Urgencias

Thursday and Friday I spent my time in the Sala de Urgencias (or the Emergency Room). I mostly shadowed the two interns that work there. They were both really nice; it was pretty cool to see how a smaller community emergency room works after working at the one by my house (in Munster, Indiana).

Thursday was pretty chill. It really wasn't that busy. The stuff that we saw was mostly stuff that you see on a normal basis in Mexico. Pregnancy, accidents, infections, etc. One thing that I saw that was pretty interesting was a woman came in with a relatively large mass in her breast. They weren't sure if it was a cyst or a tumor, but they won't know what it is until they do either a biopsy or an X-ray. Other than that there were a couple of women in labor, a bladder infection, and a broken leg.

Friday was VERY busy. First, I saw a woman who came in with labor pains whose baby had his umbilical cord wrapped around his head. They were examining her when suddenly an ambulance came in.

Two small brothers had been poisoned by what, they didn't know. I had never seen this before. It was very devastating to see two young boys so incredibly sick. I can't even fathom what the mother was going through to have both of her sons obviously struggling to even breathe. They were screaming in terror and pain, having trouble breathing, and salivating. They immediately took the smaller boy to the trauma room because he was in much worse condition, but the older boy (and by older I mean three years old) was simply taken to a regular emergency room bed without a monitor or anything like that.

I stayed with the older boy pretty much the entire time. He was absolute terrified (for obvious reason) and kept trying to remove his NG tube which could not have been comfortable at all. In some ways, they were not prepared for such an emergency. For example, the intern gave him the NG three different times because of various issues. There was also sanitation problems with not everyone wearing gloves all the time. Also, it kind of felt like there were too many doctors in the room. (Three attendings + two residents + two interns + many nurses), but overall, they did a good job. The boys were stabilized when I left. Mostly, I was just there to help with holding the young boys legs, making sure he got enough oxygen, talking to him to help calm him down, things like that. Pretty simple, but every little bit helps.

One of the residents was really great. When I told her that I was a student, she explained everything that was going on and when through the basic steps of doing a basic pediatric examination. She was from DF (Mexico City or Districto Federal) doing her four months of service at a rural hosp ital that is required of all residents in Mexico. I can tell that I am understand more Spanish all of the time, but it was very hard for me at times because people would ask me for stuff, but I wouldn't know what it was. Although I speak pretty fluently, there are many vocab words that I still need to learn especially medical ones. I learned that the hard way.

Oh, also here are some pictures of the hospital. I made sure that the faces of all the patients were covered or not visible in the pictures to maintain privacy although there aren't any laws that are actually enforced of the type in Mexico. I also made sure to ask consent first.

Atardecer maravilloso, Tortugas, y Playitas

I decided to do the afternoon of today separate because we did something completely different, and then add the work at the hospital in the morning to the post tomorrow.

Today, after being at the hosp ital, Rebecca and I decided to go ahead and get lunch in Pochutla instead of riding back hungry to Puerto Escondido. Well, we went to a small taco place across the street from the hospital where we saw some of the doctors that we had shadowed. For only $1.50, I got two two chicken and onion tacos with tortillas made just for me, and two helpings of rice and beans. Amazingly delicious and very affordable.
Kind of on a whim, we decided to take a colectivo to a small beach town in between Pochutla and Puerto Escondido. A colectivo is a pickup truck that has a little canopy in the back with wooden benches. People pile into them to get to various places quickly and cheaply. You ride with all sorts of people from school children, vaqueros (cowboys), and little old ladies to chickens and construction tools. You just hop on a knock on the window when you get off and they tell you how much it cost. I'll have to take a picture of one before I leave.

Well, anyway we went to a turtle conservation aquarium where you can see various types of turtles native to Mexico. The little pueblito of Mazunte (pop. 450) used to be dependent on hunting turtles. This was outlawed in 1990 and various coop and sustainable development projects were started in the town to offset this huge blow to the towns economic stability. This turtle park brings in many tourists to the area which help the economy and bring more recognition to its amazing beaches and vistas.

