The end or the beginning...?

As this elective draws to an end, I have to admit that it is bittersweet. As much as I love to cross off another class that is between me and graduation; I do hate to see this elective come to an end. The List of things that caused this month to be a wonderful experience is a long one: The Dominican Republic Trip, The children there in the DR, Being out in the community, Speaking Spanish, Meeting with a Spanish Tutor, Learning about everyday farm life, the laughter, the smell of tobacco and dairy farms, and on and on. Yet the thing that stands out the most for me, about this month, is the way I felt as I left the Dominican Republic and drove away from each farm.... I truly felt appreciated. I think this emotion is what has driven me to this point in my life. It was the appreciation I felt from my patients that propelled me to leave nursing and come to medical school. And it is that same, maybe even more intense, appreciation that I recieve from the Dominicans, farmowners and farmworkers that draws me to settle here in rural NC or in rural Latin America and serve the people that will appreciate me most. So that being said..maybe this is not the end but rather the beginning...

Total number served in Randolph County:
Farmworkers: 92
Farmowners/family: 20
# of farms visited: 13

Total follow up farm visits: 3

Last day on the farms..

Today was my last day on the farms. Today I went to the biggest farm in Randolph County. The have 30 workers so I had to recruit some help in order to see them in a timely fashion. Joyce from the Lation Coalition came out to hand out information on community resources, first aid kits, hygiene kits, english language books, and clinic information. She gave all of this to each worker after they were screened. Dr. Devries from Siler City Community Health Center volunteered to help me with the screenings. She and I worked together to screen the Blood pressure and Blood sugar of all of the workers. We found one uncontrolled diabetic during the screening. I gave him a monitor and showed him how to test with it at home. Dr. Devries called and helped him make a doctor's appointment at the clinic.

I found out at the end of the day that this farm owner actually kept each of the workers on the clock and paid them for the time they spent listening to my talk about heat stroke prevention and while they recieved the screening! I was totally impressed by this! It seems like many of the farm owners consider their workers their extended family. This farm was no exception!

Total number served today:
Farmworkers:30
Farmowners/family: 1
# of farms visited: 1

August 5th- Dairy and Tobacco farm visits

Today was a very full day. I visited 2 dairy farms , 1 large tobacco farm, and then another small farm in the Randleman area. This was my first time during this elective on a dairy farm. I was able to plan my visits in between milkings, so it worked out well with their work schedule. At one dairy, a worker had to leave my talk to go help deliver a dairy calf. When he returned he told me about the delivery while I checked his blood pressure and blood sugar. It was so neat to listen to him talk, you could tell he loved the work that he was doing.

The thing that amazes me most on these farms is the laughter. The farm owners pick at the workers and the workers pick right back. Everyone seems to have a good time even though the work is hard and the heat intense. There were times today that I thought that I may seriously melt. It is just that hot. But how can I complain after one hour of being outside (usually in the shade)? These guys work in this everyday sunup to sundown! So I just keep working, silently sweat, and laugh along with them.

Total number served today:
Farmworkers:27

Farmowners/family: 6
# of farms visited: 4

Hickory Hill Nursery- August 4th

I went to Hickory Hill Nursery today. This beautiful farm is located just outside Asheboro. Interesting enough, many of the plants that are found on the campus of UNC are bought from Hickory Hill Nursery.

I found an interesting gentleman working there on their farm. He has worked for the nursery for many years. He is unable to speak and can only hear very loud noises. He can read your lips if you use simple clear words. He can read in Spanish and some basic English. He communicates with homemade sign language. He is a plumber and a certified electrician in Mexico. I spent quite a bit of time talking the farmowners and with him via written notes. The farm owners asked me a great question. They asked me if there are any resources in our community that could help him be able to speak and communicate better. When he first came to the farm he could barely make a sound...now he has learned to say a few simple words. I wonder what this man could learn if he had speech therapy or a hearing aid. I promised the worker and the farm owners that I would do my best to research the resources that we have here in our area for the hearing and speech impaired. I have placed a phone call to UNCG center for speech and hearing to see what they think about this case. I am curious to hear their thoughts.

Oh and the top picture....my first payment for being a doctor! ha ha The farm owner insisted that I take a plant home with me, a lovely april tryst camellia. They said that is how they pay all of their doctors. As you can see, the farm was absolutely beautiful and the workers and owners were very kind, welcoming, and appreciative.

Total number served today:
Farmworkers:3
Farmowners/family: 2
# of farms visited: 1

Randleman Area- 7/29/09 entry

This morning at 6:30 I went back to one of the farms from sunday to recheck the worker who had a Blood glucose (BG) of 300. His fasting BG was 218. I had to tell him that these numbers indicated he is a diabetic. He was devasted, as most of us are when we are told bad news like this. It always breaks my heart to give bad news. I tried my best to answer all of his questions. I taught him how to use a blood glucose machine to check his BG levels at home. We also talked about the "diabetic diet" and how to carb count. He was an incredibly quick learner so this was actually very easy! I went to the local diabetes education program later that day in order to get more information and handouts on diabetes management for him. He went to see a doctor at Siler City Community Health Center the next day.

I went by to see the other 2 diabetic patients on their lunch break to give them a blood glucose machine and show them how to use it. True Track donated some monitors for these patients.

I went to 3 different farms in the Randleman/Archdale area today. Leighanna, from Merce Clinic in Asheboro, came with me to help me out. She shared with the workers a little bit about Merce Clinic and what they have to offer.

Driving back home as images of the farms and the farmworkers flashed in my mind, I realized that I truly enjoyed those hot hours out there on the farm. The workers and farmowners were so grateful for the time I spent with them. They were so thankful for the information, the firstaid kits, the hygiene kits, and the books and tapes to learn English. I realize that this is what I love about working with this population. At the end of the day, no matter how tired, you truly feel appreciated. And that makes all the difference.

Total number served today:

Farmworkers:10

Farmowners/family: 4

# of farms visited: 3

# of follow-up farm visits: 3