with her briefly about it, but I was surprised that she didn't ask for money. I kept bouldering. Later she came to get one of her cows from near the boulders and she sat down next to me. We talked for about a half hour about life. She is 64 years old and never married and has no kids (very unusual in Peru). Assuming most Peruvian women want to get married, I dared to ask why, since she is so lovely and sweet. She said she never wanted to marry and that she likes to be "solita". She is a hard worker - cares for 3 cows, grows corn and potatoes, and does all the work of a family on her own. All this hard work has caused some aches and pains in her body, but she doesn't have money to see a doctor. After talking for some time she walked away with her cows. When I was leaving I struck up another conversation with her in the field and told her I'd bring her a few things to Huanchac if she needed anything. Gas was the biggest need, but I think I´ll surprise her with some chocolates, vino tinto, and some naproxen as well. She said to ask around and people would direct me to her house.
Today after work I rushed over to Huanchac to get a little bouldering in before any afternoon rain. A local woman, Delphina, came up to me at one point and mentioned that she needed pills. I spoke with her briefly about it, but I was surprised that she didn't ask for money. I kept bouldering. Later she came to get one of her cows from near the boulders and she sat down next to me. We talked for about a half hour about life. She is 64 years old and never married and has no kids (very unusual in Peru). Assuming most Peruvian women want to get married, I dared to ask why, since she is so lovely and sweet. She said she never wanted to marry and that she likes to be "solita". She is a hard worker - cares for 3 cows, grows corn and potatoes, and does all the work of a family on her own. All this hard work has caused some aches and pains in her body, but she doesn't have money to see a doctor. After talking for some time she walked away with her cows. When I was leaving I struck up another conversation with her in the field and told her I'd bring her a few things to Huanchac if she needed anything. Gas was the biggest need, but I think I´ll surprise her with some chocolates, vino tinto, and some naproxen as well. She said to ask around and people would direct me to her house.
Monday, September 3, 2007
Hospital de Apoyo Victor Ramos Guardia
Alas! I'm working in a Hospital! I had the great opportunity of getting to help out in the emergency room on my first day. I will spare you all the gruesome details of the day for now. Doctora Benitez, the jefe of the hospital, has been so accomdating and welcoming, and she has yet to even glance at my resume! Everyone, the laundry room employees, patients, families, nurses, and doctors have been so kind and patient with me. One doctor has given me the new nickname of "Rebeccita". Trying to communicate in Spanish has been a big challenge for me and now I have a whole new set of medical terminology to decipher. I work Monday through Saturday 8AM to 1PM, which gives me enough time to climb at some of the local crags in the afternoons, weather permitting. This week I'm working in pediatria and next week emergencia again. The facility is a bit old and is in desperate need of, well, a lot of things. There isn't even any soap in the emgergency room bathroom for the nurses to use. Gloves are only used when absolutely needed and the hospital doesn't provide them; the patient buys them at the pharmacy. The pediatric clinic is actually much nicer than the rest of the hospital. It was remodeled this year and is a bright, clean, nice facility. They even have foam soap there.
I went climbing after work today, but after about an hour, dark clouds rolled in and once the thunder started I packed up. While hiking back on the road I got a ride with a collectivo (minivans packed with about 20 locals. . . no exaggeration) back into Huaraz. Rain, thunder, and lightning followed for about an hour or two; the rainy season has begun.
I went climbing after work today, but after about an hour, dark clouds rolled in and once the thunder started I packed up. While hiking back on the road I got a ride with a collectivo (minivans packed with about 20 locals. . . no exaggeration) back into Huaraz. Rain, thunder, and lightning followed for about an hour or two; the rainy season has begun.
Friday, August 31, 2007
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Una Fiesta De Santa Rosa
Hola mis amigos. The last couple of days have been packed with fun. I managed to go with Karina and Fernando, employees of the clinic, north to many different towns to inform the people that if they needed emergency medical care all of the costs would be covered including the transportation. Many of the people were in disbelief. It was great to see the different towns. I was the offical photographer for the day :)
Today I ran into a surgeon that had exchanged emails with me before I left. When I mentioned that I hadn´t been allowed to work with the nurses at Clinica San Pablo he took me in his car to the Hospital Regional in the south end of town where he also works. I meet with him tomorrow to discuss the possibility of volunteering there!
I then went to the mercado to take pictures and ran into a fiesta, equipped with a band and crates of beer. The fiesta was right in the middle of the market, a most inconvenient location for those who wanted to pass, and was celebrating Santa Rosa. One person insisted that I drink some beer and dance; so there I was giggling, dancing, and drinking with the locals. The plan was for me to go climbing after the mercado, but when one of the women insisted that I go with them to her house for the rest of the celebration, I couldn´t pass up the opportunity. There I was in the backseat of a taxi with 3 band members and their large instruments. I have no idea how we all fit in the back seat but somehow we managed. The views from this house were amazing, overlooking all of Huaraz. As I walked back down from the party this evening I kept hearing "gringa, gringa", a rare sight in those parts.
Karina is actually going to Pisco and Ica the weekend after this one and has invited me to tag along. She is planning on bringing water and clothes for people there and is going to help out in any way possible. I´m hoping to make arrangements to go with her :)
Today I ran into a surgeon that had exchanged emails with me before I left. When I mentioned that I hadn´t been allowed to work with the nurses at Clinica San Pablo he took me in his car to the Hospital Regional in the south end of town where he also works. I meet with him tomorrow to discuss the possibility of volunteering there!
I then went to the mercado to take pictures and ran into a fiesta, equipped with a band and crates of beer. The fiesta was right in the middle of the market, a most inconvenient location for those who wanted to pass, and was celebrating Santa Rosa. One person insisted that I drink some beer and dance; so there I was giggling, dancing, and drinking with the locals. The plan was for me to go climbing after the mercado, but when one of the women insisted that I go with them to her house for the rest of the celebration, I couldn´t pass up the opportunity. There I was in the backseat of a taxi with 3 band members and their large instruments. I have no idea how we all fit in the back seat but somehow we managed. The views from this house were amazing, overlooking all of Huaraz. As I walked back down from the party this evening I kept hearing "gringa, gringa", a rare sight in those parts.
Karina is actually going to Pisco and Ica the weekend after this one and has invited me to tag along. She is planning on bringing water and clothes for people there and is going to help out in any way possible. I´m hoping to make arrangements to go with her :)
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