First Days at the Clinic by Stephanie Barrera

      The first day at clinical rotation in San Jacinto was spent observing the doctor to patient interaction. Most people were coming in for their control appointments for diabetes, high blood pressure, high blood sugar, or pregnancy. Many patient with diabetes were in their mid 40s and onwards. We saw a diabetic man that had not been abiding to his treatment as should and was starting to develop discoloration on some of his toes on both feet. This discoloration was a dark purple color. The doctor explained that this is due to poor circulation of blood to this area and if not careful, will have to get those toes amputated. Their were many people who confessed to taking shots of mezcal to control their diabetes because they were told by family members that it would help with their blood pressure. The doctor clarified that Mezcal may mask symptoms but the underlining condition cannot be cured with mezcal. A lot of the patients with diabetes were workers either in construction or selling food and clothes in the center and also confessed that they do not have time to pack their own lunches so they eat were ever they can find food  nearest to them. Often times the nearest inexpensive foods are in convenience store and are generally high calorie and low nutritious snacks. This, in addition to eating high amounts of tortillas and bread are leading factors to developing diabetes.

      The second day at San Jacinto my peers and I did a public health outreach with what the clinic calls the Padrino, to the homes of expecting and recently new mothers to analyze their pregnancy or postpartum condition and detect if their is a risk to the mother or child’s safety and health. This is an effort to decrease the rates of maternal mortality which is exceptionally high in  the state of Oaxaca. It was a very humbling experience to experience the daily trails these pregnant women live. We had to walk across dirt and muddy roads and hike up some hill or steep stairs to reach the homes of these women while passing by an abundance of stray dogs. I was so tired and exhausted by the time we reached one home and I can only imagine what a pregnant woman would feel like having to basically hike down to get food, go to work, or to the clinic and then having to hike back up to get back home. The night before the outreach it had rainy and so the roads and pathways were muddy and my peers were slipping an falling left to right. It is dangerous for a pregnant women to have to walk in these conditions because one wrong step and she can slip and injure herself and her expecting baby. It was difficult trying to get a hold of some the expecting mothers because some where not home or did not open the door.

      We got a chance to go into a woman’s home to examine her newborn baby and make sure everything was okay. If the Padrino assess any type of risk factor, then he will advise the woman to make an appointment at the clinic. The Padrino is not a doctor but a public health officer that offers non-medical advice to expecting and new mothers. 

      As we were walking from home to home, we came across an elementary school where the Padrino decided to make a pit stop and ask the teachers if we can come in and do a talk on sex education to six graders. The teacher agreed and the Padrino, my peers and I delivered an impromptu lesson on menstruation, contraceptives, STDs and consent to two different six grade classrooms. I have had experience in the past delivering these types of lessons to young women from the ages of 11-18 but never have I lead a lesson without planning it and entirely in Spanish! I was surprised when suddenly the Pardino stopped talking to the class, turned to us and asked us to continue on for him! I was glad he did though because I learned that I do have the ability an go into a classroom and talk about important health related issues. Theses six graders were very mature and had a lot of previous knowledge on sex and I hope that they were able to take something valuable from our talk.

       One of the most humbling experiences that day was at the end when the teacher asked us to explain to the class what are career goals are. After we all had shared to the class, the kids asks numerous of questions about how school works and what they need to do to get where we are at. It had never occurred to me that I was now transitioning from being one of those kids looking into the future with ambition to being a leader and role model for young kids of color that hope to pursue a career however have been told that they will not amount to anything because of their ethnicity, gender or socioeconomic status as I was told. I hope that the kids will not be discouraged to pursue a career despite the cultural and social script that tells us otherwise.