Report of 12 January 2020
Good afternoon!
Weeks that I cannot write are incomplete, for me - pressing. We were out of town last weekend and I expected to have time daily to write, and that was not to be. Life was busy.
After New Year's Day, I deferred my private practice patients and Scott and I drove to Tiruchi on 2 Jan. College had not started for him yet, and I was happy to have his company. A patient of the Banyan has moved back to her village near Tiruchi, and is taking care of several other mentally ill ladies, too, running the Tiruchi branch of the Banyan. Numerous medical issues were pending and I had thought we might go at the end of the month, but I capitalised on Scott's availability and we took off. We reached at lunchtime, partook of the sumptuous fare that the ladies there routinely make and then saw almost all the patients. It was exhausting but good. Then Scott and I walked around the village, loving the verdant surroundings and the rice fields and the evening life unique to a village. It was nice. We slept in the office room of the Tiruchi project, and then the next morning, I took a long walk. I walked around the fields, and spoke to a farmer or 2, roamed around the village, walking to the other side and beyond. Breakfast - Scott's favorite, poori - was then served, Scott and I ate, and then finished seeing the rest of the patients. The project lead, Ms. X, had a huge bag of sweets for me as a gift, along with a nice basket woven by one of the women; I tried very hard to share the sweets, but no one would hear of it, so I packed them.
Scott computerised my findings and recommendations, which was helpful. No bigger nightmare than trying to decipher a physician's handwriting, especially since it involves life-altering actions.
We headed on to Madurai and arrived to find my father very ill; his caregiver signalled discreetly to me and gave me the update. He had had trouble breathing for a couple of days, and had started the treatment his pulmonologist had once recommended. We did not pause to use the facilities, but headed on to the pharmacy, bought some meds and returned. I started treatment, advocated gargling and did chest percussion therapy, which loosened up quite a bit of my Dad's chest congestion. After this, we rested for a bit and then resumed treatment in the evening. The caregiver is a fine person, "worth her weight in gold" - Scott Weiss. We had an early night, convinced that my father was on the mend.
The next morning, my father seemed much better. The caregiver said he had slept well, unlike the prior couple of nights. We had a long discussion on many matters, then had a nice lunch. Scott and I then got ready, and left for the wedding of Jessica and Jarryd; Jarryd is the second son of my long-time friend, Tanya. We are now at the age where we attend weddings ad infinitum, and this one was fun. There were many people there whom I knew, and catching up with them was lovely. A band from our childhood days also played and I danced with many of the women there. It was a memorable evening.
The next day, we returned to Chennai and I went to the clinic in Kovalam on Monday. That was nice. I took the bag of sweets that Ms. X had sent from Tiruchi and we doled out 1 each to the clinic patients. It is quite amazing what 1 little toffee can do. There were lots of smiles and appreciation. One of our older patients, a retired fisherman, came with a skin complaint. I am not a dermatologist, but prescribed treatment as best as I could. He then bent to touch my feet, a sign of great respect - one that younger folks give elders, or students give teachers, etc. I am uncomfortable with it when offered by patients, and tried to thwart the gesture. The clinic is a joy; many of the patients only need to come once in six months to have their blood pressure, etc., monitored, but many come every clinic day. There is a lot of mutual respect, and chatter, and laughter, and what I hope is good care. All this means a lot to an impoverished patient, just as it means much to us to try to provide it.
Private practice is nice. Swaram Hospital owners are good, ethical and respectful folks. I see a vast variety of cases there and my quest to curb obesity is slowly starting. After hearing the statistic that 70% of the U.S. population is overweight or obese, I sure would like to treat it here: there is not a single organ system that obesity spares in causing damage.
Scott and I saw a movie named "Kalidas" and ate out. We also went to a couple of markets offering fare directly from the makers. Those are nice. We talked to our sons last week and appreciated their time and chatter: as always, candid, fun, intelligent, articulate ("Tactile," they said about a museum exhibit, when I would have said "Touchy," proving why they creamed us in Scrabble) and very funny. Blessings.
We hope you have many blessings of your own.
