Whats New?

It has been a while...........so there is much to say! Lets see....

Pictures above: 1.the code room in the clinic, 2.Elaine in her exam room,
3.Sebastien and David, both nurses, with a patient and her child.

I was on call for the first time last Saturday. And I got lucky, because I was called in by the mid wives who informed me that there was a patient in active labour. Here in Inukjuak, the midwife must call the nurse on call when a patient is ready to push, just in case of complications. I was fortunate to be able to participate in my first labour and delivery, and it was a beautiful baby boy! It was quite an experience, and luckily all went well (all I had to do was watch). I was not even upset that the call came at 11:30 pm, right after I had climbed into bed. It was definitely worth missing some sleep!

The social life has been busy. There seems to be either a dinner at someones house, or a game night, or some sport going on at the arena. Already this week, I went out to someones house for a dinner party, played scrabble (in french!!!) with a group of nurses (and came in 2nd!!), and tomorrow I was invited to a pot luck at another nurses house. I decided to make a mexican dip as my dish to bring. It had to be something easy, because I am on call, and it is quite possible that I will not have time to make anything, or have no time to eat, depending on how busy it gets. The dip ingredients cost a total of 30$!!!!!! Can you believe it? And all it consists of is cream cheese, salsa, taco seasoning and cheddar cheese, with nacho chips. I nearly fell over at the cash!!!!! Anyways, it will all worth it.

Work is going well. I still ask a hundred questions a day! I will be starting my official replacement of Elaine at the end of next week. That means I will take over her duties at the clinic. She is responsible for vaccinations, which is a huge task. I fill out the vaccination calendars for all the children in the village. I follow the Canada health regulations for when each vaccine should be given, at what age, how many doses, and with what intervals between each dose. I make a list each week of which children need to be called in to the clinic for their vaccines. I order the vaccines, and check the "cold chain" when they arrive, which means I need to verify if the temperature of the vaccine stayed between 2 and 8 degrees during shipment. I verify the vaccine fridge twice a day to ensure the proper temperature is maintained. It is a little overwhelming, especially since it is flu vaccine season and there are a lot of statistic papers that the health board wants. Oh yeah, this is work I need to do on Monday and Friday mornings, because I participate in the regular clinic every afternoon, and also do blood clinic, medication refills, and well baby clinic on Tuesday to Thursday mornings. So, I think that work days will be busy and pass fast.

Things have been better, and the home sickness had died down a bit. I have been speaking to friends and family regularly through Skype and on the phone. Thank you to all of my friends who have been sending emails. Contact from home always brings a smile to my face. I got a great care package from my parents, which made my week. Lots of food, and a hair dryer (badly needed!). There is nothing like opening a parcel that has been long anticipated, and knowing that someone who loves me has put in a lot of effort to make me happy. Thanks Mom and Dad! Love you!!!!!!!!!!

I have received the dates for my next contract already. I will return to Inukjuak from January 21st to March 30th. I look forward to being in this same village for a second term. It will make packing easier, because I will leave a lot here. Both my roommates leave this week, and I look forward to living alone for the rest of my stay. I miss my privacy like crazy!! Well, that's all for now, chat soon xxoo