Report of 28 Jan 2014
Hello all! Hello to the folks at Standard Chartered who check my blog!
It's different that a blog can be accessed on work time and using work resources. Many of my readers can only check the blog at home, and I am much more used to that.
We are well, and hope the same with you. Work continues to be fun. Our clinic in Kovalam had a police officer come by one day, seeking care. He was a fearsome guy, big belly and big moustache. When he sat down, however, he was just another patient. I had wondered about his symptoms and checked a test for diabetes, and there it was - he is floridly diabetic. He came back for a follow-up yesterday, and we talked about his illness, the need to control his diet, the imperativeness (imperativity?) of exercise. He then said his father was diabetic, and I told him to bring his father, too.
Our community workers had intervened masterfully in the case of an impoverished family whose son was dodging school, and he had started attending school regularly. I really appreciate school as a way to haul one's a-- out of poverty and insist on it, as much as I can. [Our health care workers, who have had to give up school primarily for monetary reasons, get trained on the job, and several are first-rate clinicians. They have since learned spoken English, and some Hindi, and are coming along nicely.] The mother and son came to see me at about 11 AM, and I asked why the son was there, instead of at school; the mother answered that the son had woken up late and had announced that he was not going to school. The mother had let him not go. Her daughter had danced at the previous day's Republic Day function at the school, pronounced herself with leg pain, and had not gone to school, either. I was livid. I summoned the community workers, and all of us tried to figure out the deal. The parent's laissez-faire attitude was not fine for me, neither was the kids' dodging. I said I would not see the mother (my patient) and told them to leave. Argh! When my colleagues go the extra mile for every family, I like to see the effort replicated in the family.
Today was my day in Mogappair. Classes resumed for the health care workers, and today we spoke of dengue. The interaction is always good in class: the young ladies respond avidly, ask questions interestedly, and want to learn. They are also sharp. This makes them every teacher's dream. Class always rejuvenates me. I ask them who they are, and they answer "Health care workers;" I then ask who I am and they say "Doctor." I then say I am a health care worker, also, and we share a great bond.
Navin left last week, and the house is quiet. Naren left 2-1/2 weeks ago. Both boys have reached safely, Allah be praised. Honestly, since I know the issues with air travel, I tend to worry until the boys reach. Scott and I went to Madurai over the weekend; 26 January is the anniversary of the demise of my brother, Manu, and my father and I annually go to the cemetery. Scott came along this year, which was good. It is a tough time. This year, I asked Manu why we were at gravesite instead of watching our children gab and laugh and eat, why his lovely wife and children were alone, why why why. And then bawled. All of it was therapeutic.
My sister, Anu, and brother-in-law, Benji, were also in Madurai and it was good to see them. It is fun to share a laugh with these folks.
We caught up on a couple of movies - The Wolf of Wall Street and American Hustle. I thought the acting was first-rate, of course, but did not enjoy either flick. The depravity, the almost-nudity, the weirdness.
Hope all of you are having some non-weird days.
Unw -
R
It's different that a blog can be accessed on work time and using work resources. Many of my readers can only check the blog at home, and I am much more used to that.
We are well, and hope the same with you. Work continues to be fun. Our clinic in Kovalam had a police officer come by one day, seeking care. He was a fearsome guy, big belly and big moustache. When he sat down, however, he was just another patient. I had wondered about his symptoms and checked a test for diabetes, and there it was - he is floridly diabetic. He came back for a follow-up yesterday, and we talked about his illness, the need to control his diet, the imperativeness (imperativity?) of exercise. He then said his father was diabetic, and I told him to bring his father, too.
Our community workers had intervened masterfully in the case of an impoverished family whose son was dodging school, and he had started attending school regularly. I really appreciate school as a way to haul one's a-- out of poverty and insist on it, as much as I can. [Our health care workers, who have had to give up school primarily for monetary reasons, get trained on the job, and several are first-rate clinicians. They have since learned spoken English, and some Hindi, and are coming along nicely.] The mother and son came to see me at about 11 AM, and I asked why the son was there, instead of at school; the mother answered that the son had woken up late and had announced that he was not going to school. The mother had let him not go. Her daughter had danced at the previous day's Republic Day function at the school, pronounced herself with leg pain, and had not gone to school, either. I was livid. I summoned the community workers, and all of us tried to figure out the deal. The parent's laissez-faire attitude was not fine for me, neither was the kids' dodging. I said I would not see the mother (my patient) and told them to leave. Argh! When my colleagues go the extra mile for every family, I like to see the effort replicated in the family.
Today was my day in Mogappair. Classes resumed for the health care workers, and today we spoke of dengue. The interaction is always good in class: the young ladies respond avidly, ask questions interestedly, and want to learn. They are also sharp. This makes them every teacher's dream. Class always rejuvenates me. I ask them who they are, and they answer "Health care workers;" I then ask who I am and they say "Doctor." I then say I am a health care worker, also, and we share a great bond.
Navin left last week, and the house is quiet. Naren left 2-1/2 weeks ago. Both boys have reached safely, Allah be praised. Honestly, since I know the issues with air travel, I tend to worry until the boys reach. Scott and I went to Madurai over the weekend; 26 January is the anniversary of the demise of my brother, Manu, and my father and I annually go to the cemetery. Scott came along this year, which was good. It is a tough time. This year, I asked Manu why we were at gravesite instead of watching our children gab and laugh and eat, why his lovely wife and children were alone, why why why. And then bawled. All of it was therapeutic.
My sister, Anu, and brother-in-law, Benji, were also in Madurai and it was good to see them. It is fun to share a laugh with these folks.
We caught up on a couple of movies - The Wolf of Wall Street and American Hustle. I thought the acting was first-rate, of course, but did not enjoy either flick. The depravity, the almost-nudity, the weirdness.
Hope all of you are having some non-weird days.
Unw -
R
posted by Renu Weiss at
3:34 AM
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