....that's the downside of choosing the aisle seat on the buses. My arm was quite chafed! None of the rubbing was intentional but the aisles are skinnier than the people.
Also, I caught my first set of TWINS yesterday....undiagnosed until the first one popped out rather smaller than expected. I said 'wait, I think there's another one!' And the second one came breech so I got do a simple breech catch as well! So COOL! They were a boy and a girl, in that order. The mom is a twin also. Pretty nice way to end my week in Kampala!
Ashley and I are back in Mbale now and hoping to catch a bunch of babies in what will be our final week here. TTYL
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Hi all....we have all arrived in Kampala together this week to work on Lower Mulago (higher risk) with Cathy, Mickey and Angela before they leave the country next Tuesday. It is nice to have their support as we get more practice with resus and lots of other things.
Everyone was in Mbale for a few days to teach Emergency Skills for the first time there. It was HUGELY well-attended and appreciated and Ashley and I are looking forward to going back and having people understand the crazy things we are doing for shoulder dystocia etc! They have looked at us askance a few times!
Everyone was in Mbale for a few days to teach Emergency Skills for the first time there. It was HUGELY well-attended and appreciated and Ashley and I are looking forward to going back and having people understand the crazy things we are doing for shoulder dystocia etc! They have looked at us askance a few times!
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Update from Masaka
Our friends in Masaka have been having troubles posting, so hopefully this will work.
Greetings from Masaka!
Tamara and I finally have some time to tell you a bit about our adventures in Uganda. We are currently in Masaka having travelled across the equator to get here from Kampala after a few exciting days in the big smoke. In Kampala I had my first catch in Mulago hospital in the midst of a thunderous rain storm. The rain pounded on the corrugated roof so hard that I could hardly hear myself think never mind listen to babys’ heart rates. It was a perfect dramatic start to my birthing adventures in Uganda! In the meantime in another part of that hospital Tamara delivered a baby in the hall way which was lined with about 20 women sitting on mats on the floor in varying stages of labor. The woman next to the woman delivering was in early labor and seemed pleased to provide translating services. There was no privacy and conditions were crude but it was a beautiful birth none the less and the woman was thrilled and happy with her birth.
Masaka itself is much more laid back than Kampala. We stay in a hotel on a hill with beautiful views of rolling hills with lush greenery and fertile clay colored soil. We wake up to the sound of children happily singing with all their might at the primary school across the road and our walk to work involves saying hello to just about everyone we meet plus our efforts to speak Lugandan keep everyone well amused.
Despite the calming surroundings our first few days here were quite overwhelming. There was getting used to a new hospital where the labor ward was brimming with moms and babies waiting to deliver and there was the cold reality of watching women manage without any of the comforts that we take for granted back home. We weren’t really sure what our place was amidst the chaos and what we could do to help. We’re still trying to work that out and learning lots in the process. The people here are so friendly. When we are introduced to staff our hands are warmly grasped and we are greeted with the words “you are welcome”.
Today was particularly exciting for us student midwife types because there was a woman in labor with a breech baby. Breech babies typically present with bum first instead of head first. However, with this baby we could feel some feet presenting when she was examined which is an indication for a cesarean delivery. However in the time it took for her to be collected for surgery the baby was ready to come. We all got ourselves ready and after a couple of nail biting minutes out it came. It was just a little baby, quite a bit smaller than we’d expect (1.9kg) and it needed some resuscitation. With just a couple of puffs with the resuscitator it was ready to take its first breaths in the outside world. We were about to give some oxytocin which is a drug to help the uterus contract when our instructor Cathy noticed that the moms uterus wasn’t quite empty yet. In no time at all out came a twin!! Head first this time and crying immediately.
The babies were both quite feisty, the smaller of the two looked keen on breastfeeding from the get go so we got baby skin to skin and that baby latched onto the breast beautifully. That was the highlight of my day - a perky little twin who likes a good feed…Someone after my own heart.
Who knows what tomorrow will bring. There are moments of joy and moments of despair. It’s a bit of a rollercoaster but Tamara and I signed up for the full meal deal. Bring it on we say! We’ll keep you posted.
Tracy.
