(With Peace Corps Medical Doctor)
Me: Hi Suni, its Jenny Schwartz.
Suni: Hi Jenny, tell me, how are you?
Me: actually right now I’m pretty sick
Suni: Tell me what is happening with you
Me: Well, my stomach really hurts, especially after I eat and it’s been going on for about 3 days.
Suni: What kind of pain are you having? Is it a cramping or a stabbing?
Me: When I’m not eating it’s a cramping, when I am eating its stabbing.
Suni: When are you having these pains while you are eating or within 30 minutes of eating?
Me: While I’m eating and it lasts for usually an hour after eating
Suni: Are you having diarrhea?
Me: no
Suni: Are you with vomiting?
Me: no, but after eating I feel like I’m going to, I just hate throwing up, so I have managed not to so far
Suni: hmm… Are you with a fever?
Me: Um I don’t think so
Suni: Do you have pain in your head?
Me: No
Suni: Hmm, this is abnormal. Ok, do you have a health post in your town?
Me: Yes
Suni: With a lab?
Me: Yeah, but the lab tech is on vacation until the day after tomorrow
Suni: …hmm, ok well if you can wait until he gets back have him do a stool sample and a blood test and get me the results.
Me: ok
Suni: Here is what I want you to do for me. Take your temperature every 4 hours and if it is high please call me back immediately. Also, please eat just bland food, potatoes, rice, and chicken soup. Where are you exactly?
Me: In the pay phone in my town
Suni: No, where is your site
Me: Oh, Nanchoc, Cajamarca, but I’m closer to Chiclayo than Cajamarca City
Suni: Oh, ok. Do you have internet in your site?
Me: Haha, no. No internet
Suni: Then I will call your cell phone in 2 days to hear your results
Me: Suni, we don’t have cell phone either
Suni: Oh, ok. Then I will call this number back in 2 days
Me: They usually don’t come by to tell me when I have a phone call, so I will just come back here and call you when the lab guy gets back and has my test results…assuming we’ll still have electricity in 2 days.
Suni: Ok… well I will be waiting to hear from you and your results.
Me: Thanks Suni
Suni: Feel better
Date of conversation: 24th of Feb.
Date of Lab guy’s return: 26th of Feb
Results of lab tests: TBA
(With Nanchoc Health Center’s Doctor—translated into English)
Dr. Freddy: what are you working on?
Me: My Diagnostic
Dr. Freddy: you’re working on your own diagnostic?
Me: Yeah I just talked to Walter in the lab about a few things to help me with my diagnostic
Dr. Freddy: why isn’t Walter doing your diagnostic?
Me: Because it’s my job to do my own diagnostic, all the Peace Corps people are doing one in their city
Dr. Freddy: wait, you all have to do your own diagnostic? Why aren’t the lab guys doing it for you?
Me: Because it’s a way for us to get to know our community
Dr. Freddy: …having a parasite is a way to get to know your community?
Me: What?
Dr. Freddy: You need to have a parasite to get to know your community better? And you all have to do the lab diagnostic yourselves? Those are weird rules
Me: umm Dr. Freddy, I was talking about my community diagnostic, remember I asked all those moms those questions…I just wanted to stuff on parasites from Walter.
Dr. Freddy: Oh, so Walter is running your parasite diagnostic, not you?
Me: yeah, I’m not a lab technician
Dr. Freddy: yeah…I’m going to go eat lunch now, my head hurts
Me: ok, I’ll be working on my diagnostic
Dr. Freddy: [rolls his eyes]
Final Lab Results: no parasite
Next Step: wait and see if it gets better on its own…my mom’s going to pass an egg over me tomorrow (don’t ask it’s a Peruvian get better thing…)
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