We saw many kinds of turtles and even a seal. Apparently, this seal is a cold-water seal that somehow found its way to Mexico. It was found on a beach poor thing and they decided to bring him to the aquarium until they can figure out waht to do with him. He's just a little guy, but he seemed really confused of why he couldn't get out of his tank :( They had HUGE marine turtles and various kinds of desert turtles too (are those tortoises? not sure). They also some turtle babies to help in the conservation efforts. So cute!

We stopped by a natural cosmetic products coop that was created for the people in the town. They use natural and organic things found in the area and with help from the Body Shop they were able to create this great little store where you can get various products pretty inexpensively.

Then we walked to Playa Mazunte. I have to tell you that it is absolutely gorgeous. There are little cabanas lining the side of the beach, but other than that, it is very tranquil and beautiful. We enjoyed ourselves, rolled our hospital khakis up and got a little wet. We also got some snacks to enjoy on the beach as we laid on the rocks to dry off.

In Rebecca's Lonely Planet book, they talked of an awesome sunset spot called Punta Cometa. It is a 30 minute hike to the top, but it is so worth it. This adorable blackish-brown doggie came with us the whole way and made sure that we got there ^^ The forest there was kind of dry because it is the dry season, but it was nice see more green. There were also these HUGE cacti when we got to the top. We sat on Punta Cometa and watched the sunset. We didn't have a flashlight to get back so we left before we wanted to and as we were walking back the sunset just got better and better, but we made sure to turn around to get more pictures.

It was kind of an issue getting a colectivo back to the carretera (highway), but when we got there we chatted with a taxi driver until our bus got there. People in Mexico are jus so friendly. They love to talk to people and ask tons of questions. It's a great way to practice Spanish.

Got back at 9pm, had an awesome dinner cooked by our host mother.

All in all, an amazing day and definitely worth getting my khakis filthy!

Two New Lives

Yesterday, I saw my first baby being born! It was a caesarean section. One difference was that it was transverse instead of longitudinal. (That means they cut up and down instead of horizontally like they normally do in the US). It was pretty cool to see a baby being born. I was kind of standing somewhat far away because I don't have any medical school clinical experience and watching, but they were really good about letting me know what was going on and I could see pretty much everything. The other girl in my group got to help right there which is pretty cool. Maybe if I do something like this after my fourth year, I'll be able to do more hands-on stuff. Other than that, nothing very notable happened that I can remember.

Today, I saw a vaginal birth. Here, they pretty much cut an episiotomy for all of the births. This is contrary to what is common practice in the US. They used they used to do this before, but now they don't unless it is absolutely necessary. Well, in Mexico it is still common practice. To be honest, this was a really traumatic experience for me. Apparently, the woman was having a hard time pushing, but honestly, it wasn't that bad. The other girl in my program who is a 3rd resident said that she's seen much worse and probably could have done it with some coaching. Well, the anesthesiologist decided it would be a good idea to start pressing on the woman's stomach like compressions...... yeah not really that cool. It was pretty traumatic. And on top of that they cut a huge episiotomy. The baby was healthy though, and the woman seemed ok at the end, but still. Another thing that I saw was a spontaneous abortion where the doctor went in to scrape the uterus to make sure to remove everything. He let me aid with that so that was pretty cool.

I don't know if I mentioned that Pochutla is the farthest clinical site that we go to because it is 1 1/2 hour away by bus. It kind of stinks to have to walk 1/2 hour to the bus stop and ride for 1.5 hour and then do the same on the way back, but luckily we only do that this week. Other than that, I really like this hosp ital and wouldn't mind spending more time there.

Spanish class again. same time. This time we worked on subjuntive. I'm pretty rusty on some parts of it, so I'm glad that we're going over it again. It makes me think more about it when I speak and I want to get to the point again where I don't have to think about it.

Immediately after, we went to Restaurante Liza's which is the place that we've been going to pretty much every day at 5pm. It's really chill and the bartender Andrés is a really good guy. Apparently, he's a hardcore firefighter in Alaska. Interesting. It's a really nice place to hang out and meet new people. Today I talked to some Australian girls that were traveling all over Latin America because they just finished university (sounds like me ^^). There are other people that I'm starting to recognize, which is not hard in a somewhat small town like this.

