May 30, 2013: Corpus Christi in Brazil

Inter UFG!

Today, the feast of Corpus Christi which is a national holiday here, I attended the opening games of Inter UFG. The games are held at an athletic club near the college and the students attend the games all day. We watched basketball, soccer, handball, footvolley, and futsal. When we were entering the club, the first sounds you could hear were the drums from the night before and I was so tired since we didn’t arrive home until 5:00 AM that I did not know how I was going to survive listening to them all day! But, it ended up being really cool to hear. The students use the drums to cheer for their teams on the field/court and so have some very sophisticated cheers (though I cannot be sure that the words are not a little vulgar…). Part of the day after watching the soccer game, we spent with our rear ends wet because someone thought it would be a good idea if we sat on the field next to the one in which the game was being played. It was not….

After we watched the soccer game...

May 29, 2013: Final Day at Maternidade Nascer Cidadao

Maria

Jeany

Sylvia

My last day at Maternidade Nascer Cidadao began as every other day does: I woke up and got dressed, ate breakfast with my host parents Tiana and Carlos Roberto, and then Tiana drove me to the hospital. But today, on the way there, we stopped at her cousin Claudia’s home to pick up some cupcakes that she made for me to take with me to the hospital for my last day. When I arrived at the hospital, I changed into my scrubs and the nurses gave me an update about the three patients we had. I was assigned to accompany one woman, twenty-three-year-old Patricia, through labor. She was laboring very well and progressing quickly but by noon, she and her mother were both very anxious to know when baby Isadora would be born. At eight centimeters and in lot of pain, it was very difficult to reason with Patricia that no one knew exactly what time her baby would arrive. Though she and the baby were both perfectly normal under the circumstances, Patricia and her mother both began to ask for the doctor or a nurse every time a contraction arrived. Then when Patricia’s husband arrived as well, he was so anxious that he yelled at me (all in Portuguese even after I explained to him that I needed him to speak slowly for me to understand him). Finally, after a slow and frustrating afternoon, I helped deliver Patricia’s healthy baby girl around 5:00 PM. However, 5:00 PM became the time for everyone to have their babies! At that time, we had three other patients besides Patricia and two of them also delivered. One had her baby minutes before while another had her baby minutes after! All in all, it was a very exciting last day which lasted almost eleven hours at the hospital. When I said my goodbyes, it was harder than I expected because I made so many wonderful friends in my first month here. Everyone has welcomed me with open arms and much patience. I have learned so much about obstetric medicine and Brazilian culture. And, everyone loved the cupcakes!

Karlla and Luciana

Interns Paulo and Rodolfo

In total at Maternidade Nascer Cidadao:
25 births (I assisted in 5 of 25)

    4 Cesarean sections
    21 Natural births
1 Tubal Ligation

Too many baths to count

Countless friends and memories

Much better Portuguese

                 

Mom Patricia and Grandma are so happy to finally meet Isadora!

Baby Isadora and I after her delivery

My host sisters and I dressed in black and orange, the colors of Medicina

After my last day, tonight we attended the opening of Inter UFG, an intra-collegiate music/sports tournament held by the Universitario Federal de Goias (UFG; in this case intra-collegiate means between the different departments of UFG). The opening night, beginning around 11:00 PM consists of a percussion competition. Each department of UFG has their own percussion ensemble and each ensemble prepares an eight to twelve minute long presentation. The Medicina Department’s band is called Madrasta and it is the largest ensemble of all the departments. It has ninety people while the others generally have about forty-five. Each band played for the judges with the crowd all standing around them, everyone waiting for his department to play to squeeze to the front of the crowd so it was possible to see the action because the ensembles usually prepared some cool dance steps with their beats as well. Since Madrasta was thirteenth of fourteen, while we were waiting, at about 1:00 AM, I learned how to dance Samba as many of the bands use Samba rhythms. For those of you that know how coordinated I am, I am sure you can picture how funny this was for everyone watching! I am terrible, but it was fun to learn and attempt to dance like all the Brazilians. When Madrasta played at nearly 3:00 AM, my friends and I finally made it to the front of the crowd and were able to see the band play and do their dance steps expertly. Standing so closely, you could literally feel the beats of the drums through your body! It was so loud! And, the best part was that Madrasta won, kicking off Inter UFG with a surge of energy for Medicina.

My dance teachers! :)

 

Madrasta has forty tambourine players

The great dance moves that accompanied Madrasta's performance

At the end of the song, the players lined up to bow for the judges.

Celebrating the end of the song and a lot of hard work

Wearing the Madrasta hats while waiting for the results

At the end of the competition, we had to run back to the car in the rain! It was pouring which is strange because the weather is usually very dry at this time of year.

May 28, 2013: Day 16 at Maternidade Nascer Cidadao

Today was a little slow at the hospital but I visited but I was able to visit the baby I helped deliver yesterday! She was so cute and both she and her mother are happy and healthy.

Then tonight, the whole family came over for dinner. The women made lasagna and I made chocolate chip cookies! Everyone was so full but it was so much fun. I have been welcomed into the family and everyone loves to hear me speak in Portuguese (well attempt to speak). They have even shown me old family photos. 

