Last week in India…

Aaaah, I can’t believe I’m posting this already!  My time here has gone far too fast 😦

This last week I’ve stayed in A&E, the head consultant there is just amazing, he clearly loves his job and his enthusiasm is infectious. On Monday one patient was admitted bleeding out of everywhere. All three doctors and about six nurses had started working on him when his med files appeared on the desk and revealed he was HIV positive. The staff leapt away from the bed like they had been electrocuted. Up till now, the use of gloves was inconsistent but they took all the right steps… double gloves, surgical masks, aprons, the lot.  If you could see a before and after picture of this guy you would not believe it. He was in such a bad way when he came in but five minutes later the doctors had stopped the bleeding, removed clots from his trachea, totally cleaned him up and put him on a ventilator.  It was amazing to watch.

Unfortunately, not everyone was so lucky this week and there were several deaths. There are a lot more cardiovascular problems in India than I had expected. I reckon 50% of patients admitted to the A&E dept had suffered an acute M.I. and I’ve also seen a lot of meningitis/septic shock and tuberculosis.

We were expecting another volunteer to arrive on Monday but she’s yet to turn up so she’s probably been placed in another house. Two girls from London arrived unexpectedly on Tuesday. This week saw Esther go to Agra for three days and yesterday we (Esther, Jenna & I) went shopping in and around the temple. I managed to pick up a cabin-size sports bag f0r Rs 160 and it is completely full, mostly with fabric and jewellery!

So other than the clothes I’m wearing and my toiletries, I’m now completely packed. I’ve reconfirmed my Air India flights but the Jet Airways line seems to be permanently engaged. I’m glad the journey home is much faster than the journey out but I’m praying for no delays anywhere…  I have less than 2 hours after landing in Heathrow to collect my bag, go through customs (I’m expecting to be stopped), change terminals, check-in, get through security and board the plane to Glasvegas. Esther & Jenna left for an organized P.A. trip to Ooty this morning so I’ve already done the worst of the goodbyes! Today I packed, cleaned my room and wandered around the house taking photos. Later Geeta (my host mother) is going to put some more henna on my hands and then after thaat I’m just going to chill out and read.

It’s going to be very odd coming home but I can’t wait to see everyone. It really has been the trip of a life-time but I’m already planning my trip back here next summer :p However, I am very much looking forward to friends, family, my animals and NO RICE FOR A MONTH.

See y’all soon!

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