Enjoy these travel journal excerpts from the recent Spring Global Health Elective in India...
"We made it! We landed in India safe and sound.
We arrived at SGRD Hospital the next day and were immediately offered tea.
In addition to the fun, we get down to business and show them what Cornell anesthesia is all about.
Another full and packed day in Amritsar to report. We started the day by visiting a school founded by Master Ajit Singh for children affected by the addiction crisis in "widows' village." Our moods were immediately lifted when we saw these adorable kids welcoming us into their class. They were so incredibly cute! They sang us a traditional Punjabi song and sang Marc an early happy birthday song (though in return they asked us to sing them a song, so Jeny sang and they suffered alright).
Afterwards, we reported for duty at SGRD where Dr. Ruchi demonstrated a blind nasotracheal intubation. Nowadays we only read about the technique in books, so we were happy to have seen it during our training!
Today we went on a six hour car trip across Punjab, from Amritsar to Sagrur. We saw the rural side of India, and it was an interesting juxtaposition to the hustle and bustle of Amritsar. We saw mostly wheat fields for miles and miles (actually kilometers and kilometers... they use the metric system here).
We arrived at Jaijee Uncle's home around two in the afternoon. He greeted us with warm hugs and of course warm tea.
We are back in Amritsar from our visit with Jaijee Uncle — it almost feels like home! Today we went to Amandeep Hospital which is a private hospital that specializes in orthopedic procedures and trauma. We saw a interscalene block combined with an axillary block using a nerve stimulator for a compound ulna and radius fracture. Even though we are skilled with brachial plexus blocks under ultrasound, seeing it done with a nerve stimulator really solidifies our knowledge of what responses to expect when the nerves are stimulated. The consultants (attending equivalent) were so kind and hospitable. They knew we were excited about the holiday Holi and celebrated with us at the hospital with color! They served us samosas and galub jamun, not to mention multiple fruits and of course, tea. Happy Holi from India!"
EB