Today has been a lovely day in Zumbahua. On Sundays
like today, we don't have hospital rounds until 9am, therefore I got to sleep
in, drink my coffee in bed, and made pancakes for our breakfast (Mike, myself,
and Justin our visiting medical student). On morning rounds we got to discharge
4 out of our 5 pediatric patients to their home, always an exciting thing when
you get to see the kids make a full recovery.
After rounds, I proceeded to go wash all my clothes by
hand. Normally I am a laundry procrastinator, but when you are doing it by
hand, you really don't want to let it build up, because even a small amount of
washing is quite an upper-body workout. Workout for today... check. Then, since
there still wasn't much in the way of pediatric emergencies, I came down to the
house to make lunch for everyone. After lunch, a short walk with Mike down to
the nearby river. Since we work 10 days straight, it is nice to get outside the
hospital compound once in a while, even if it is just nearby for a few minutes.
Outside it is a beautiful blue sky day with a light breeze, rare in Zumbahua, and the mountains surrounding the town are clear
and vibrant green. We commented on how much we will miss this beautiful
scenery.
Now, as I write this I am sitting in the kitchen,
waiting for my big pot of water to boil for 5 minutes, so we have drinking
water this evening. I am trying my hand at making boxed brownies (thank you
mom!) in our primitive oven, but they are coming out disappointingly flat,
probably because of the altitude.
I enjoy these days when I get to do some of the things
that remind me of the comforts of home... leisurely drinking coffee in the
morning, backing or cooking in a kitchen all to myself, walks on sunny days. I
think it helps prevent burn-out in a place that is wonderful, but can also be
very challenging and frustrating at times. It is amazing how fast these last 5
months have flown by. I only have about 2 1/2 weeks left here in Ecuador, and I
am trying to enjoy every moment.
It is neat to
reflect back on how much I have learned, how much more confident I have become
in a clinical capacity, and how many interesting things I have gotten to
experience. I sometimes wonder if in future practice settings I may be bored or
Jaded with the run-of-the-mill colds and tummy aches, after being exposed to so
many children here who have such complex health needs or "really"
illnesses. Or perhaps it will be a nice relief. Either way, I am certain that I
will never again have an experience such as this, and I am so grateful for
every colleague, patient, family, and especially Mike, who have taught me so
much along the way.
Enjoying the view from outside Ibarra, Ecuador
No comments:
Post a Comment