Monday, June 25, 2012
pictures
I love my life.
That pretty much sums it up.
I feel so lucky to be doing this and to have such good people here.
I am still enjoying my spanish class enormously but it doesn't change much so there is not a lot to discuss. We have covered present, future, ser/estar, comparisons, time, numbers, reflexive, questions, the basics. Tomorrow we start past tense which I have seen before but only very briefly (2hours of the class I took in Farmington.)
Then I went to el Quirofano, the OR, for the afternoon. There I saw a tonsilectomy, partially saw a prostate removal laporoscopically (with a camera and only three small cuts in the patients skin), a hemorrhoid surgery, and a cesarian-section! The C-section was clearly the coolest! It was kind of crazy but totally cool to see them pull the baby out. He was super cute and healthy.
I also tried to start an IV but failed, not terribly though...better luck next time.
I am starting to get to know everyone a little better in the department and they are clearly getting to know me better. They are very patient with me and were helping me by speaking slowly and listening patiently while I formulated my answers. They were also directing me to better spots for watching the surgeries and introducing me to people who don't know me yet. I shared mate with them, tried bread with anise (yum) and I might even go dancing on Saturday. They make me feel very welcome.
Just to top it off, the weather was very mild again today and it was lovely to walk home in the fresh but not chilly air. I also discovered that if I move my seat closer to the window, I have a gorgeous view of the mountains aka the Andes. Me gustan mucho.
I feel so lucky to be doing this and to have such good people here.
I am still enjoying my spanish class enormously but it doesn't change much so there is not a lot to discuss. We have covered present, future, ser/estar, comparisons, time, numbers, reflexive, questions, the basics. Tomorrow we start past tense which I have seen before but only very briefly (2hours of the class I took in Farmington.)
Then I went to el Quirofano, the OR, for the afternoon. There I saw a tonsilectomy, partially saw a prostate removal laporoscopically (with a camera and only three small cuts in the patients skin), a hemorrhoid surgery, and a cesarian-section! The C-section was clearly the coolest! It was kind of crazy but totally cool to see them pull the baby out. He was super cute and healthy.
I also tried to start an IV but failed, not terribly though...better luck next time.
I am starting to get to know everyone a little better in the department and they are clearly getting to know me better. They are very patient with me and were helping me by speaking slowly and listening patiently while I formulated my answers. They were also directing me to better spots for watching the surgeries and introducing me to people who don't know me yet. I shared mate with them, tried bread with anise (yum) and I might even go dancing on Saturday. They make me feel very welcome.
Just to top it off, the weather was very mild again today and it was lovely to walk home in the fresh but not chilly air. I also discovered that if I move my seat closer to the window, I have a gorgeous view of the mountains aka the Andes. Me gustan mucho.
Sunday, June 24, 2012
Surgery is cool and I have a great teacher.
Friday morning started like the day before focusing on the anesthesia. Except Rene was more determined to speak to me in Spanish only even though he loves speaking in English. After a couple hours, he had some free time in his schedule (which is rare) so he went to run errands. I elected to stay at the clinic and follow his partner around, Juan Lopez who is affectionately referred to as JLo :) Since the morning was "quiet" I ended up staying in the surgeries and watching.
It is pretty unbelievable what can be done to the body and it made me appreciate how the human body is much less fragile than I tend to think. We are designed to repair ourselves very well. And when we need surgical help to do it, we can heal from that too.
The coolest thing about watching the surgeries was how it made anatomy come to life. I loved anatomy this year and to see it in action was awesome!
I saw a tubal ligation (illegal unless there is a medical reason for the woman's saftey), a meniscus repair (in the knee joint), both done laporoscopically. I also saw a knee repair where the gracilis tendon was irritated, swollen and weak and the man's knee had become dramatically knock-kneed, this was fixed. There was also a "cyst" in a mans wrist that needed to be removed and yesterday (Saturday) I saw a laporoscopic gallbladder removal.
