Taking the bloods

Cheers from Jo'berg,

Today was full of rest and relaxation at a local mall. There is a bus that takes students from campus to a nice mall on the weekends, so we caught that this am and headed up there for some shopping. After a wonderful English breakfast (complete with eggs, ham/bacon, toast, grilled tomato and the all important COFFEE--I have been not getting my usual daily dose), we went to the African marketplace, as well as the very western shopping mall. The weather was perfect today, so it was a wonderful day to spend outside.

The western shopping mall stands in stark contrast to the place that I have been for the past week. They are actually broadcasting a special on the English Al-Jazeera about the hospital, I found the website at: http://www.lefthandfilms.co.za/soweto/synopsis/. It is incredible that in less than a 30 minute drive, such wealth can be so close to such poverty. This week, we had a patient die almost everyday. The one yesterday was the most difficult thus far. The toll that HIV/AIDS is taking on this country is inconceivable. We worry about chronic illnesses like chronic heart failure, COPD, hypertension, diabetes, and coronary artery diseases, while their patients are trying to survive HIV, tuberculosis, incredibly high numbers of trauma, and so much more.

The patients at Bara are those who have not been able to afford to take out medical aid (much like our health insurance). My registrar (resident) took me to the pharmacy the other day to pick up some of the patients' chemotherapy (yes, the resident has to do that), and we walked into a room of about 200 people sitting and waiting. She told me that the patients often show up in the wee hours of the morning and wait about 8-10 hours to receive their medications. They sometimes cannot afford to feed themselves, but they can receive their medications if they have the time to wait and hope that the pharmacy is not having a shortage.

As you can tell, there are many shortages at Bara. Platelets, medications, and convenience are hard to come by, but caring and knowledgable physicians take care of all of the patients. On the haematology service, our registrars take the bloods on all of the patients and carry them to the lab themselves. Needless to say, this month is going to be an adventure.

On the lighter side, we enjoyed eating somewhere besides our 2 usual places: the cafeteria and Mike's Kitchen (the only restaurant within walking distance: http://www.mikeskitchen.co.za/). Going to go do a bit of site seeing around the city before returning to the hospital on Monday. One of our residents may take us out the next weekend, so that we can see a game reserve and eat at her favorite restaurant. Should be fun!

Attached are some pics I found on the internet, which are very good depictions of what I am seeing.

Barb wire is everywhere! Every house, church, and building is fenced. Almost all public places have their own private security. This is what it looks like on a typical street:

This is our view as we get close to the hospital in Soweto: