Report of 18 May 2013
Hello from Carmel library!
What a place - books, magazines, computers. And all free.
It has been a fairly busy few weeks. I spent the week after the last blog doing some work at St. V's library, then started work the following week at Community North. Orientation was memorable - particularly when the HR folks said, "If you make less than $X, your health insurance is provided for you for free by the hospital." I thought it was very cool that the hospital took care of everyone, regardless of salary. Or, in particular, took special care of those who did not make very much money. Nice.
The week continued with one of the physician assistants teaching me about Epic, the electronic health record (EHR). I quite like this system, having spent many a year trying to decipher colleagues' handwriting and flailing; all the records are now automated and it is easy to catch up at a glance. I started seeing patients and got busy very quickly. As of now, I enjoy working in a resource-rich place, where I can order the tests I want without asking people, "Can you afford a Cat Scan?" The answer in my patient populace in India is always "No." I then have to make an educated guess as to the cause of the patient's symptoms and treat. The patients are pretty grateful, however, so much so that they want us to do more. When I told one of the patients that she would have to see a specialist for possible surgery, she said, "Can you not do it here?" I mulled it over - no operating room, no anesthesia; heck, no surgeon. I was, however, pretty honored that she thought we could accomplish it.
At St. V, I was fortunate to catch up with Tami, Willette, Rebecca, and eminent geriatricians Pat and Diane Healey. Olivia Fondoble came to dinner with her family - and brand new nephew! - after they ran the Mini. This week, I tried to hook up with former colleagues from Community South, and got very lost trying to find the venue, then ran out of time as my family and I juggle 1 car and Naren had to get to work. Naren accompanied me to an Immigration appointment in Cincinnati, and I was thankful, because I would have undoubtedly got lost driving downtown in a big city (see the note above about my non-existent navigational skills :) ). The appointment went well enough, surprisingly; I am used to getting grilled about my whereabouts and my lifestyle and my livelihood, and perhaps I was prepared for the worst when I walked in there.
The joy of the U.S. - non-sold-out movies. Wooo! This is my week off, and I saw "The Great Gatsby," "Iron Man 3," "The Reluctant Fundamentalist," "Side Effects," and today, "Star Trek." This last was the most memorable and fun. "TRF," made by Mira Nair (I am a fan), was simply dreadful. Ohhhhh, I nearly turned to Naren and said, "This is the worst movie this year," and he thanked me later for not doing so.
The Banyan is doing splendidly, and I got a report of the last few months, showing that our hospitalisations had decreased. Several folks had worked very hard to ensure that our patients got more healthy and raw vegetables, plus a serving of fruit, in their diet, and we might be seeing the benefits. Hooray! How much we take for granted, eh - when I slice the banana into my muesli in the morning, I don't usually think there are folks who cannot afford this. How grateful I am for those who would donate to the B; this, in particular, has enabled the fruit. Fruits of the donors' efforts, so to speak :).
In various movies, I have seen characters get what they want - unexpectedly and happily. Nice. I am unfailingly thrilled when people do for the B, and that is where much of the joy comes from. This year, I have an opportunity that I cannot yet obtain - to be part of the Global Health course at my alma mater, the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. The organisers cannot pay for my travel from India, and I sure as heck cannot; let us see what will happen. I have asked around, as I cannot remember wanting anything this much. Que sera sera. I think I will learn as much from the course as I will teach. And if it is in the stars, it will come to pass.
Unw -
R
What a place - books, magazines, computers. And all free.
It has been a fairly busy few weeks. I spent the week after the last blog doing some work at St. V's library, then started work the following week at Community North. Orientation was memorable - particularly when the HR folks said, "If you make less than $X, your health insurance is provided for you for free by the hospital." I thought it was very cool that the hospital took care of everyone, regardless of salary. Or, in particular, took special care of those who did not make very much money. Nice.
The week continued with one of the physician assistants teaching me about Epic, the electronic health record (EHR). I quite like this system, having spent many a year trying to decipher colleagues' handwriting and flailing; all the records are now automated and it is easy to catch up at a glance. I started seeing patients and got busy very quickly. As of now, I enjoy working in a resource-rich place, where I can order the tests I want without asking people, "Can you afford a Cat Scan?" The answer in my patient populace in India is always "No." I then have to make an educated guess as to the cause of the patient's symptoms and treat. The patients are pretty grateful, however, so much so that they want us to do more. When I told one of the patients that she would have to see a specialist for possible surgery, she said, "Can you not do it here?" I mulled it over - no operating room, no anesthesia; heck, no surgeon. I was, however, pretty honored that she thought we could accomplish it.
At St. V, I was fortunate to catch up with Tami, Willette, Rebecca, and eminent geriatricians Pat and Diane Healey. Olivia Fondoble came to dinner with her family - and brand new nephew! - after they ran the Mini. This week, I tried to hook up with former colleagues from Community South, and got very lost trying to find the venue, then ran out of time as my family and I juggle 1 car and Naren had to get to work. Naren accompanied me to an Immigration appointment in Cincinnati, and I was thankful, because I would have undoubtedly got lost driving downtown in a big city (see the note above about my non-existent navigational skills :) ). The appointment went well enough, surprisingly; I am used to getting grilled about my whereabouts and my lifestyle and my livelihood, and perhaps I was prepared for the worst when I walked in there.
The joy of the U.S. - non-sold-out movies. Wooo! This is my week off, and I saw "The Great Gatsby," "Iron Man 3," "The Reluctant Fundamentalist," "Side Effects," and today, "Star Trek." This last was the most memorable and fun. "TRF," made by Mira Nair (I am a fan), was simply dreadful. Ohhhhh, I nearly turned to Naren and said, "This is the worst movie this year," and he thanked me later for not doing so.
The Banyan is doing splendidly, and I got a report of the last few months, showing that our hospitalisations had decreased. Several folks had worked very hard to ensure that our patients got more healthy and raw vegetables, plus a serving of fruit, in their diet, and we might be seeing the benefits. Hooray! How much we take for granted, eh - when I slice the banana into my muesli in the morning, I don't usually think there are folks who cannot afford this. How grateful I am for those who would donate to the B; this, in particular, has enabled the fruit. Fruits of the donors' efforts, so to speak :).
In various movies, I have seen characters get what they want - unexpectedly and happily. Nice. I am unfailingly thrilled when people do for the B, and that is where much of the joy comes from. This year, I have an opportunity that I cannot yet obtain - to be part of the Global Health course at my alma mater, the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. The organisers cannot pay for my travel from India, and I sure as heck cannot; let us see what will happen. I have asked around, as I cannot remember wanting anything this much. Que sera sera. I think I will learn as much from the course as I will teach. And if it is in the stars, it will come to pass.
Unw -
R
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12:39 PM
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