This morning I woke up at 7 AM so that I could get to the hospital by 8. I was so excited to see Dr. Ellie again and see what the day was going to look like. She is super nice and loves to explain things to me, while the other doctors rarely smile. I found out today that the reason there are no nurses working in this external section of the hospital is because they are all on strike. Only the doctors and nurses who are truly passionate about what they do have stayed. They are on strike because they want the government to give them more money. Here in Argentina, doctors and nurses are not paid very well. I find this really weird because they have spent so many years studying and dedicating themselves to helping people and they are getting little in return. This is why the doctors are doing all the work such as taking the temperature of the child and weighing them on the scale.
This morning we saw around 20 patients. I have found that in this hospital, the doctors love to get to know the patients, but they don't spend as much time examining them as they do in the US. Here, medicare is really cheap and the doctors are tending to pass out the antibiotics to solve all the problems. We saw patients who needed check ups, one girl with bronchitis, and many other minor issues. In this specific public hospital, I have realized that if someone has a question, they will look for any opportunity to speak with a doctor. In the hallways, they bombard the doctors and also when there is a door clearly closed, they will enter just to look for a doctor to speak with. I can't blame them because sometimes the wait is really long and they have urgent questions that are needing to be answered. The picture is Dr. Ellie and I in her office. She got so excited when I wanted to take a picture with her that she gave me her e-mail so that I could send it to her later. This is a woman who is passionate about what she does and loves these kids, despite their home or economic situation. For example, a boy came in today who Dr. Ellie has seen since he was a baby and now he is about 6 years old. He brought her a picture of him with Barney and her face lit up as she took the photo and hung it on the board behind her desk. All of the kids feel very comfortable with her and she makes it feel like its not the usual, scary visit to the doctor.
This afternoon, I went to work at the Ronald McDonald House. OH MY GOSH I do not even know where to begin! This is a place where kids with really serious cases come while they are receiving treatment and their families can live there too. It is sort of like a hotel because there is a community kitchen and laundry room, but each family has their own bedroom. It is very important for the volunteers here to always have smiles on their faces and to be silly because the families and kids are going through a lot. Maybe I should try out one of my cheesy jokes? (What is a bird's favorite ring tone?) Ok get ready, its really good, "wing wing, wing wing!" Today was my first day at Ronald McDonald, so it was induction day. I learned what I would be doing there and how everything works. This is where I met some of the nicest people I have met in Argentina. I met Mattias and Yani, both who are students from Argentina and are volunteering at Ronald McDonald. We talked about just everything under the sun. Here were some snippets:
1) Religon: They are both Catholic but do not attend church regularly. They believe that Jesus came to the earth and died so that everyone who believes in Him can go to heaven. They said that there are many things that they don't agree with in the Catholic church, such as confession. They believe that the priest is just another regular man and it is not necessary to confess to him when you can confess your sins directly to Jesus. They told me that Protestant churches do not exist here.
2) Politics: I found more people who are not George Bush fans. They said that the majority of the people in Argentina thought the tragedy of 9/11 was a terrorist attack, but after watching videos of it, they think otherwise. They said that the plane that flew into the buildings caused damage to the top, but there was also an explosion at the bottom, in which they think was a bomb. They believe that George Bush was somehow involved in this and he is the reason that the war in Iraq started. Again, interesting to hear a different perspective.
3) Influence of the Media: Have you ever thought that you might believe certain things because of where you live? For example, In the US we watch the channels that are broadcasted in the US and that helps us form opinions about things. In other countries, it is the same way. I'm not saying all the time, but sometimes I believe that our perspective of the world is a bit narrow because we are only exposed to certain media.
4) Music: Some of Mattias and Yani's favorite music artists are Rihanna, Usher, Adele, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, and Nicki Minaj. Can't you hear that boom, badoom, boom, boom, badoom, boom bass?
5) Such a foreigner: They have added to more reasons why I am a foreinger. Apparently there is a way I walk and hold my shoulders that is different than the people here. They said it is more upright than the people here. They also said that my face shape is very different than the people here. Well...I guess I have to give up trying to blend in withe the people in Argentina!
6) Cordoba: They decided that they are going to give me their tour of Cordoba and show me all of the museums and major history spots. I am really excited because they know a lot about this city and want to share! Mattias is still in high school and Yani is about to start her 3rd year of Pharmacy school. She is also studying cooking. (shout out to all my deltas sistahhs out der because we have some new TRI DELTAS in the house! Check out the photo!) Also, they told me to tell my mom and dad that I am with good people and that they are my brothers and sisters in Argentina! So don't worry...ya heard?
All in all, today was a really tiring day and was constantly full of activity, but I came home tonight to a fresh baked cake that my house mom made! It was delicious!
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