Halfway already?

Greetings!

Today was my last day shadowing at Stephen Nursing home, and though it was a really good day, it was bittersweet. I've really enjoyed shadowing such informative and kind people.

This is Dr. Rohini and Dr. Ravi.  They've been married a long time and have two children, a son and a daughter. They started the practice in the new building in 1998 and have been here ever since!

Here are all of the lovely nurses and staff. They were always really sweet and explained to me some of the procedures they do everyday, such as putting an IV line in (they usually use the hand instead of the arm to feed fluids through the system).

The nurses got a a kick out of the fact that I was much taller than all of them and wanted a picture >.>

Along with taking pictures and saying thank you, I learned a few interesting tidbits today that I thought I might share

• First of all, I found out that when a woman has her first baby, two weeks before the child's head comes down into the pelvis, so much so that the doctor can feel the head via pelvic exam. Otherwise, if it is the woman's 2nd or 3rd baby, the child will not fall into the pelvis until shortly before labor.
  
• Blisters are commonly called "shoe bites" here! The one I saw looked pretty serious too, and when I first heard it, I wasn't quite sure what sort of animal bit this poor man in such a strange manner. Then I realized...
  
• The wife of a brother in law is called a "co-sister", not just a "sister-in-law"
  
• When the end of a person's fingers is swollen, or looks like a club, this is called "clubbing" and can indicate heart issues or heart failure.
  
• According to the national news today, the least safest place for a woman in India right now is Delhi, and the safest place for a woman to be in India is Trichy. What a coincidence! I'm in Trichy!

Besides that, I heard some wonderful and interesting stories from Dr. Rohini about her family and sisters and how close they are. It was awesome to see that these women stay so close even though they are on opposite ends of the world!

I have really appreciated seeing how the Stephens run their practice and treat their patients. Each patient is like a friend, and besides giving medical care, they are there to listen and help as a person, not just as a physician. As I have said before, this practice does not see a huge number of patients in a day, but I feel like because of that these doctors are able to give quality care that satisfies the patient emotionally as well as physically. Dr. Ravi and Rohini treated these patients as people, not just as a case number, and I feel really grateful and blessed to have been able to witness this side of the healthcare profession. 

Next week I start at Janet Nursing home, which is much bigger and sees many more patients. Now that I've seen one way to treat patients, I'll be able to see the other side and compare and contrast. 

But now, alas, I must go to bed, tomorrow we go to Ooty! Its a hill station 6 hours away. More when I get back on Sunday!