Day Three: Intensive Lessons

As I continue to write, it strikes me that there is one thing very different about my being here in the DR than in any other country. In years past, I would spend weeks and weeks reading everything I could get my hands on about a country. I would immerse myself in books designed to give me a 360-degree perspective on the land, its people, and its history. But there was essentially no time for me to do so before this trip. I was, like so many foolish medical students, so caught up in the frenzy of the residency interview trail that I had little energy for anything else.

How unfortunate that it's now that I'm realizing how much that fund of knowledge helped with my ability to feel connected with a country.

In retrospect, I also know that my experience is much different because I'm with a big group of people. And our mission is to learn about medicine and medical practice in another country...not just to learn about foreign culture and customs. So I guess I shouldn't feel so sad about spending most of the day in a university hospital, isolated by thick, insitutional walls from getting to really know the country.

That's not to say that my experience in the hospital is bad, however. I guess I wish I could connect with the residents and patients better. I'm aware now of how much easier it is to do this alone rather than in a group.

But that's not to say that I didn't enjoy the hospital time today. We had one more student arrive over night last night, which brings our group to a grand total of 7 people. So they ended up splitting us up into 2 groups: one group went to the ER, and the other to the ICU. I was placed in the ICU group, which was great since our attending just happens to be a pulmonogist with critical care experience.

So what does the ICU look like in a tertiary care center of a relatively impoverished country? Well, to be honest, it didn't look like an ICU at all. The majority of the patients appeared like those who could be managed on the floors of a general medicine ward in the United States. We saw a total of 3 patients there today--2 with mengingitis, and another who had a motor vehicle accident. All three of them looked relatively stable and well-cared for. Hours later, we learned from the group in the ER that the hospital literally turns away patients whom they believe can't be saved. So realistically, we probably were not seeing "sickest of the sick" in the country.

Afternoon conference was boring as usual--focusing on the basic science of gastric ulcers and their treatment. I'm only on day 3 of my time here, and already the difficulty of following Dominican Spanish is starting to get to me. It defintiely doesn't help that the residents and interns presenting cases always tend to mumble...

Dinner tonight was fabulous as usual. We had pasta with Bolognaise sauce, an Italian style pasta / avocado salad, and egg-plant parmesan. Dessert was a simple and utterly delicious shake made from zapotes.

We learned tonight that we may be able to go to Haiti this weekend or next. Will update on this tomorrow, perhaps...

Wow...I am worn out. I will end here and go to sleep. Meantime, stay tuned for tomorrow...:-)

Margret