Unw -
R
Weeks that I cannot write are incomplete, for me - pressing. We were out of town last weekend and I expected to have time daily to write, and that was not to be. Life was busy.
After New Year's Day, I deferred my private practice patients and Scott and I drove to Tiruchi on 2 Jan. College had not started for him yet, and I was happy to have his company. A patient of the Banyan has moved back to her village near Tiruchi, and is taking care of several other mentally ill ladies, too, running the Tiruchi branch of the Banyan. Numerous medical issues were pending and I had thought we might go at the end of the month, but I capitalised on Scott's availability and we took off. We reached at lunchtime, partook of the sumptuous fare that the ladies there routinely make and then saw almost all the patients. It was exhausting but good. Then Scott and I walked around the village, loving the verdant surroundings and the rice fields and the evening life unique to a village. It was nice. We slept in the office room of the Tiruchi project, and then the next morning, I took a long walk. I walked around the fields, and spoke to a farmer or 2, roamed around the village, walking to the other side and beyond. Breakfast - Scott's favorite, poori - was then served, Scott and I ate, and then finished seeing the rest of the patients. The project lead, Ms. X, had a huge bag of sweets for me as a gift, along with a nice basket woven by one of the women; I tried very hard to share the sweets, but no one would hear of it, so I packed them.
Scott computerised my findings and recommendations, which was helpful. No bigger nightmare than trying to decipher a physician's handwriting, especially since it involves life-altering actions.
We headed on to Madurai and arrived to find my father very ill; his caregiver signalled discreetly to me and gave me the update. He had had trouble breathing for a couple of days, and had started the treatment his pulmonologist had once recommended. We did not pause to use the facilities, but headed on to the pharmacy, bought some meds and returned. I started treatment, advocated gargling and did chest percussion therapy, which loosened up quite a bit of my Dad's chest congestion. After this, we rested for a bit and then resumed treatment in the evening. The caregiver is a fine person, "worth her weight in gold" - Scott Weiss. We had an early night, convinced that my father was on the mend.
The next morning, my father seemed much better. The caregiver said he had slept well, unlike the prior couple of nights. We had a long discussion on many matters, then had a nice lunch. Scott and I then got ready, and left for the wedding of Jessica and Jarryd; Jarryd is the second son of my long-time friend, Tanya. We are now at the age where we attend weddings ad infinitum, and this one was fun. There were many people there whom I knew, and catching up with them was lovely. A band from our childhood days also played and I danced with many of the women there. It was a memorable evening.
The next day, we returned to Chennai and I went to the clinic in Kovalam on Monday. That was nice. I took the bag of sweets that Ms. X had sent from Tiruchi and we doled out 1 each to the clinic patients. It is quite amazing what 1 little toffee can do. There were lots of smiles and appreciation. One of our older patients, a retired fisherman, came with a skin complaint. I am not a dermatologist, but prescribed treatment as best as I could. He then bent to touch my feet, a sign of great respect - one that younger folks give elders, or students give teachers, etc. I am uncomfortable with it when offered by patients, and tried to thwart the gesture. The clinic is a joy; many of the patients only need to come once in six months to have their blood pressure, etc., monitored, but many come every clinic day. There is a lot of mutual respect, and chatter, and laughter, and what I hope is good care. All this means a lot to an impoverished patient, just as it means much to us to try to provide it.
Private practice is nice. Swaram Hospital owners are good, ethical and respectful folks. I see a vast variety of cases there and my quest to curb obesity is slowly starting. After hearing the statistic that 70% of the U.S. population is overweight or obese, I sure would like to treat it here: there is not a single organ system that obesity spares in causing damage.
Scott and I saw a movie named "Kalidas" and ate out. We also went to a couple of markets offering fare directly from the makers. Those are nice. We talked to our sons last week and appreciated their time and chatter: as always, candid, fun, intelligent, articulate ("Tactile," they said about a museum exhibit, when I would have said "Touchy," proving why they creamed us in Scrabble) and very funny. Blessings.
We hope you have many blessings of your own.
Unw -
R
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