Chasing the Doctorita

Every Monday and Wednesday I walk down to the puesto de salud- the health post. The puesto is a reverted two-bedroom house that provides free medical care to about 2,500 people. Staffed by one doctor (two days a week), three nurses (five days a week) and a tecnico (kind of like a nurse's assistant in the US), the puesto handles everything from prenatal check-ups to, "Oops, looks like I shot myself." My town is lucky enough to have the regional hospital less than 4k away but the wait is long, up to 7 or 8 hours, and the care is impersonal and hurried. Thus, gunshots, bunyons, preggos and all report to the puesto. 


The doctor that works at our puesto is the only one in the area and ultimately provides basic care to somewhere between 2,500 - 7,000 people from Monday - Thursday. She is 26, tiny and kind of moves around like a cyclone, asking the patients their names 5 times in a 10 minute visit. She studied in Cuba and speaks some basic English and is known to the people around here as the 'doctorita' - The Little Doctor. And me? I now go by, la doctorita's ayundantita- the little doctor's littler helper.

While I'm still trying to focus on helping the community, well, uh... I can't deny that I'm sucking up these one-on-one medical classes conducted in Spanish- sucking them dry. I didn't think I would be doing much job shadowing in the Peace Corps but if it lands in my lap with a resounding, HOLA!, what am I supposed to do?

And so, my recent activities include getting to know my community (still), planning classes with the professors and directors, working with the youth group to do STI-awareness activities and hanging out with my doctorita on Mondays and Wednesdays. Soon we'll start planning town meetings for specific subjects like : Tips for New Mothers, Managing your High Blood Pressure/Diabetes and Healthier Cooking Techniques. Though unfortunately, we won't be doing any of that until it stops being so cold outside. It turns out people stop leaving their houses/going to school when the cold sets in. And it has set in!

Two nights ago the temperature got down to 0 C and we had a frost in the morning. This might be a refreshing change from the sweltering heat if it weren't for the lack of insulation, HVAC systems, windows, doors, etc. Generally, the temperature is lower inside the houses than it is outside, especially if the sun is out, leaving you to see your breath while you take a shower and relieving that wearisome sensory burden of feeling your toes and fingers. Personally, this inescapable cold has given me the gift of bronchitis. As a rebuttal to the antibiotic I'm on, my body has, in return, given me the gift of vomiting. Some people are just too generous.

In short, I will never again complain about the heat in Paraguay or the healthcare system in the US of A. Wish me luck not catching my synthetic polyester blanket on fire while huddling next to the burning charcoal pit!