All in all I would say that Surgery is amazing.
On another note, I would also like to say that Rene is a phenomenal teacher. Perhaps because he has been in my shoes when he learned English, but I think there is more to it than that. He is wonderful at explaining to me in Spanish what is going on. He speaks slowly and uses limited vocabulary which I know or can figure out. When someone else says something that I do not understand, he re-says it, in Spanish, in a way that I can, often just by slowing down. I can understand a lot of the medicine too, which he clearly wants to teach me. He checks often to see if I am comfortable with what I am doing and repeatedly tells me to let him know if I need anything at all. I am very grateful for having him as a cornerstone of my experience here.
It is pretty unbelievable what can be done to the body and it made me appreciate how the human body is much less fragile than I tend to think. We are designed to repair ourselves very well. And when we need surgical help to do it, we can heal from that too.
The coolest thing about watching the surgeries was how it made anatomy come to life. I loved anatomy this year and to see it in action was awesome!
I saw a tubal ligation (illegal unless there is a medical reason for the woman's saftey), a meniscus repair (in the knee joint), both done laporoscopically. I also saw a knee repair where the gracilis tendon was irritated, swollen and weak and the man's knee had become dramatically knock-kneed, this was fixed. There was also a "cyst" in a mans wrist that needed to be removed and yesterday (Saturday) I saw a laporoscopic gallbladder removal.
All in all I would say that Surgery is amazing.
On another note, I would also like to say that Rene is a phenomenal teacher. Perhaps because he has been in my shoes when he learned English, but I think there is more to it than that. He is wonderful at explaining to me in Spanish what is going on. He speaks slowly and uses limited vocabulary which I know or can figure out. When someone else says something that I do not understand, he re-says it, in Spanish, in a way that I can, often just by slowing down. I can understand a lot of the medicine too, which he clearly wants to teach me. He checks often to see if I am comfortable with what I am doing and repeatedly tells me to let him know if I need anything at all. I am very grateful for having him as a cornerstone of my experience here.
Thursday, June 21, 2012
First day in the OR
Estoy muy cansada. En la manana, me fui a la Clinica Guemes donde Dr. Rene Cadillo esta trabajando esta semana. Es un anestesiologo... (mas en espanol un otro tiempo.)
(I am very tired. In the morning I went to the Clinica Guemes where Dr. Rene Cadillo is working this week. He is an anesthesiologist.) We went back and forth between four OR's all morning. I saw some of the surgeries but not much. More later. Today I tried to focus on using as little English as possible (although Rene speaks wonderful English). And started to learn about anesthesia. The surgeries included a carpal tunnel surgery, one for large nodules on a mans hand caused by gout, a hysterectomy and more.
**(NERD ALERT) The coolest thing was the way they do the nerve block (stop the nerve from transmitting anything) for the hand surgery. Dr. Cadillo uses an insulated needle except the tip is exposed. He puts it into the arm with some voltage and can tell when he is close to the nerve because the arm starts to move. Depending on which muscles move he can tell which part of the brachial plexus (nerves to the arm) he is near! I thought this was very cool. Then he can block only the nerves that he needs too!**
All in all it was a great experience and it is clear there will be more to come. After the OR I figured out how to buy a bus card because otherwise you have to pay with peso coins and these are nearly impossible to find. I found a great lunch spot where I successfully ordered a Quiche like thing and a salad with beets, eggs, and carrots. Yum! I successfully rode the bus to class and made it home too.
I am off to clean up for dinner at Rene's house with his family! And to figure out how to get a taxi there. Chau.
(I am very tired. In the morning I went to the Clinica Guemes where Dr. Rene Cadillo is working this week. He is an anesthesiologist.) We went back and forth between four OR's all morning. I saw some of the surgeries but not much. More later. Today I tried to focus on using as little English as possible (although Rene speaks wonderful English). And started to learn about anesthesia. The surgeries included a carpal tunnel surgery, one for large nodules on a mans hand caused by gout, a hysterectomy and more.