Monday, June 14, 2010
Sick as a dog on the banks of the Nile
It seems the theme of our time here is a study in contrasts.
A first-time mom pushing out her perfect, chubby, crying boy surrounded by four clapping, cheering sisters. The desparation of a new grandmother searching for life in her new baby granddaughter who not live through her first day. Each day is a roller coaster of extreme emotions. Life, death; joy, pain. It is no wonder that we collapse under our nets at 8:30 each night.
Given the journey thus far, I should not have been surprised to find myself surrounded by a tropical paradise of birds and flowers on our first weekend off, purging my guts out. The gastrointestinal upset lasted only 24 hours and I was nursed by 5 loving midwifery student attendants who just wished they had supplies to start up some IV fluids.
The learning here is only partly about midwifery skills - it is also about this balancing, tipping of the scales...the inequity in the world, the precariousness of life, the strength of women birthing while struggling with malaria, the perseverance of midwives working with extremely inadequate resources. I am awed every day.
A first-time mom pushing out her perfect, chubby, crying boy surrounded by four clapping, cheering sisters. The desparation of a new grandmother searching for life in her new baby granddaughter who not live through her first day. Each day is a roller coaster of extreme emotions. Life, death; joy, pain. It is no wonder that we collapse under our nets at 8:30 each night.
Given the journey thus far, I should not have been surprised to find myself surrounded by a tropical paradise of birds and flowers on our first weekend off, purging my guts out. The gastrointestinal upset lasted only 24 hours and I was nursed by 5 loving midwifery student attendants who just wished they had supplies to start up some IV fluids.
The learning here is only partly about midwifery skills - it is also about this balancing, tipping of the scales...the inequity in the world, the precariousness of life, the strength of women birthing while struggling with malaria, the perseverance of midwives working with extremely inadequate resources. I am awed every day.
Jinja
Ok, clearly that did not work. Hopefully we will get to be able to put up pictures eventually. If anyone has a tip on how to make the picture files smaller on my macbook, let me know.
Ashley and I are now on our way back to Mbale from the Kingfisher Safaris Resort in Jinja. We took a chicken-bus to get here, and it was ^%&^**%*% hot!! The system here is to wait until the bus is completely full before it goes, so you get on and you have no idea how long you will sit in the bus. We sat for one hour. Which apparently was not too bad. We did in fact have chickens right behind us, and while the lady assured us they were tied, their wings reached under our seats and tickled our ankles from time to time. We were the only mzungus on the bus. All kinds of little kids yell out 'Hello Mzungus, how are you?' wherever we go. It is quite cute. Some of them come up and curtsy as well.
We have had a nice refreshing break and I did in fact put my feet into the Nile River, though I did not have a Nile beer in my hand at the time. It was great to see my fellow students who have been elsewhere and there was a lot of talking the first night as we all got caught up. Ashley and I have the sad distinction of seeing the most stillbirths so far. This has been very hard and we spend a lot of time talking about what we can possibly do to make this better in Mbale during our short stay there.
On our way out of Mbale, we stopped to visit TASO (The Aids Support Organization), who are doing some wonderful work to support HIV-positive people. They have four main goals: counselling, medication, socioeconomic support, and research. Look them up. They are a part of the reason that Uganda has reduced the spread of HIV more than many other countries so far.
We will be catching another chicken bus soon and hope to be in Mbale before supper time (it's noon now).
Friday, June 11, 2010
They Are Your People Too
Here in Kampala, we are learning some big lessons in humility.
We are working at Mulago National Referral Hospital, the largest hospital in Uganda. There are over 33,000 births per year at this hospital, an astounding number when you consider that the busiest maternity hospitals in Canada and Europe see only 8,000 births per year. In addition to the volume of work to be done, staff also face a scarcity of equipment and supplies. Our first day here, we attended morning rounds. One of the staff's report was as follows: "There is no water and there are no I.V. cannulas, syringes, or gloves. Otherwise, the ward is fair and full." One resident recounted how a woman had come in to hospital, hemorrhaging after an atempted abortion. Realizing that there were no I.V. cannulae on the ward, the resident sprinted back to his dormitory and rifled through his laundry until he found a spare cannula he had left in a pocket the day before. If not for his resourcefulness, the woman may well have died. Despite the enormous challenges, the morning rounds always end with the statement, "Let's serve and be grateful". Lessons in humility...
