Report of 3 Dec '06
Hello from the Banyan -
I'm sitting w/ a plate of food in front of me that the Banyan ladies have made. The B has a new center and there is a plan afoot to start a cafe here; it is to be run by our more high-functioning patients and we get samples of their wares daily. Tasty stuff. This morning, I had breakfast here, and was attended to most solicitously.
Life is ok. The B plonks along well. Periodically, we have training sessions for our health care workers (hcw's). In a facility of 300+ women, there are sure to be issues our hcw's need to know about. Some time ago, we had a session on conjunctivitis (pink eye or red eye, called Madras Eye here). Last week, the topic was "The importance of hygiene and cleanliness," and all the social workers, psychologists, the nurse and I enacted skits on the msg. It was great fun, and to get back on stage, however small and informal the venue, was fabulous. I asked the hcw's later what they thought, and if they'd prefer a standard class format over this one, and we got some positive feedback. The team enjoyed the acting, and all skits were conjured up by the players themselves; they were hilarious, so hilarious that I actually burst out laughing in the middle of my performance and we had to stop that skit.
To keep Ms. M, the butt gash lady, company in the sick room is Ms. S, who has come from Bihar. She was married, and likely got thrown out of her home due to the mental illness, ending up at the B. She has been wracked by tuberculosis, in fact much of her right lung has been damaged. After an operation, she is in the sick room also, and was coughing so much I started a medicine for symptomatic relief. She is better, thank goodness. She is an extremely pretty young woman, and when I enter in the am's, I always get a very cheerful good morning followed by a sweet smile. You wouldn't think S was so ill by the wonderful welcome I get from her.
We thought we'd slink in and out of the vegetable market yesterday, as opposed to having general rounds, as we were in a hurry. We nearly got to the end and then one of the vendors asked about his brother, who is admitted in a hospital for a heart attack; the docs have told him that "as soon as the big doctor returns from America," his brother will be discharged. No idea when that will happen and what size bill the patient will rack up. I abhor this kind of thing; many medical practitioners here view the profession as a means to making pots of money, and adopt ridiculous reasons for not discharging the patient appropriately, as you see above. Scott's best friend, Craig, and Scott and I had a discussion on why medicine will never be a money-machine for us (rats!), and it was irreverent and hilarious.
Tutoring happened. 4 little children came. Naren had to go off to be tutored himself and I missed his presence, as he is an easygoing, tolerant, indulgent teacher. Navin did ok, and I had to teach also as we were short-staffed. My student - tiny, big-eyed, cute, bright, w/ an armful of bangles - and I learned multiplication together. It was fun to see her grasp the concept and roll w/ it.
I got a package of medical journals from Dr. Love at St. V. Packages are big, big news here as they are rare, and the boys got thoroughly excited until they saw the contents. I stayed excited and dove into the mags: it is lovely to keep up w/ the discipline, esp w/ well-written journals.
Scott and I saw a Tamil movie called "Varalaaru" ("Story"), and it was the standard shtick. It showed some promise but degenerated into the standard: protagonist dying and giving a 30-minute speech clearly, unhesitantly and w/o breathlessness, before that. Yeesh. I miss being able to sail in and out of movie theatres; my town is so overpopulated that tix to movies must be booked in advance unless one is going on a weekday.
Unw -
Renu
I'm sitting w/ a plate of food in front of me that the Banyan ladies have made. The B has a new center and there is a plan afoot to start a cafe here; it is to be run by our more high-functioning patients and we get samples of their wares daily. Tasty stuff. This morning, I had breakfast here, and was attended to most solicitously.
Life is ok. The B plonks along well. Periodically, we have training sessions for our health care workers (hcw's). In a facility of 300+ women, there are sure to be issues our hcw's need to know about. Some time ago, we had a session on conjunctivitis (pink eye or red eye, called Madras Eye here). Last week, the topic was "The importance of hygiene and cleanliness," and all the social workers, psychologists, the nurse and I enacted skits on the msg. It was great fun, and to get back on stage, however small and informal the venue, was fabulous. I asked the hcw's later what they thought, and if they'd prefer a standard class format over this one, and we got some positive feedback. The team enjoyed the acting, and all skits were conjured up by the players themselves; they were hilarious, so hilarious that I actually burst out laughing in the middle of my performance and we had to stop that skit.
To keep Ms. M, the butt gash lady, company in the sick room is Ms. S, who has come from Bihar. She was married, and likely got thrown out of her home due to the mental illness, ending up at the B. She has been wracked by tuberculosis, in fact much of her right lung has been damaged. After an operation, she is in the sick room also, and was coughing so much I started a medicine for symptomatic relief. She is better, thank goodness. She is an extremely pretty young woman, and when I enter in the am's, I always get a very cheerful good morning followed by a sweet smile. You wouldn't think S was so ill by the wonderful welcome I get from her.
We thought we'd slink in and out of the vegetable market yesterday, as opposed to having general rounds, as we were in a hurry. We nearly got to the end and then one of the vendors asked about his brother, who is admitted in a hospital for a heart attack; the docs have told him that "as soon as the big doctor returns from America," his brother will be discharged. No idea when that will happen and what size bill the patient will rack up. I abhor this kind of thing; many medical practitioners here view the profession as a means to making pots of money, and adopt ridiculous reasons for not discharging the patient appropriately, as you see above. Scott's best friend, Craig, and Scott and I had a discussion on why medicine will never be a money-machine for us (rats!), and it was irreverent and hilarious.
Tutoring happened. 4 little children came. Naren had to go off to be tutored himself and I missed his presence, as he is an easygoing, tolerant, indulgent teacher. Navin did ok, and I had to teach also as we were short-staffed. My student - tiny, big-eyed, cute, bright, w/ an armful of bangles - and I learned multiplication together. It was fun to see her grasp the concept and roll w/ it.
I got a package of medical journals from Dr. Love at St. V. Packages are big, big news here as they are rare, and the boys got thoroughly excited until they saw the contents. I stayed excited and dove into the mags: it is lovely to keep up w/ the discipline, esp w/ well-written journals.
Scott and I saw a Tamil movie called "Varalaaru" ("Story"), and it was the standard shtick. It showed some promise but degenerated into the standard: protagonist dying and giving a 30-minute speech clearly, unhesitantly and w/o breathlessness, before that. Yeesh. I miss being able to sail in and out of movie theatres; my town is so overpopulated that tix to movies must be booked in advance unless one is going on a weekday.
Unw -
Renu
posted by Renu Weiss at
10:42 PM
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