A Typical Day
Things move at a more relaxed pace here and this is accentuated right now (I am told) because it is Ramadan. During Ramadan most do not eat, drink, or even swallow saliva during the day and feast at night. Some are excused such as children, pregnant women, the elderly and infirm but many choose to keep the fast regardless. (My first patient was a woman 9 months pregnant who was having intermittent contractions…my theory is from dehydration.) This change in daily schedule means that people are less apt to come to the clinic and businesses close early.
But even when it is not Ramadan the daily schedule looks like this:
Hospital rounds early in the morning (which I do not do)
Outpatient Clinic: 9:00 to 10:00
Tea: 10:00 to 10:30
Outpatient Clinic: 10:30 to 12:00
Lunch: 12:00 to 2:30 (and no one comes back early)
Finish up the day: 2:30 to 4:00
Tea: 4:00-4:15
(Ah, the power just went out as it does regularly (I do not use my computer plugged in because I am scared of frying it with a power surge).)
So far, my first morning was the busiest. In an hour I saw about 6 patients – the nurse sure kept me busy. But it didn’t even seem rushed because of the way they use their “medics” which function in limited way similar ways that physician assistants function in the US. For me they are invaluable because I simply do not know what is available. For example, I saw a young boy with a second degree burn on his foot. In the US, we wash, update tetanus if necessary, bandage and instruct on use of sulfadiazine. Here they check a CBC and Hepatitis B, have physical therapy wash the wound – he comes back to the doctor who checks it and the medics bandage and instruct on use of the cream and when to come back for a recheck.
Power is back – thank goodness! The fans keep me sane.
Things move at a more relaxed pace here and this is accentuated right now (I am told) because it is Ramadan. During Ramadan most do not eat, drink, or even swallow saliva during the day and feast at night. Some are excused such as children, pregnant women, the elderly and infirm but many choose to keep the fast regardless. (My first patient was a woman 9 months pregnant who was having intermittent contractions…my theory is from dehydration.) This change in daily schedule means that people are less apt to come to the clinic and businesses close early.
But even when it is not Ramadan the daily schedule looks like this:
Hospital rounds early in the morning (which I do not do)
Outpatient Clinic: 9:00 to 10:00
Tea: 10:00 to 10:30
Outpatient Clinic: 10:30 to 12:00
Lunch: 12:00 to 2:30 (and no one comes back early)
Finish up the day: 2:30 to 4:00
Tea: 4:00-4:15
(Ah, the power just went out as it does regularly (I do not use my computer plugged in because I am scared of frying it with a power surge).)
So far, my first morning was the busiest. In an hour I saw about 6 patients – the nurse sure kept me busy. But it didn’t even seem rushed because of the way they use their “medics” which function in limited way similar ways that physician assistants function in the US. For me they are invaluable because I simply do not know what is available. For example, I saw a young boy with a second degree burn on his foot. In the US, we wash, update tetanus if necessary, bandage and instruct on use of sulfadiazine. Here they check a CBC and Hepatitis B, have physical therapy wash the wound – he comes back to the doctor who checks it and the medics bandage and instruct on use of the cream and when to come back for a recheck.
Power is back – thank goodness! The fans keep me sane.
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