Report #3 From Lynn in Guatemala
01/19/2008 13:21
1-19-08
OK Guys here it is. “Oh my God!” Wow unbelievable. I am glad to report
that I survived my shift and Bob and I have had a beautiful day in the
town, swimming, relaxing and painting by the lake.
I got off at 7:30 am this morning having been responsible for the
hospital for 24 hours. The most adrenaline exciting part took place less
than an hour after Jerry the MD went home and it got dark. With no
warning the nurse tells us there is an ambulance at the door and Bill my
fabulous Harvard med student says, “uh-oh, an ambulance means its bad”.
Oh God I think and start praying. And sure enough these bomberos load in
this unconscious guy who was dusky and hypothermic. No way could I arouse
him with a sternal rub and he was limp and cold. Luckily for me and him
he had a heart beat and was breathing! Of course everyone is looking to
me to lead the show. For God sake!!! Poor guy if he had been conscious
he might have been worried. Anyway I had the maintenance man call Jerry
and give him the run command. We started O2, IV, warm blankets etc. etc.
His little Mother was standing there close to freaking out and said all
she knew was he was sitting on the street acting fine, she went to the
market and came back and he was laying in the street comatose. Of course
her son does not take drugs and he was drinking a soda, no alcohol. No
more history than that folks. By this time Jerry arrived and I felt good
because we had an alive patient for him, (thank you God). To make a long
story short we gave him narcan (opiate antidote) and sure enough he came
to life. Later he admitted to drinking a common alcohol drink that is
very cheap, they get the equivalent of rubbing alcohol at the pharmacy and
mix it with water. POISON!!!!!
OK so he ended up staying, snoring away with his little mother holding
vigil next to the bed all night. At some point he ripped out his foley
catheter and decided he was ready to go home. Several times I would be
trying to rest and I could hear his Mom yelling at him in Tz’utuhil, mad
as a hornet. Finally I convinced him it wasn't safe to leave and he slept
it off. In the morning he and his mom were the sweetest people, thanking
me profusely, he looked like a normal guy. It is a miracle what we can
put our body’s through and survive.
The overview is that it was a very busy day. I love the med students, they
are so enthusiastic and want to do everything. Fine with me. So lets
see, I helped Bill pull a drunk kids impaled upper lip off his lower
braces, we sent our laboring women with mucho complications in the
ambulance off with Jennifer the resident, and we watched over our woman
with severe pre eclampsia all night, while we waited for the steroids to
mature the babies lungs.
There are many reasons that I love my work. I am nosey, bored easy,
bossy, OK fine, but there is more. Last night we went through a 3 hour
decision making process with the patient with severe pre eclampsia. The
woman was 34 weeks (7.5 months) pregnant and all of a sudden in her
prenatal visit had really high blood pressure. This is a life threatening
illness for mother and baby and the only cure is delivery of the baby. In
Guatemala a woman does not make a decision without not only her husband,
but with her parents, siblings, and her husbands parents and siblings. No
kidding I am not exaggerating. So the woman would not agree to any
treatment until all of her relatives were assembled at the hospital and we
had a very long discussion regarding the pathophysiology of pre eclampsia.
Well the decision came down that they did not see anything wrong with her
and that she should go home.
Here we are setting everything up to treat a seizure at the bedside and
they want her to go home. Thank goodness one of the local male nurses who
speak their language had the patience to talk talk talk. We warned them
that she could die and they stayed. My point is that being in the circle
of the gathering of this family was very bonding. My heart and eyes were
opened to the beauty of a family working together very tightly. I was
part of their process, a window into the Guatemalan culture. I have very
much respect for them and honor their decisions. I am not here to judge
just to support and love them. These moments give meaning to my life.
Love Lynn (and Bob for one more day)
OK Guys here it is. “Oh my God!” Wow unbelievable. I am glad to report
that I survived my shift and Bob and I have had a beautiful day in the
town, swimming, relaxing and painting by the lake.
I got off at 7:30 am this morning having been responsible for the
hospital for 24 hours. The most adrenaline exciting part took place less
than an hour after Jerry the MD went home and it got dark. With no
warning the nurse tells us there is an ambulance at the door and Bill my
fabulous Harvard med student says, “uh-oh, an ambulance means its bad”.
Oh God I think and start praying. And sure enough these bomberos load in
this unconscious guy who was dusky and hypothermic. No way could I arouse
him with a sternal rub and he was limp and cold. Luckily for me and him
he had a heart beat and was breathing! Of course everyone is looking to
me to lead the show. For God sake!!! Poor guy if he had been conscious
he might have been worried. Anyway I had the maintenance man call Jerry
and give him the run command. We started O2, IV, warm blankets etc. etc.
His little Mother was standing there close to freaking out and said all
she knew was he was sitting on the street acting fine, she went to the
market and came back and he was laying in the street comatose. Of course
her son does not take drugs and he was drinking a soda, no alcohol. No
more history than that folks. By this time Jerry arrived and I felt good
because we had an alive patient for him, (thank you God). To make a long
story short we gave him narcan (opiate antidote) and sure enough he came
to life. Later he admitted to drinking a common alcohol drink that is
very cheap, they get the equivalent of rubbing alcohol at the pharmacy and
mix it with water. POISON!!!!!
OK so he ended up staying, snoring away with his little mother holding
vigil next to the bed all night. At some point he ripped out his foley
catheter and decided he was ready to go home. Several times I would be
trying to rest and I could hear his Mom yelling at him in Tz’utuhil, mad
as a hornet. Finally I convinced him it wasn't safe to leave and he slept
it off. In the morning he and his mom were the sweetest people, thanking
me profusely, he looked like a normal guy. It is a miracle what we can
put our body’s through and survive.
The overview is that it was a very busy day. I love the med students, they
are so enthusiastic and want to do everything. Fine with me. So lets
see, I helped Bill pull a drunk kids impaled upper lip off his lower
braces, we sent our laboring women with mucho complications in the
ambulance off with Jennifer the resident, and we watched over our woman
with severe pre eclampsia all night, while we waited for the steroids to
mature the babies lungs.
There are many reasons that I love my work. I am nosey, bored easy,
bossy, OK fine, but there is more. Last night we went through a 3 hour
decision making process with the patient with severe pre eclampsia. The
woman was 34 weeks (7.5 months) pregnant and all of a sudden in her
prenatal visit had really high blood pressure. This is a life threatening
illness for mother and baby and the only cure is delivery of the baby. In
Guatemala a woman does not make a decision without not only her husband,
but with her parents, siblings, and her husbands parents and siblings. No
kidding I am not exaggerating. So the woman would not agree to any
treatment until all of her relatives were assembled at the hospital and we
had a very long discussion regarding the pathophysiology of pre eclampsia.
Well the decision came down that they did not see anything wrong with her
and that she should go home.
Here we are setting everything up to treat a seizure at the bedside and
they want her to go home. Thank goodness one of the local male nurses who
speak their language had the patience to talk talk talk. We warned them
that she could die and they stayed. My point is that being in the circle
of the gathering of this family was very bonding. My heart and eyes were
opened to the beauty of a family working together very tightly. I was
part of their process, a window into the Guatemalan culture. I have very
much respect for them and honor their decisions. I am not here to judge
just to support and love them. These moments give meaning to my life.
Love Lynn (and Bob for one more day)