The Clinic

The first week in the clinic I worked in the labo (laboratory).  I loved it!  I was able to do quite a few of the things I usually do at the Pediatrician’s office at home.  I did many finger pricks to check hemoglobin, blood sugar, HIV tests, and malaria tests.  The techniques and equipment for some things are slightly different but basically the same.  I also got to do some venipunctures for blood draws.  I was so nervous at first, but it has been wonderful practice.  We also plate urine and stool on slides to look at under the microscope.  They also plate sputum for tuberculosis testing.  Thankfully I did not have to do that.  One thing I am not good at is identifying what is seen under the microscope.  The lab guys always want me to tell them, which was always hard because I did not know how to say “I do not know how to do this.”  One day I was able to help get blood pressures and temperatures on the patients.  Just in case you ever perform medicine in a foreign country:  Check first and see how they write their numbers and values.  They actually use commas and decimals when they write number values here.  Many of the doctors also pull me aside and show me interesting patients that come in.

            In the first week, I saw so many crazy things.  I was able to see a baby less than 2 months old with Steven Johnson’s syndrome.  The baby had not been on any medications, so it was probably due to a Strep or Staph infection.  I saw a little girl who had burns on her back and buttock from hot water.  I was also able to see lots of different infected wounds.  There were some late night calls, so I was able to help take care of a young girl with malaria.  It is just amazing to me some of the things I have seen and done already in one week.  It is always sad to see these poor patients, but it makes me so excited about nursing.  It is amazing how many patients this little clinic sees, and how they make do with so few supplies.  This week I move on to the chart room.  Not as exciting, but hopefully I can work on my French.

*Sorry if you are unaware of what any of this means.  Feel free to Google or just skip this one!