Since I moved to SA to work in a government hospital, my wife is 'karring' me to write about my experiences. So I decided to follow her advice, inspired by Bongi and his inspiring blog (read: other-things-amanzi.blogspot.com).
At the time I needed al my energy to 'survive' the notoriousness of a government hospital in Jo'burg. Now I have a bit more space and time (the Denmark part of the blogtitle) to write about some of the things i saw and remembered.
In the first weeks I was in the hospital on the East Rand of Jo'burg, I did some extra work to get some extra cash. I was based in the Emergency Department, for a year, after that I would move to Surgery. The all-knowing management was of opinion that I 'required some experience' in a ED-setting since I came from Europe. Meanwhile I was the most qualified and experienced doc out there....didn't bode well for the future I thought...
But anyway, I did some calls for Surgery, a good way to get known to the personel on the wards. Not unnecessary....
I got onto one of the wards, where I was questioned by the nurse about one of the patients. She wanted to know what his fluid-therapy should be. I checked on the patient and told the nurse to 'measure his output and replace the losses'. Her slightly confused gaze should be a warning to me, and I probably did. After finishing my evening round through the other surgical wards, I decided to come back and check up on the first patient. To my surprise the sister was fumbling and struggeling with the patient's drip. So I asked what she was doing.... She replied: 'you told me to replace his losses, but I don't get this bag connected to his drip, something is wrong!'.
Well....something was wrong allright, she was trying to connect the urine-bag of the patient to his drip! 'Replace the losses'....
Though I realized they were right, I doubt the management meant this by saying 'I needed some more experience'...
maandag 3 mei 2010
maandag 15 februari 2010
Where to start...
Where to start... My second try to start a blog. Not to try and level the blogs of my 'blog-and-south africa-hero' other-things-amanzi. But it is nice to share some stories with others. Or maybe its a way of 'therapeuting' myself?
First of all the title. It says exactly my route. Born, raised, studied in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Worked 2 years in The Hague, general surgery. Although in my case I did quite a lot of Orthopedic Trauma (which is, as some people know, part of Surgery in The Netherlands). I liked it, and my registrars (residents in the USA) at that time didn't. They rather stayed in the vascular or GI wards. Anyhow, it got my interests in Trauma going.
After an unsuccesful try to get into the registrar program in The Netherlands, I decided to move to South Africa, well....not in the last place because my wife lived there at that time (although not yet my wife as well). Plenty of Trauma in SA I thought, good for the experience ('quite an understatement, Watson').
Working in the notorious SA was exactly that...notorious. Maybe because I was so 'lucky' to work in Boksburg, I don't know. But I got my fair share of how things run, or not run in South Africa. It changed my view on the world, on Trauma/Medicine and on people for ever.
I wouldn't wanted to have missed it, although that's after spending some months in Denmark now. In June last year you would probably have received a different answer.
So...SA and now Denmark. Why? Because I wanted to cut. I wanted to do Trauma, and that part combined with bones didn't let me go. So I followed the path of the Opportunity.
Not that I didn't want or didn't try in SA....but somehow there seems to be a problem with employing motivated people to some positions there. Not that they didn't need me....plenty of shortage in everything, also Surgeons. But I think its true when they say that once you've been in Africa, you can leave it, but Africa will never leave you. And thereby, South Africa is the most beautiful country in the world.....!
That's it for now. More later
First of all the title. It says exactly my route. Born, raised, studied in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Worked 2 years in The Hague, general surgery. Although in my case I did quite a lot of Orthopedic Trauma (which is, as some people know, part of Surgery in The Netherlands). I liked it, and my registrars (residents in the USA) at that time didn't. They rather stayed in the vascular or GI wards. Anyhow, it got my interests in Trauma going.
After an unsuccesful try to get into the registrar program in The Netherlands, I decided to move to South Africa, well....not in the last place because my wife lived there at that time (although not yet my wife as well). Plenty of Trauma in SA I thought, good for the experience ('quite an understatement, Watson').
Working in the notorious SA was exactly that...notorious. Maybe because I was so 'lucky' to work in Boksburg, I don't know. But I got my fair share of how things run, or not run in South Africa. It changed my view on the world, on Trauma/Medicine and on people for ever.
I wouldn't wanted to have missed it, although that's after spending some months in Denmark now. In June last year you would probably have received a different answer.
So...SA and now Denmark. Why? Because I wanted to cut. I wanted to do Trauma, and that part combined with bones didn't let me go. So I followed the path of the Opportunity.
Not that I didn't want or didn't try in SA....but somehow there seems to be a problem with employing motivated people to some positions there. Not that they didn't need me....plenty of shortage in everything, also Surgeons. But I think its true when they say that once you've been in Africa, you can leave it, but Africa will never leave you. And thereby, South Africa is the most beautiful country in the world.....!
That's it for now. More later
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