Alive still, I promise!

Just in case you were wondering…

I am still alive, and not bed-ridden by some interesting infirmity. Instead, I’m blissfully busy, which is a nice feeling to have again.

I’ve been continuing to spend lots of time at the National Hospital in Mazate, where the doctors and nurses are giving me wonderful learning opportunities every time I turn around.

Example?

1) Yesterday, a man who’d been shot in the head was wheeled into the ER. “Maria, (that’s my name these days) would you do me the favor of sewing that up, please?” inquired the on-call doc. With pleasure!

2) Today, I spent eight straight hours watching (and assisting somewhat) in hernia repair surgeries. Two doctors from Guatemala City came to Mazate to teach the surgeons here how to use a new prosthetic tissue implant, so they did a “jornada” of eleven repairs this morning and afternoon. I’d heard about it, so I approached one of the doctors yesterday to ask if he’d let me observe. He was more than willing, and I made sure to arrive bright and early as procedures were starting this morning. It was my first time in the operating room here, so I was a bit unsure of what to expect. I slid in the door as they weew beginning with the first patient, thinking I’d stand back and peer over shoulders from a safe distance. To my dismay, the two surgeons, scalpels in hand, looked up at me with perplexed expressions.

“Aren’t you going to scrub in?” they asked me.

I don’t know if my subsequent jump in heart rate was the result of excitement or fear (at what level of expertise they were expecting of me – I keep explaining that I’ve only got a bachelor’s degree in Biology, but no one seems to get it.). Nonetheless, I quickly scurried out and began to scrub, and spent the rest of the day cutting sutures, retracting tissues and passing instruments.

They seemed pretty ok with my performance (it’s impossible to fake your way through with this stuff), inviting me out for dinner and insisting I come visit them at work in the city. Their private hospital is in Zona 15, the same place that Janet, Stephanie, Kammie and the rest of the International School teachers live, so it will be far too convenient to not take advantage of the invite. Although I think one of them maybe might have fallen a bit in love with me, and that’s weird. He spent a good part of the afternoon sharing colloquial expressions regarding the fallibility of long-distance relationships, and acting surprised by my firm disagreement. If nothing else, you’ve got to give these guys credit for their confidence. Just like the staff neurologist who seems to be claiming me as both protégé and future wife, today’s gastroenterologist would-be suitor has kids my age. Really, guys? I think I may need to come back from Christmas break “engaged,” or “pregnant” (if I gain weight naturally, I can just pretend, right?) in order to get some respite.

All of this time at the hospital has been, until this week, happening in the mornings before class at the school. Now, school’s over, and I’m going to begin spending more time in the Clinica Maxena. I don’t think I’ll miss school much, in all honesty – there’s no use hiding that being a middle-school teacher isn’t really my thing. Then again, I think that there are a limited number of people in the world who can say that it is, so I don’t feel terrible about it. Stay tuned for how working at the clinic shapes up…

In the meantime, I’ve been neglecting my blog-writing because the med school secondary apps have begun a steady avalanche into my inbox. Since each one requires at least two (often three or four) additional, unique essays, and must be returned on a timeline, my writing efforts have been diverted. Honestly, it may be a while before I get caught up on them, which is both a blessing and a curse.

Also, I spent last weekend in Guatemala City hanging out with the wonderful girls I went to Montericco with, and just enjoying a bit of American cultural immersion. It was a great break, and I’m so glad that I’ve got some people I can identify with when I need a mental-health weekend. Oh, and Stephanie let me borrow a really awesome book – The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down – which I devoured in two days. I highly recommend it.

So, that’s what I’m up to these days. Life is good; I’m loving the time I’m spending at the hospital, I’m getting incredibly excited about being a doctor (even if it may be pretty far down the road still) and I’m meeting very friendly and interesting people.