Día 3

Today was one of those days. Pretty slow, and no blood or sutures. Just another day en el hospital.

We hung out in radiology for the entire morning, and we actually saw some pretty interesting cases.

I don't understand why these pictures aren't rotated, but anyway...the case to my left is of a little boy with a massive tumor that has actually changed the shape of his skull and is protruding out of his head. The case to the right is of a little girl who was hit by a car (and yes, she actually was hit - not just a metaphor). Her ojos (eyes) were swollen and bruised and she was unable to open them. Also, by looking at the MRI, you can see that there is massive swelling on the outside of her skull - I don't need to explain that this isn't good. If you look at the top of the picture, you can see that there are two fractures - one on the left and one on the right, in the temporal area. Luckily, the doctor made it clear that there was no brain damage (but I could have misinterpreted that as well), and he said that after surgery she would be just fine. I certainly hope so!

Lunch time. Yesterday I said that empanadas were beginning to get old...well so is ALL of the cafeteria food. I think they take the same meat and cheese and simply put it in a different type of bread and call it something different just to try and trick us. No joke. I had "pizza" today - it was the same insides as yesterday, but it was mashed between two pieces of bread that were cut in the shape of a slice of pizza. I just can't do it anymore. And I guess it makes sense, the place is empty every day we go eat. - now I see why. Although I'm excited to venture out and find new food, my wallet is not going to feel the same way after about a week. Our first Dominican meal cost us 600 pesos each - I can't afford that every day!

Back en el área de urgencía, we see the same pacientes from the previous dïa and it's just starting to get boring. Oh, and I've never seen so many women openly breast feed their children in public. Sorry if that mental image isn't what you were expecting, but really, at any given time there are at least three moms just hanging out (literally), feeding their kids. I mean, there are curtains in the room for a reason, but they just don't seem to care. Anyway, we finally get to see something somewhat interesting. This little baby comes in and they suspect that she has meningitis, so they have to take fluid from in between her vertebrae to send off for testing. As we watch the procedure happen, I'm a little disturbed as to how rough they are with this baby, as well as how little they are worried about sterilization. A little background - once an area has been deemed 'sterile', it instantly loses its sterility if anything or anyone who isn't sterile comes in contact with that area. We watch the procedure from close range and neither doctor really worries about anything but the fluid they need to retrieve. It's shocking.

As the days go on, I'm starting to understand this hospital more and more. I found out that this hospital is run by the government, and it is 100% free. And I mean completamenta gratis (completely free). It's just crazy to me! But it all makes sense now. This hospital has virtually nothing, and by that I mean no supplies in excess. There's never toilet paper or paper towels en los baños (in the bathrooms), no gauze or bandaids or cotton balls, not enough gloves to waste even a single pair, and the worst one of all - not nearly enough blood. (Again, I don't know why the top picture isn't rotated, but bear with me). So the picture on the top shows the entire blood supply...for the ENTIRE hospital. I couldn't believe it. The wouldn't even last an hour in any hospital in the US. The picture below it shows what each shelf within these fridges look like. There's seriously no blood to sustain the hospital and all of the many children that pour in every day. And when I say pour, I mean it. Like I said, this is the best children's hospital in the entire country...and it's completely free. Just imagine the amount of people that come through every day. Esta loca! (It's crazy!)



Well, that was pretty much my whole day. We ran en el parque (in the park) after work, and we're just planning out our evening. Maybe the movies, or maybe la discoteca (a club). I'll let you know mañana, but until then, hasta luego!