Blog Description

This past summer I went on a 6 week medical observational internship in Ghana, Africa with the Abusua Foundation (an NGO run out of Ghana). I went to gain experience in a hospital and see if medicine is really what I want to do with my life. I lived in the small village of Kwaprow, in the coastal fishing town of Cape Coast. I worked in two hospitals: Cape Coast District (smaller, less modern)and Central Regional (larger, more modern). I also taught English and Science to young children of my village at the BCL after-school program.

While there, I wrote a journal about my experiences in the hospital, teaching at the after-school program, and general life in Ghana. Since being home, some people have expressed an interest in reading the journal, so I figured the easiest thing to do was to post the journal here for anyone who is interested in reading it. Any patient names mentioned have been changed to ensure confidentiality.

It should be noted that because this is a blog site, the postings are in reverse order of when they occurred (which I can't change). So, to read the entries in order you should start from the oldest posts at the bottom of this page.

About Ghana
Ghana is a coastal country in West Africa. The national language of Ghana is English. The capital of Ghana is Accra. Ghana is considered the safest country in Africa (according to global peace index; see Global Peace Index map at the bottom). In terms of development, Ghana is ranked in the middle tier of African countries and 152 out of 182 in the world by the Human Development Index.

Monetary exchange:
$1.40 CAN = 1 Cedi, 1 Cedi = 100 Pesewas





July 5, 2010

Today was my first day at Cape Coast District Hospital (CCDH; Figure 12), the hospital I will be an intern at for the next 6 weeks. CCDH is located on beautiful beach-front property (Figure 13). CCDH has a male, female, paediatric, maternity, and isolated (for easily transmitted diseases, such as tuberculosis (TB)) ward. There is also an out-patient department (OPD; where patients are seen first then admitted later to a ward if it is serious), family planning center (for pre-and post-natal care), mortuary, and eye and dental clinics. There are also two operating theatres.


Figure 12. Cape Coast District Hospital (CCDH).
Figure 13. Beach-front view of CCDH.
I started in the paediatric ward, following the doctor on rounds as he examined patients.  The mothers and children spoke only Fante (the local language) for the most part, so the doctor spoke to them in their language, which made it difficult for me to understand the exchange.  In coming to Ghana, a country in which the national language is English, I hoped to avoid a language barrier.  Hopefully, future exchanges between doctors and patients will not be restricted to the local language.
On my first day, the nurses showed me how to take vitals.  Vitals that are measured are: temperature, pulse rate, respiratory rate, and blood pressure (for adults only).  Temperature is measured by a thermometer under the armpit for 3 minutes.  Pulse rate is taken by checking the pulse for 1 minute.  Respiratory rate is taken by noting the number of breathes in a minute.  Blood pressure is taken using a Sphygmomanometer (apparatus with inflatable cuff).  The nurses were extremely friendly and had a good sense of humour.   
The doctor told me the typical daily routine of the hospital.  Doctors do ward rounds (patient re-evaluation) in the morning between 8:30 and 10:00 A.M. , then go to the OPD for a couple hours.  The afternoon is reserved for any special procedures, such as surgery.  One doctor remains on call throughout the night in case of any emergencies.  Doctors may also be required to visit rural clinics a few hours each week.    
For the nurses, their jobs are to monitor patient conditions, administer medications, and ensure comfort of the patient.   Patient vitals are continually checked every 4 hours (unlike in Canada there are no machines to constantly measure vitals).  At 1 P.M., the medications are administered.  In the afternoon patients are washed by the nurses.  The rest of the day and night, nurses oversee the patients.  If unable to eat, patients are fed by the nurses.  The hospital provides three meals a day, which can be purchased by the patient.  Patients may also eat food that is brought by family members.
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