Alright, really really busy day! We got up early, left Cape Town, and headed toward Worcester (South Africa, not Massachusetts). It might be like Worcester, Mass a little…I mean from what I’ve while on the bus to and from Hartford and Boston. A lot different than Cape Town…there’s not much here. The lady at the hotel kept suggesting McDonald’s down the road for dinner.
But our first stop in Worcester was a public hospital, Worcester Hospital, and a clinic right next to it, called the Community Day Centre. Most go to the Day Center for regular check-ups if they have a chronic illness or if they are feeling like they have something or even if they are having a baby (they have a maternity ward there). The Day Center was pretty crazy just because it’s mostly nurses or nurse practioners and basically, everyone goes there first unless it’s an emergency…then they go to the hospital. There were so many people at the Day Center. Lines and waiting rooms and lines and waiting rooms…the nurses we met said the entire process could take all day. There were people in line when we got there and almost an hour later we saw them in pretty much the same exact spot…still waiting. But, it’s free. No one has to pay.
The two wards that really stuck in my mind were the maternity ward and the allied health ward (where they have 1 PT and 1 OT). The maternity ward was unbelievable. They have about 150 babies born a month, 15-20 babies born HIV+ a month, two beds for giving birth, and a few for pre-birth and post-birth. The average age of mothers coming in to give birth was low due to high percentages of teen pregnancies. The best part: they send the newborn babies and their mothers home 4 hours after giving birth. FOUR hours. I have not given birth yet so I am not 100% sure on the trend in the US but I’m pretty sure mothers stay 2 or 3 days. Right? But 4 hours…no way. Couldn’t believe it. We also got to talk to the PT and OT, just one of each. They both have set appointments with patients with 16-20 patients a day. The patients in PT have 4-6 sessions before being discharged. But since there are so many patients, there is very little time for each session—she does a modality (hot or cold), joint mobilization or soft tissue mobilization (massage) and then teaches them an exercise or two and gives them more exercises to do at home. I can’t imagine how frustrating that would be…just trying to teach your patients exercises and just hope that they’ll actually do them at home. Then seeing very little progress because of the short amount of time you have with a patient. That’s a tough job.
Then Worcester Hospital…we had an informative meeting with them in a conference room before touring around just to get some background info. For a public hospital, it was a lot more put together than I expected. Not too far from a private hospital. And the hosts meeting with us were telling us how in Worcester, there isn’t a big difference between private and public. The big difference is that in public hospitals, you just see whatever doctor is on call and available. But after my hopes were raised up and I was starting to think that health care in South Africa wasn’t as far from 1st world care as I originally thought. Then our guide told us, “This is not what health care really looks like in South Africa.” The blunt truth. The hospital was still really great and there were many services and they serve most of the Cape Winelands plus another district south of the Winelands (700,00-800,00 people). They also have many pioneering programs that are serving to give medical students more experience and exposure before entering the work force. Many times, our hosts would tell us of a new teaching program or an initiative to bring more doctors to the rural areas (because 70% of health professionals work in a private setting that serves only 20% of the population). The position of a Physician’s Assistant is being created and becoming an option in schools. Health insurance availability is being discussed in the government to try and provide those in poverty with medical aid….it’s all in the works.
Our hospital guide also took us 6.8 km down the road from the hospital to a township/informal settlement called Avian Park to show us a service learning center that she created to provide care to the residents there. The building is pretty…simple. I would personally describe it as a gated patio surrounded by four rooms and a roof. Running water but no electricity. One flushing toilet. Another work in progress. She built it because those in Avian Park basically live off $1 a day and since they have so little money, they can’t afford transportation to the hospital or day center. They could walk the 6.8 km but if these residents are suffering from chronic illness or anything serious, that’s not possible. So they have this clinic. I think to put it short, my hopes and expectations for South African health care are not lost. All of these professionals are pushing forward and really making the effort to expand and better their health care system. Not only are they putting in the effort, but they are also so passionate and they appreciate what they have and what they foresee happening in the future. I love it.
After lunch, I was caught very off guard when it was announced we were going to one last stop—the Tuberculosis Hospital! This was not on our itinerary. And we were tired. Maybe it’s because I like sticking to schedules or maybe it’s because of the whole TB thing but either way…I didn’t welcome this hospital with open arms. Adam or DFitz, if you are reading this…I’m sorry. I mean, it was interesting because I never even heard of such a thing and it was cool that they are helping TB patients in such a way. But I’m already sick with a cold and getting TB would be terrible and the wards weren’t closed off, we didn’t have any masks…I felt a little exposed.
So we weren’t there too long and then we headed to the hotel. Well, there is not much in Worcester. The hotel manager kept insisting we should go to McDonald’s for dinner. Our other options were KFC, a pizza place, and a few sit down places with prices we didn’t feel like paying. The rooms are really cozy and cute but there a few quirks. Like, the bath tub. Not a shower but a bathtub. I cannot even tell you the last time I had a bath. So bathing in the morning will be interesting. The hotel is also split in half—main reception & some rooms on one side of the street and more rooms on the other. So this creates problems with the internet because the router is only on one side…the side I wasn’t on. But the others said it was flaky and took 15 minutes to send one email. Awesome. Well I am getting a refund if it doesn’t work by tomorrow.
But yeahhhh! Worcester…so charming. Are we going to Durban yet? :)
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