**(NERD ALERT) The coolest thing was the way they do the nerve block (stop the nerve from transmitting anything) for the hand surgery. Dr. Cadillo uses an insulated needle except the tip is exposed. He puts it into the arm with some voltage and can tell when he is close to the nerve because the arm starts to move. Depending on which muscles move he can tell which part of the brachial plexus (nerves to the arm) he is near! I thought this was very cool. Then he can block only the nerves that he needs too!**
All in all it was a great experience and it is clear there will be more to come. After the OR I figured out how to buy a bus card because otherwise you have to pay with peso coins and these are nearly impossible to find. I found a great lunch spot where I successfully ordered a Quiche like thing and a salad with beets, eggs, and carrots. Yum! I successfully rode the bus to class and made it home too.
I am off to clean up for dinner at Rene's house with his family! And to figure out how to get a taxi there. Chau.
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Day 1
This morning I hung around here, made breakfast, organized a little, then got some
empanadas (YUM) for lunch and went to meet my teacher, Patricia. We took a
cab to her place where she has a great classroom set up.
Patricia is great. Native to Salta, her mom teaches English which is how she started to learn. She used to work for a company in Buenos Aires that wanted a "branch" in Salta, but a few years ago she quit working for them and now does it on her own. I can tell it is going to be great to hear her and to have to communicate in spanish. She will tell me the words if I say them in English and then I am supposed to continue in Spanish as much as possible.
It is great to have a personal instructor because we started at the beginning with basics and I am able to move through them quickly, but fill in gaps that I've missed with my self study; and get correction when needed. (For example, we didn't have to spend much time on numbers today because I know them pretty well, but she taught me some exceptions like 700 and 900 are slightly different from the normal pattern.) She also taught me how to ride the bus home.
Turns out it is winter here (as of tomorrow technically) and it was chilly on my walk from the bus stop. I am warming up a bit and deciding what I want to do for dinner...?
Patricia is great. Native to Salta, her mom teaches English which is how she started to learn. She used to work for a company in Buenos Aires that wanted a "branch" in Salta, but a few years ago she quit working for them and now does it on her own. I can tell it is going to be great to hear her and to have to communicate in spanish. She will tell me the words if I say them in English and then I am supposed to continue in Spanish as much as possible.
It is great to have a personal instructor because we started at the beginning with basics and I am able to move through them quickly, but fill in gaps that I've missed with my self study; and get correction when needed. (For example, we didn't have to spend much time on numbers today because I know them pretty well, but she taught me some exceptions like 700 and 900 are slightly different from the normal pattern.) She also taught me how to ride the bus home.
Turns out it is winter here (as of tomorrow technically) and it was chilly on my walk from the bus stop. I am warming up a bit and deciding what I want to do for dinner...?
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
arribo
34 hours after leaving, I am here. Unfortunately tomorrow is a holiday so it isn't time for a shower and bed, it is time to grocery shop! Gonna sleep like a baby tonight.
Sunday, June 17, 2012
Almost time!
So, I am mostly packed...I think and about to head to sleep. Very excited for my trip!
Just gchatted with the Dr. I am working with and was thrilled to find out that the clinic where he is working now is two blocks from my apartment! And on the way to the grocery store and the center of everything! It was especially good to connect with him because we have not connected lately. It helped my excitement.
I am all set with my apartment and my Spanish lessons. Finally feels like it is all coming together! I had a lovely last day here and now I can have some sweet dreams!
Just gchatted with the Dr. I am working with and was thrilled to find out that the clinic where he is working now is two blocks from my apartment! And on the way to the grocery store and the center of everything! It was especially good to connect with him because we have not connected lately. It helped my excitement.
I am all set with my apartment and my Spanish lessons. Finally feels like it is all coming together! I had a lovely last day here and now I can have some sweet dreams!
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