Thursday, May 26, 2011

End of Week One

Well, this is the end of week one in Panama. What a country this is! There is so much to write about, but I will try to focus on the health care. Working amongst the Ngobe Bugle people of the Comarca is a study of how to perform nursing with incredibly scarce supplies. Amenities that we take for granted in the United States are simply not available to most of this population. Today I was at the home of a family consisting of fourteen people. Surrounded by lush greenery offset by the packed red earth of their floor, we were asked to examine an adolescent boy who has been suffering from a GI ailment for a week, with diarrhea and episodic vomiting, mostly after he eats. On hearing that he is able to keep water down, we suggested to his mother that she make a broth of the most nutritious leaves with perhaps some chicken for protein. She informed us that the PVC pipe lying on the ground and attached to a faucet on a stump has been dry for five years. There is a well in the near distance (10 to 15 minutes walk), but it is also getting low as this is the end of the dry season. When it goes dry, they simply search for a water supply at ever greater distances. They face this reality with passive acceptance - it is what is. While discouraged by how little we could do to help this mother and her son, I was surprised by how quickly my brain has become dependant on the tests and procedures that surround nursing in the US. I wanted a CBC, CMP, stool for parasites, a sputum sample for his cough, and IV fluids started, probably with potassium because of the diarrhea! Instead we educated her to try to keep him hydrated and bring him to the clinic on Monday if he is not showing signs of improvement. Upon returning to the clinic, the medico affirmed our suggestion, and told us that usually by the time they do come to see him, they may be critically ill. Desperation in a land of profusion.

No comments:

Post a Comment