Aware of the shortage of supplies in hospitals across Uganda, our group packed with us a number of large suitcases filled with medical supplies and baby blankets and clothes. We returned to our guesthouse one evening with another huge bag of supplies which had been sent ahead to Kampala with a family member. When our friend the housekeeper greeted us, we proudly told her, "We have brought more supplies for your people." She smiled and said, "They are your people too..." More lessons in humility...
In addition to all the big lessons, there is a lot of lightness and joy to be found here. Yesterday on Ward 14, the low-risk labour unit, we spent a better part of the day howling with laughter with the midwives about one thing or another. It started when one of the midwives clutched her stomach and said she felt like pushing a baby out. She began to moan and Angela proceeded to assist her in giving birth to twins (dolls knitted by some of the generous donors in Canada). The women labouring on the ward must have wondered what had gotten into their caregivers with all the raucous laughter that ensued. Our short time here has already brought us so many gifts but perhaps the greatest has been the friendships with the midwives that we've formed. We are so lucky to be here, so privileged to be able to work with these women, so fortunate to be able to assist at these births.
Let us serve and be grateful.
We are working at Mulago National Referral Hospital, the largest hospital in Uganda. There are over 33,000 births per year at this hospital, an astounding number when you consider that the busiest maternity hospitals in Canada and Europe see only 8,000 births per year. In addition to the volume of work to be done, staff also face a scarcity of equipment and supplies. Our first day here, we attended morning rounds. One of the staff's report was as follows: "There is no water and there are no I.V. cannulas, syringes, or gloves. Otherwise, the ward is fair and full." One resident recounted how a woman had come in to hospital, hemorrhaging after an atempted abortion. Realizing that there were no I.V. cannulae on the ward, the resident sprinted back to his dormitory and rifled through his laundry until he found a spare cannula he had left in a pocket the day before. If not for his resourcefulness, the woman may well have died. Despite the enormous challenges, the morning rounds always end with the statement, "Let's serve and be grateful". Lessons in humility...
Aware of the shortage of supplies in hospitals across Uganda, our group packed with us a number of large suitcases filled with medical supplies and baby blankets and clothes. We returned to our guesthouse one evening with another huge bag of supplies which had been sent ahead to Kampala with a family member. When our friend the housekeeper greeted us, we proudly told her, "We have brought more supplies for your people." She smiled and said, "They are your people too..." More lessons in humility...
In addition to all the big lessons, there is a lot of lightness and joy to be found here. Yesterday on Ward 14, the low-risk labour unit, we spent a better part of the day howling with laughter with the midwives about one thing or another. It started when one of the midwives clutched her stomach and said she felt like pushing a baby out. She began to moan and Angela proceeded to assist her in giving birth to twins (dolls knitted by some of the generous donors in Canada). The women labouring on the ward must have wondered what had gotten into their caregivers with all the raucous laughter that ensued. Our short time here has already brought us so many gifts but perhaps the greatest has been the friendships with the midwives that we've formed. We are so lucky to be here, so privileged to be able to work with these women, so fortunate to be able to assist at these births.
Let us serve and be grateful.
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Friday, June 4, 2010
Quick Update
With 7 minutes to go of internet time....no wireless in Mbale! So, we drew for who goes where (except me because my research paper determined my lcoale)....Jasmine and Amy stayed in Kampala at Mulago Hospital. Tracy and Tamara headed off to Masaka with Cathy, and Ashley and I are now in Mbale with Grace. We got oriented rather quickly to our small hospital, and did a couple hours work yesterday soon after we arrived. Unfortunately the one birth we attended was a stillbirth of a baby boy. Very sad start.
Today was much better. We caught 3 beautiful little girls between us. And I was asked to name one, so my daughter Victoria now has a namesake in Uganda!
Time's up!
Rhonda and Ashley!
Today was much better. We caught 3 beautiful little girls between us. And I was asked to name one, so my daughter Victoria now has a namesake in Uganda!
Time's up!
Rhonda and Ashley!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)