Fotos de Puerto Escondido

Mi Primer Día

Today was my first day of the actual clinical work. The weekend was great. The bonfire never happened but we had a great time going to a couple of the places to hang out in the area including Casa Babylon where we played Jenga and Barfly where we made animal shadows on the wall of the dance floor with the projector ^^

Yesterday: The morning kind of stunk because I mostly worked on homework for my online classes in the morning, but after I had enough I went to the beach Carazalillo where I happened to meet up with Becky and Chris who were on the program last month. After, got ready to go to a beach with my host family, but for some reason this didn't happen. The great thing was the that this didn't bother me at all because we had all been invited to a BBQ at el Restaurante de Liza where we've been playing volleyball for the past couple of days. The dinner was AMAZING! After, we enjoyed live music on the beach relaxing and meeting some new people at a place called Bar Aquí (quite literal ^^)

Today as I said before was my first day of clínica. Our first week is in the only hospital for kilometers in a town called Pochutla. To get there, it's a 1 ½ hour bus ride. The way there it was not air-conditioned, but luckily it was morning so the sun wasn't very strong yet. We waited around a bit because the doctor was doing rounds, but afterwards, we went to the cunero pathólogo which is where the newborn babies that have to stay longer in the hospital are kept. She told us about each of the babies and then split us up to go to different areas of the hospital.

I went to labor and delivery. There were quite a few women there, but none went into labor the hour that I was there. One thing that was different was the privacy of the patients. For example, there was a woman that was in labor in the hallway and they removed the covers to check the size of her cervix in the middle of the hallway with anyone able to see. (I got to do that which was cool for the first time!) It is definitely hard though to keep things private when you have four patients in the same room and one right outside the door in the hallway. Another thing that was kind of cool was listening to fetal heartbeats with a kind of cup thing instead of using an ultrasound like they have in more developed hospitals. On the way back we were able to catch an air-conditioned bus that was definitely worth the 5 extra pesos for the reclining seats!

We had our first day of medical Spanish class from 3 - 5. Our teacher's name is "Cron"-well at least that's his nickname, but I don't remember his real name. We went over some names of body parts and basic ways to ask certain questions. It was good overall. I have learned a lot of body parts in the past, but it has been a while and I didn't remember quite a few of the more detailed ones.

There was a volleyball tournament that some of the other students played in so I hung out there with them and took some photos and enjoyed the sunset in the area. It was really relaxing on the beach. Our host family had "una fiesta de despedidas" (goodbye party) for the students of the other party that are leaving this week and the grilled fish was amazing with super fresh vegetables. We hung out and chatted in Spanish with our host family and played with my little host sister Pachi. (That's her nickname. Her real name is María Paz, and Pachi comes from her middle name).

We went out to pretty much the only place open on Monday nights and danced a bit and enjoyed ourselves, but Becky and I decided to leave pretty soon because we had to wake up super early to leave for the clinic in the morning. But I couldn't sleep which is why I'm posting now!

Arrived!!

I'm in Puerto Escondido and loving it! The views are amazing from all of the beaches (trust me, there are plenty!) and the beaches are awesome.

Yesterday after I got in, I was planning on going exploring and happened to meet one of the other girls in the program on her way to met some of the other people to play sand volleyball on the beach. We walked to the beach and passed many others. We went to a beach called Playa Marinero because the students that were on the program last month became friends with the owner of one of the bars and usually play volleyball there as the sun sets. The view is amazing and especially the sunset. Afterwards we walked back to our homestays because they are next door to eachother. It took about 30 minutes in the dark, but it wasn't that bad because there isn't much traffic here.

My homestay is literally a 10 minute walk from 2 different beaches! You can't swim at many of the beaches because of a strong undertoe, but the waves are awesome making Puerto Escondido known for surfing. One of the beaches that is safe to stay at is called Playa Carazalillo and it's one of the ones that really close to my homestay. Today I went to Carazalillo and swam a little bit before orientation. It is really beautiful because it is in a little inlet between two rocky areas.

After orientation, I went back to play beach volleyball at the far away beach and now I'm going to a bonfire that the students are havingwith some of their Argentinian friends that they've made here.

I promise I will post pictures as soon as I can!!!

<3>

An Octopus, an opera house, and two beaches!

