Some thoughts and experiences of the things I got to experience as a nurse while traveling in places with interesting healthcare, and a list of the questions squadmates ask me on a regular basis.
Questions I get asked:
- “How often should I be having a bowel movement?”
- “I’ve had diarrhea for 2 weeks, should I do something about that?”
- “I just started having diarrhea last night, do I have a parasite? Am I going to die?”
- “What is this mark/rash/bug bite on my skin?”
- “Can you check me for lice?”
- 6 am phone call – “we are in the ER and can’t understand the doctor, can you translate over the phone for us?” (also note we have horrible cell phone reception, I can barely hear over the phone, and my clothes haven’t dried from the day before so I am sleeping in my underwear and can’t go outside to get better reception. And she has been trying to call me since 4 am but the calls wouldn’t come through).
- Squadmate: “I have a headache/feel nauseous/feel dizzy.”
- Me: “Have you been drinking much water today?”
- Squadmate: “No.”
- “I have a rash. Should I do something about it?” (both legs covered in big welts, some that have been scratched open, very irritated…)
- “I had this rash, and the doctor gave me cream for it, but I think it’s getting worse” (entire body covered in ringworm).
- “Should my belly-button secrete mucus?”
- “There is blood in my poop, what does that mean?”
- “My poop is _____ (insert color), what does that mean?”
- “Can I pop this blister?”
- “I have the flu and have to get on an 18 hour bus ride tomorrow. What can I take to survive the ride?”
Experiences
- Aisle surfing on the 24 hour bus ride from Lima to Cusco in Peru. The altitude surprised us overnight, and many squadmates were vomiting and passing out. The other nurse and I spent most of the morning walking up and down the aisle and stairs to check on people, pray for them, hand out drugs/trash bags/wet wipes. Altitude and driving in a double-decker bus around mountains is not a good combination. But by the grace of God, the other nurse and I did not get sick while we were tending to the others.
- Spending an entire day in the Emergency Room in Ecuador. A teammate was very sick, so we went to the ER in the morning, but between the language barrier and non-specific symptoms, we were there all day. Speaking Spanish is always a bonus when in South America.
- Visiting the family doctor in Malawi. Nearly my entire team visited this doctor at least once, as it was a rough month for our health. But everyone came out with the same diagnosis: upper respiratory infection – despite the fact that our symptoms varied from sinus pressure, congestion, violent diarrhea/vomiting, chills, and twisted ankles. One teammate was also diagnosed with exhaustion, but she saw a different doctor. The same doctor diagnosed us and counted out pills from large bottles in his cabinet for us. We were not told what the medications were, just how often to take them. Thank goodness I can still attempt to read doctor script. But on the plus side, we all spent less than 5 USD to be seen and get medication. And we were all cured. Eventually. After we left Africa.
- Squadmate basically diagnosed with being “white”. The doctor he saw said he was pale, and then proved this by comparing his skin tone (darker due to his differing ethnicity) to my squadmate’s skin, and showing how my squadmate was much lighter, so he must be pale and ill.
- A squadmate being diagnosed with an “infection in the body”. Further explanation as to which part of the body was infected was not given.
- In Cambodia I helped care for several street children who had chronic ulcers on their legs due to poor hygiene and malnutrition. Looking at the ulcers, I was thinking that if we were in the States, I would know exactly what kind of specialized bandage these kids needed, but there was no way I would find them here. I looked in the medicine cabinet for basic wound care supplies, and lo and behold – there were the specialized bandages in the cabinet. The Lord provides.
- Asian healthcare:
- Going to a doctor in Cambodia for a teammate with a really bad rash. Multiple doctors came in to examine it, and determined we needed a really strong medication, and that she should take it for 30 days. I contacted my ER doctor back home, and based on her symptoms he said she shouldn’t even be taking that kind of medication. Suffice it to say she only took it for a few days, and we did not go back for our follow-up visit. She had a full recovery.
- A Chinese doctor told a squadmate to massage her Achilles tendon in order to get her menstrual cycle to start.
- Traditional healthcare in Bolivia. For our various ailments, this is what we were told by our hosts/local doctors:
- For a fever, place these large leaves in your armpits, and when you get the chills, don’t cover up with too many blankets.
- For all over body aches and pain, you should get a massage.
- When it rains, you should cover the back of your neck to keep it from getting cold, and then giving you a respiratory cold (please note that it is in the 90s with high humidity, and we are sweating even when it is raining…)
- If you are sick, you should not shower, because you might get cold (again, note the tropical climate)
- If you have a stomach bug, it is because you let your stomach get cold.
- If you feel nauseous, it means you need to eat more food, especially solid food. And if you vomit, you should still eat more food.
- If you have had an ear infection, you should put cotton in your ears while you are traveling.
- One of my teammates was diagnosed by our mom with Chikungunya. We asked if there was anything to treat it, to help it go away faster or cure it. She said yes, Tylenol.
- Chile health advice
- If you are a vegetarian, then you are anemic
- Sinus infections are chronic, they cannot be cured (squadmate had to fight for an antibiotic)
- The infamous traveler’s diarrhea. Don’t eat street food in Bolivia. Or restaurant food in Thailand. Street food in Thailand is totally safe, but three people got food poisoning after eating at a nice restaurant.
- My teammate being forcefully “assisted” off the train in Romania with her pack on. She fell on the tracks and busted up her knees pretty bad. We spent several agonizing days cleaning her cuts while she yelled at me. We are still friends.
- Treated nearly a million busted toes, splinters, twisted ankles, headaches, diarrhea, motion sickness, respiratory colds, and heat rash.
Needless to say, healthcare around the world is never dull.
