Week One

I absolutely cannot believe that I've been in India for over a week already! Time has flown by, but when i reflect on it, I have packed a lot into these past seven days. I arrived at the airport early Thursday morning, one week ago, and spent the first day being oriented to SVYM, shopping in Mysore, and recuperating from massive jet lag (10.5 hours different takes a lot of adjusting). The following morning, I was driven to Saragur, home of the Vivekananda Memorial Hospital, where I have been living and working ever since.

In my first week at the hospital, I have participated in general ward rounds, outpatient medicine and pediatric clinics, casting in the orthopedics dept, and a Mobile Clinic to tribal areas adjacent to Nagarhole National Park. In addition, I presented at Grand Rounds, observed a special clinic camp where outside specialists came and made referrals, and most importantly, have gotten to know many of the doctors, fellows, and students who work at the hospital. There have been a lot of practical lessons as well, like learning the names of different types of food so I can order at the hospital canteen, learning how to eat properly, figuring out how to get hot water for a shower, and knowing how many rupees various things should cost. Amy Foster, a fifth year English medical student also on the medical elective, was integral to my learning but since she finished up today, I'm now on my own!

Out on a Mobile Clinic. The driver blasts the siren near a village and then we'd wait for patients to come to the van. We went to 9 villages and saw 37 patients last Saturday.

 

Front of the hospital on the special clinic camp day. Apparently over 400 patients were seen and about 50 were referred to specialty centers.