Today we also scuba dived and finished our open water diver certification. We went to the same place to dive (Bare Island). This time we saw a lot more stuff, including :

Port Jackson Shark

Octopus
Cuttlefish

Tons of jellyfish, blue groups, starfish, and a lot of little fish. Today wasn't so tiring because it was a much shorter day, plus we weren't nearly as jetlagged. I was so excited to see both a shark and an octopus which were pretty much two of my goals in life.... Now just a sea turtle and a clown fish and I'll be the happiest scuba diver!

After diving, since we weren't that tired, we took a ferry out to Manly beach fro mthe Sydney Opera House. It was raining, but as soon as we got on the ferry the clouds opened up and we had some beautiful views of the Sydney Harbor.

Manly beach was pretty nice. It was very relaxing and had some great views. We had spinach and cheese filo pastries and mom got some fresh mango ice cream :)

We missed the ferry that we originally wanted to get, but that ended up working out for the best because the ferry we ended up on turned out to be during the sunset and we got some amazing pictures of the sunset and the opera house with burning orange clouds.

Mom and dad wanted to go to Bondi beach after this. It wasn't really that late but we were so worn out by this time. Scuba diving is very tiring! I never realized! Anyway, we grabbed food at Bondi beach. I got a straberry yoghurt smoothe and Sonali got fresh juice. Mom got chicken gyros and we all shared this for dinner and just walked around some.

Some people compare Manly beach and Bondi beach to eachother. Both of them are beautifulbeaches with very nice sand. They had small cafes and promenades nearby so they make great daytrips. Personally, I think Manly Beach better because it is kind of quirky and laid back. For example, while we were there there was a neon toga party going on. There were surfers and families too. Bondi beach was definitely a lot more touristy. The clubs were high class. I saw some people get turned away because they were wearing flipflops. There were also quite a few fast food places and chains instead of locally owned places.

Scuba Diving in Sydney!!

The hill!

Today, we woke up early to go scuba dive to be able to complete our open water check out dives so we can finally get our certification. We set them up at a dive shop that is somewhat far from our hotel, but with it being the weekend before Christmas, we took ewhat we could get.

The shop was called Snorkel Inn Dive Centre in Kogarah. We took the train to get there which was pretty cool. The people there were very nice and for the two days we had the same instructor, Lisa.

First, we did snorkeling for a bit. Then we did two dives. The first was pretty murky, but the second was much clearer. We saw some blue gropuers who were pretty cool because you can feed them and one even let us pet him. I don't know how I feel about feeding them though because she killed a sea urchin to do it, but there are so many around there that I think it's ok.

The dive site was at a place called Bare Island in La Perouse. Apprently, it was in the Tom Cruise film Mission Impossible 3. We had to get all of our gear on and walk quite a bit to where we were diving, which was pretty difficult especially when we had to climb back up the hill to the truck.

We were absolutely exhausted after diving and being jetlagged so Sonu and I came back and slept for 3 1/2 hours in the hotel room before mom and dad were able to drag us to Darlin Harbor. We were extremely hungry and sitll tired but we enjoyed ourselves. There were a lot of parties going on and the lights were really nice.

Exhausted

Arrived in Australia!

We arrived in Australia yesterday at around 10:30 am after a 5 hour flight to LA, 5 hour layover, and 15 hour flight to Australia. The second flight was somewhat frustrating because we were delayed 1 hour because it was raining so much in LA that the airplane couldn't backup.

After sleeping for 8-10 hours on the flight and watching the The Illusionist, we arrived in Sydney to long customs lines and disorienting exit lines. It was very frustrating and confusing...

We finally got to our hotel to freshen up. We were staying in an amazing hotel in downtown. We walked around and got tickets to see Billy Elliot that evening. Sonali and I split up from our mom and dad. We had tons of food at a Chinese restaurant that we found near the theater which happened to be in the middle of an awesome Asian town in Sydney (perfect for me!) Then feeling very jet-lagged, we rested in a park and slowly wandered around the city.

We went to see Billy Elliot which was a musical based off the movie. I think that it was great, but I don't know if I would see it again. It was a little too melodramatic for my taste I think but I would recommend people to go see it. I think part of the problem was also the fact that we were sooo tired and maybe didn't have much tolerance for a music on a day after traveling so far from the U.S.

