Guest post by Dr. Michael Boroditsky, Ob/Gyn
I recently returned from my first Canadian Red Cross deployment in Nepal. On a routine Friday in July, I was in the operating room with a colleague, an anaesthetist who was with the first Canadian Red Cross team that went to Nepal immediately after the devastating earthquake of April 24, 2015. He had just received an urgent email asking if anyone was aware of an obstetrician gynecologist interested in a rapid deployment to an emergency field hospital the rural area of Dhunche in Northeastern Nepal. To make this brief - three days later I was on my way to Kathmandu.
Although I was the one deploying, it would not have happened without many family and friends helping me at home. A number of my colleagues took over my clinics and maternity calls, my assistant came in from her holidays to contact my patients and re-schedule some appointments, and even my father, who is also a gynecologist, agreed to cover my Operating Room slate later that week.. I am greatly appreciative for them allowing me to have the opportunity.
Once in Nepal the first thing I remember is what is called the “dancing road to Dhunche”. It sounds fun, but actually it is far from it. The “dancing” refers to your car jumping around at 10 km/hour while scaling the edge of a rocky cliff in the Himalayas. Fortunately I had the cool expertise of the local driver, Shohan, to get me there safe and sound. For that I am ever grateful.
I had many unique experiences for a gynecologist from Canada. The very first person I saw on ward rounds was a young boy healing from a pit viper snakebite. I don’t remember that chapter in my obstetrical hand book! The people of Dhunche impressed me each day. They were living under such adversity and hardship, but were always appreciative when you listened and offered a comforting hand. The other delegates made me feel very welcome. I was the newbie on the block and was quickly impressed by the dedication and passion of everyone that was part of the Canadian Red Cross Emergency Response Unit (ERU). It truly was amazing observing them collaborate with the local staff and offer assistance and care in every situation.
Although my time was short in Dhunche, it was not without lasting effect. I experienced things, which, although they have happened in Canada, are different in Nepal. For example, resting a term infant in a mother’s arms a mere two hours after birth, knowing it will die and not knowing why; revealing to a patient she has end-stage cancer and there is nothing you can do for her. These situations seem to be an accepted part of life in Dhunche.
However, the proudest and saddest times in Dhunche were both as a result of the same event. My last day there was definitely one of the hardest. A young pregnant first-time mother arrived at the ERU very sick and suffering from eclampsia (a life-threatening complication of pregnancy which causes a woman to develop seizures and/or results in a coma). The Canadian Red Cross delegates worked impressively to stabilize her and her baby, but we knew there was only so much we can do in the ERU. At this point The Canadian Red Cross stood tall, and without any hesitation, arranged an air transfer of this young mother and her baby to Kathmandu. A transfer, as you can imagine, is no easy task.
The leaders took this task head on and made every effort to try and save this mother and child. I transferred in a British Aid helicopter with the young mother only half-conscious and unmonitored to Kathmandu Maternity Hospital. The grandmother was by my side and the father had to sit at my feet. We were in the only helicopter we could find.
I truly believe if it was not for the Canadian Red Cross the baby would have had no chance at all. But it deeply saddens me to say that after great effort both the mother and child succumbed and passed away later that week in Kathmandu.
This outcome is not what anyone desired but it gave me great pride to call myself a delegate of the Canadian Red Cross. I have been a financial supporter for a number of years, but to see with my own eyes how these funds are used only solidified my ongoing support.
I recently returned from my first Canadian Red Cross deployment in Nepal. On a routine Friday in July, I was in the operating room with a colleague, an anaesthetist who was with the first Canadian Red Cross team that went to Nepal immediately after the devastating earthquake of April 24, 2015. He had just received an urgent email asking if anyone was aware of an obstetrician gynecologist interested in a rapid deployment to an emergency field hospital the rural area of Dhunche in Northeastern Nepal. To make this brief - three days later I was on my way to Kathmandu.
Although I was the one deploying, it would not have happened without many family and friends helping me at home. A number of my colleagues took over my clinics and maternity calls, my assistant came in from her holidays to contact my patients and re-schedule some appointments, and even my father, who is also a gynecologist, agreed to cover my Operating Room slate later that week.. I am greatly appreciative for them allowing me to have the opportunity.
Once in Nepal the first thing I remember is what is called the “dancing road to Dhunche”. It sounds fun, but actually it is far from it. The “dancing” refers to your car jumping around at 10 km/hour while scaling the edge of a rocky cliff in the Himalayas. Fortunately I had the cool expertise of the local driver, Shohan, to get me there safe and sound. For that I am ever grateful.
I had many unique experiences for a gynecologist from Canada. The very first person I saw on ward rounds was a young boy healing from a pit viper snakebite. I don’t remember that chapter in my obstetrical hand book! The people of Dhunche impressed me each day. They were living under such adversity and hardship, but were always appreciative when you listened and offered a comforting hand. The other delegates made me feel very welcome. I was the newbie on the block and was quickly impressed by the dedication and passion of everyone that was part of the Canadian Red Cross Emergency Response Unit (ERU). It truly was amazing observing them collaborate with the local staff and offer assistance and care in every situation.
Although my time was short in Dhunche, it was not without lasting effect. I experienced things, which, although they have happened in Canada, are different in Nepal. For example, resting a term infant in a mother’s arms a mere two hours after birth, knowing it will die and not knowing why; revealing to a patient she has end-stage cancer and there is nothing you can do for her. These situations seem to be an accepted part of life in Dhunche.
However, the proudest and saddest times in Dhunche were both as a result of the same event. My last day there was definitely one of the hardest. A young pregnant first-time mother arrived at the ERU very sick and suffering from eclampsia (a life-threatening complication of pregnancy which causes a woman to develop seizures and/or results in a coma). The Canadian Red Cross delegates worked impressively to stabilize her and her baby, but we knew there was only so much we can do in the ERU. At this point The Canadian Red Cross stood tall, and without any hesitation, arranged an air transfer of this young mother and her baby to Kathmandu. A transfer, as you can imagine, is no easy task.The leaders took this task head on and made every effort to try and save this mother and child. I transferred in a British Aid helicopter with the young mother only half-conscious and unmonitored to Kathmandu Maternity Hospital. The grandmother was by my side and the father had to sit at my feet. We were in the only helicopter we could find.
I truly believe if it was not for the Canadian Red Cross the baby would have had no chance at all. But it deeply saddens me to say that after great effort both the mother and child succumbed and passed away later that week in Kathmandu.
This outcome is not what anyone desired but it gave me great pride to call myself a delegate of the Canadian Red Cross. I have been a financial supporter for a number of years, but to see with my own eyes how these funds are used only solidified my ongoing support.
