My First Day at Hospital!!!

I finally got to work at the hospital! It was a busy day but I think I can offer a lot to the sick and injured in Kpando. I saw about 7 patients today, 3 in their home and 4 in the hospital. All of the patients came before lunch. After lunch, nobody was around, so I sat and talked with my therapists in training. I'm trying to come up with a game plan to make them good therapists in 3 months! I will have my work cut out for me!

The home visits were very eye opening to say the least. I really have lived a sheltered life. It really makes you appreciate everything we have in the US. I know realize even how nice my lodging is here, and I have been in shock with that. The way I'm living here is still a 100 times better than the 3 women live that I visited today. They all lived in 1 or 2 room homes. Other people live with them. They sleep on mattresses on the floor or a small bed near the ground. Since it is so dusty here and they do not have running water, the rooms are very dusty. They are stuck in their homes since they cannot go up/down stairs. Even if they could leave their homes the porches and patio areas are so uneven, I'd be worried about them falling. Home health in the US will be a breeze after these 3 months!

The hospital's layout consists of various wards. There is the medical ward, surgical ward, children's ward, maternity ward, outpatient area, and office area. The physical therapy office is about at 20 x 20 foot room with a decent amount of equipment. The wards, where the patients stay are large rooms with about 10 beds. There are no curtains for privacy. Families are responsible for bringing linens. Also, they must bathe you and help you use the bathroom. The nurses just administer medicine and treatment.

Many of the people I will be seeing in medical ward will be stroke patients. 2 of the home patients I saw today were stroke patients. Treating the stroke patients will be challenging, but I feel it will be rewarding too! They do not have access to early intervention drugs like we have in the USA to limit the severity of the strokes, so many I vary severe. Also, there are no drugs like baclofen or botox available to help combat spasticity or increased muscle tone. In the homes, the barrier is that many of them are only 1 small room with a mattress on the floor. Sit to stand transfers are going to be a challenge! I'm glad I brought a gait belt along.

There are 2 health workers who have been running the PT department since the last worker left for PT school. They have limited training but are very eager to learn. They soaked everything up I told them today like sponges. While I want to help make patients better here, my real goal is to make Celestine and Doris good therapists, that way once I leave, the people in this village still have access to physical therapy. People almost need therapy here more than we need it in the US, since any physical impairment can cause severe disability. Nothing is handicap accessible here so even a mild injury can force someone to be homebound. Hopefully, through training Celestine and Doris, people here will still be able to live productive lives after experiencing an illness or injury.

When I have interesting patients, I will try and elaborate more on them. Today, I just want to give you a brief overview of how my day went.

Love, Kari