Study Abroad Contest

At USI they had a study abroad contest for students who had studied abroad through programs accredited by the university. I was lucky enough to win first place with my picture called "Through Torrents" and receive an honorable mention for the picture "A Sense of Loss." I love all of the pictures that I entered, but I think the most important part to them is the essay talking about how they represent the influence that study abroad had on our lives.

“Through Torrents”

Picture Taken: in a small rural village outside of Kompong Phluk, Cambodia
Picture Taken on: June 28, 2007
I took this picture immediately after a sudden downpour began in Cambodia after spending the day in the famous Cambodian village.

Beyond discomfort and normal sleeping times, the Cambodian people are hard-workers. Misconstrued by their ubiquitous hammocks and propensity towards long conversations over karaoke machines, they have motivation and perseverance to surpass the boundaries lain in their path. They fight through torrential downpours and inadequate governance to meet goals to improve their future.
In cities, I met young people from the countryside who had left their homes in search of a better life. Be assured, they did not lose their roots, returning annually to aid their families in the rice harvest. They know that they must take advantage of their opportunities, many working jobs and attending school for an education unavailable to their parents. A large proportion of their paychecks are sacrificed and sent home to their families to put younger siblings through school and provide rice on the table.
I learned the value of a dollar in Cambodia. Thirty-five percent of Cambodians earn less than one dollar per day. They work hard and fight towards a better life. What place to do we have to complain of the difficulties of school? We must take advantage of our opportunities and bring the same fortune to those who must go without. I have learned to value my opportunities and make lemonade and take note not to complain of my sore hands while squeezing out the juice. Life takes hard work, and I remain eternally grateful for the fortuitous jump start that I was given.

“A Sense of Loss”

Picture Taken: Preah Khan Temple in the Angkorean Complex, Cambodia
Picture Taken on: June 30, 2007
I wanted to capture the destruction to the temples incurred by the Khmer Rouge soldiers during terrifying war years in Cambodia.

Culture teaches us about ourselves and our past, providing a foothold for the steps we will take in the future. The Cultural Revolution conducted by the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia attempted to decimate the beautiful Angkorean legacy. Pillaging temples and desecrating statues, they left nothing in their wake. Without reservation, they hid tanks in these sacred walls and created fortresses upon their hills. AK-47 casings lay forgotten upon the holy paths to this day. Regardless, the Khmer people have taught me the value of culture. In process of rebuilding, they are gaining strength in their identity and self-worth, rebuilding the temples and praying at Angkor once again. The loss of their culture after the Khmer Rouge-proclaimed “Year Zero,” beginning a state with no past and eventually no future, has instilled a deep value of culture preserving it a they lost everything in the war.

Once you have lost something, you begin to value it. It is the same with when you see what other have lost, you begin to value the gifts that you have been given. I value both of my cultures and histories since studying abroad. I realized that they have shaped who I am and the person I wish to be. At the same time, I cannot forget the cultures of the countries that have taken me in while studying abroad, because they have made a permanent imprint upon my story that cannot be worn away.

“Savorng”

Picture Taken: Wat Sampeau in Battambang, Cambodia
Picture Taken on: August 5, 2007
I took this picture of one of the children tour guides that took us up the steep mountain temple near Battambang, Cambodia.

Cambodian culture represents strength and love—the strength to move beyond the horrors of their past and love for the new generation. The haunting gleam of hope resides in their children’s eyes glistening in dusty villages and flooded rice fields. No matter the hardships faced, they persevere in search of a better life for themselves and their families. Savorng speaks a few words of English, using her gift as an unofficial temple guide at Wat Sampeau, because, here, children are the only guides to the top of this secluded temple. The children dream of becoming doctors and nurses or teachers and scientists, dreams beyond their raggedy clothes and small village, as they climb the moss-covered steps to pay their respects.
I, too, dream of becoming a doctor. Her dreams and hope revitalized my own dreams of helping people around the world have access to a healthy and productive life that they deserve. Someday, I hope to help a child like Savorng transcend all obstacles to fulfill her goals that rests at the tips of her fingers, just barely out of her reach.