(I have scribbled numerous experiences as a doctor on a medical site called Rxpg. It is easier to say your stories to doctors and budding doctors. On an open platform like this I always felt a grave responsibility in writing medical stuff. I feared creating a wrong image or bringing forth the wrong message as medicine is a highly specialised field and intricately related to human life. The limited understanding of a non-medico may alter the message. However after several years of contemplating I am sharing the most popular post I wrote some 7 years back . It does reflect the lack of resources and the poor working condition in government set ups and the hard work resident doctors put in to provide healthcare and learn amidst this scarcity and chaos.I take refuge in humour though mostly I lack it :) :). )
Living in india you learn to adjust with loads of things.One of them is power cuts.They are inevitable.Specially when you have a big exam ahead .You may make arrangements but things just go topsy turvy.I recall during my first year of MBBS we had absolutely no power cuts in our hostel so we gals didnt give it a thought that the unthinkable may happen just before our physiology professional .It happened.We were shocked to know that none of us had candles.....khair it was not tht bad besides we had a good laugh after a bit of panicking.....
Now what is bad is when you hve 10 first day post operative patients in the ward to look after and you are posted as an Emergency medical officer;.the first one to see the patients and admit as well take care of the post operative patients.That day there is a major power failure.That very day the generator refuses to work and with a candle in your hand you are (Florence Nightingalish ) trying to take care of every possible complaint of the patients. Changing drips and ensuring the antibiotics are adminitered at the right time in between also making emergency admissions.Amidst all this you hear a post operative patient wailing and threatening to jump of the bed complaining of excruciating pain. You hold a candle upto her face and squint while the relatives panic. You use your better senses and discover that the patient failed to pass urine and look for a bladder lump.Happy with yourself you immediately catheterize the patient while one of the female relatives hold the candle for you. Dexterously you evacuate around half a litre of urine and get a blessing from the relieved patient. Now this isn't that bad after all.
However the nights at the hospital are always long and eventful. 'Bad' was on its way to the hospital that same sweaty night as my candle fought bravely with the wind.She arrives . The lights are dim . I could hardly see her face . She could hardly stand even with support . She was pregnant and bleeding .I ask her to sit but I could hardly go near the patient that I hear a thud and a splash.
I am standing with a candle in my hand and between her and me is a pool of blood which in the candle light seem like black molten coal. She collapses . I postpone my collapsing and without delay rush her to the labour room .
Now in this scene there are no showers of blessings for me. The labour room is flooding with patients, spilling with patients , groans and moans and frantically running doctors trying to work their best. But lets not forget that it was a sweaty summer night and the labour room just had a few candles more than the emergency room. The heat and the dark and the patient load had turn my seniors into steaming kettles ready to burst at the slightest provocation . As I barge in with a pregnant patient pouring blood I am hit with a zillion angry words and scoldings . I start to lose orientation and frantically fill in the admission notes accelerating my escape from the wrath. As I step out I feel I was in an out of an oven and just escaped hell's fire.
"Yeah this was bad" I self talked looking at the moon peeping from the window and rushed back to the emergency room for more ordeals.
That was one night.Then there was another such night.When the lights went off but the generator worked thankfully.Two patients were in active labour.I was with my senior and our counterparts were getting their four hours relieving. My Senior asked me to do an examination and I found that the baby was coming and we wash up immediately for the delivery after giving a call to the paediatricians.As we are about to deliver her the generator betrays us !!!! lights go off and we struggle in the dim light of the candle. But I guess it was not enough of an ordeal. I am holding the just delivered baby and suddenly my senior realises that the other patient is ready to deliver . Now this is really bad... nervous bad... frustrating bad...!!!!!
My sleepy counterpart is immediately called for help. The other baby delivers and the sleepy head confuses the scissors with the clamp . Anyways a 'growl' from the senior makes her realise the mistake in time. So three doctors with a couple of candles and a bit of chaos end up with two successful candle light deliveries .......great!! fantastic!!!!
Moral of the story :No matter how bad things may get....they can still get worse..... and you may still end up sayingWOW !!! AWESOME!!!
Living in india you learn to adjust with loads of things.One of them is power cuts.They are inevitable.Specially when you have a big exam ahead .You may make arrangements but things just go topsy turvy.I recall during my first year of MBBS we had absolutely no power cuts in our hostel so we gals didnt give it a thought that the unthinkable may happen just before our physiology professional .It happened.We were shocked to know that none of us had candles.....khair it was not tht bad besides we had a good laugh after a bit of panicking.....
Now what is bad is when you hve 10 first day post operative patients in the ward to look after and you are posted as an Emergency medical officer;.the first one to see the patients and admit as well take care of the post operative patients.That day there is a major power failure.That very day the generator refuses to work and with a candle in your hand you are (Florence Nightingalish ) trying to take care of every possible complaint of the patients. Changing drips and ensuring the antibiotics are adminitered at the right time in between also making emergency admissions.Amidst all this you hear a post operative patient wailing and threatening to jump of the bed complaining of excruciating pain. You hold a candle upto her face and squint while the relatives panic. You use your better senses and discover that the patient failed to pass urine and look for a bladder lump.Happy with yourself you immediately catheterize the patient while one of the female relatives hold the candle for you. Dexterously you evacuate around half a litre of urine and get a blessing from the relieved patient. Now this isn't that bad after all.
However the nights at the hospital are always long and eventful. 'Bad' was on its way to the hospital that same sweaty night as my candle fought bravely with the wind.She arrives . The lights are dim . I could hardly see her face . She could hardly stand even with support . She was pregnant and bleeding .I ask her to sit but I could hardly go near the patient that I hear a thud and a splash.
I am standing with a candle in my hand and between her and me is a pool of blood which in the candle light seem like black molten coal. She collapses . I postpone my collapsing and without delay rush her to the labour room .
Now in this scene there are no showers of blessings for me. The labour room is flooding with patients, spilling with patients , groans and moans and frantically running doctors trying to work their best. But lets not forget that it was a sweaty summer night and the labour room just had a few candles more than the emergency room. The heat and the dark and the patient load had turn my seniors into steaming kettles ready to burst at the slightest provocation . As I barge in with a pregnant patient pouring blood I am hit with a zillion angry words and scoldings . I start to lose orientation and frantically fill in the admission notes accelerating my escape from the wrath. As I step out I feel I was in an out of an oven and just escaped hell's fire.
"Yeah this was bad" I self talked looking at the moon peeping from the window and rushed back to the emergency room for more ordeals.
That was one night.Then there was another such night.When the lights went off but the generator worked thankfully.Two patients were in active labour.I was with my senior and our counterparts were getting their four hours relieving. My Senior asked me to do an examination and I found that the baby was coming and we wash up immediately for the delivery after giving a call to the paediatricians.As we are about to deliver her the generator betrays us !!!! lights go off and we struggle in the dim light of the candle. But I guess it was not enough of an ordeal. I am holding the just delivered baby and suddenly my senior realises that the other patient is ready to deliver . Now this is really bad... nervous bad... frustrating bad...!!!!!
My sleepy counterpart is immediately called for help. The other baby delivers and the sleepy head confuses the scissors with the clamp . Anyways a 'growl' from the senior makes her realise the mistake in time. So three doctors with a couple of candles and a bit of chaos end up with two successful candle light deliveries .......great!! fantastic!!!!
Moral of the story :No matter how bad things may get....they can still get worse..... and you may still end up sayingWOW !!! AWESOME!!!
Candle light delivery, indeed romanchak Nids!
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