Lasagna in progress

Lasagna complete!! It was so good. One is with beef and ham and the other is with chicken.

The chefs of the evening. My host mother is in the middle.

The youngest members of the family shared their pop rock candy with me.

Chocolate chip cookies from the package I brought from home.

Everyone was so impressed by how easy it is to make the cookies.

May 24, 2013: Holiday of Nossa Senhora Auxiliadora

In Goiania, the city where I am living here, May 24 is a holiday to honor padroeira de Goiania, Nossa Senhora Auxiliadora (Goiania's patron saint, Our Lady of Help). Therefore, many people do not have to work or go to school, and thus, travel. My family went to a place called Hot Park in a city about 2 hours away called Caldas Novas. Caldas Novas is famous for its natural hot springs and it has a natural hot-water river, the Rio Quente, that runs through it as well. Hot Park is a club that has many swimming pools, water slides and even mini-golf. It takes advantage of the hot water from the Rio Quente and there is even a section of the park where patrons can feel the river, rent kayaks, and feed the many, many fish that bask there. We went to Hot Park to enjoy the wave pools and people watch. It was wonderful to jump in the waves, relax, and spend time in the sun. On the way home in the car, all of us were sleeping except the driver!

This is a traffic jam in which we were stuck on the way to Caldas Novas. Notice that the road is not a highway, but two lanes and that all the traffic is going the same direction as we are.

The state of Goias, of which my city here, Goiania, is the capital, is a cerrado. This is a tropical savannah which has beautiful scenery and consists of many rising hills and scrubby trees in tall grass. There is a lot of corn and soy beans grown here, much like in Michigan, but there is also a lot of sugar cane grown here to make ethanol.

This section of the Hot Park has a restaurant in the middle of the warm pool. The scenery in the background is beautiful.

The Rio Quente (translation: Hot River) with some kayakers

These are a few of the inhabitants of the Rio Quente. We saw two types of fish--the small ones were called caranha and the big ones were called pirarucu. The pirarucu were long like eels almost, but they had scales that looked like dinosaurs!

This is a much better picture of the scales on the pirarucu.

Feeding the fish with my host father while standing in the warm water was so nice.

Let's go fishing!

The River Quente in the Hot Park even has a place to go snorkeling.

May 22, 2013: Day 13 at Maternidade Nascer Cidadao

 The total number of births that I have seen at Maternidade Nascer Cidadao rose to twenty-three today! This includes four cesareans and nineteen natural births. I have also learned a lot of Portuguese, so much that the nurses have begun to tell me that by the end of three months here, I will return the the United States speaking Portuguese fluently.

I visited Erique today and got to hold him. He and his mother are both doing very well and will go home tomorrow. I also said goodbye to Isabela, a beautiful baby girl born on Monday, and her mother and grandmother as they were leaving the hospital. 

Erique and I, the day after he was born

Obstetric nurse Diego and I say goodbye to Isabela as she is leaving the hospital.

May 21, 2013: Day 12 at Maternidade Nascer Cidadao

Today at Maternidade Nascer Cidadao was very busy! There were many natural deliveries this morning and many cesarean sections this afternoon. I saw four births total today, two natural births and two cesarean sections. For one of the natural births, I was able to help with the delivery. I caught the baby's head when it came out, helped the nurse guide the rest of his body out, and handed him to his mother. The nurse also let me cut his umbilical cord. Erique was born at 10:27 A.M. and when he was born, he looked like he was smiling. It was so adorable! I was really impressed by Erique's birth because his mother was very calm for the whole process. She was admitted to the hospital already in very strong labor and progressed very quickly. She was accompanied by a doula and was very focused and alert. When Erique was born she was so happy and was really able to enjoy the moment. It is also interesting to note that once again, there was no doctor present. There were only Obstetric nurses and interns, which is evidence of the shortage of Obstetricians here.

I also was very excited to help with Erique's birth because this week new interns arrived at the hospital. Today was their second day and having been working there for a couple of weeks now, I was glad to be able to answer their questions about how things are usually accomplished. Thankfully, they speak English as well!

Tonight, after work I made chocolate chip cookies at home. It was so much fun and my host family was very impressed at how easy it was. I brought a package of cookie mix with me to make them since you cannot buy the mix here. 

May 19, 2013: A weekend of culture

This weekend has been full of many cultural experiences. I have learned so much about Goiania and some of its main attractions!

Friday evening/Saturday morning: Pequaria

The strange, enormous cows

Friday night I went to Pequaria. Pequaria is like the "County Fair" of Goiania, except that it is in the middle of a big city. It has animals and concerts and food, just like a normal fair, but then, it also has restaurants and bars and night clubs! It is like a miniature city within Goiania with a peculiar love for plaid. Yes, everyone who goes to pequaria wears plaid and/or cow boy boots. When I was there, we took a lovely tour through a cow barn and witnessed a strange kind of cow that Goiania has (they are raised for their beef). This breed of cow has a hump on its back like a camel and they are so large! After that, we went to a sertanejo concert and saw Israel and Rodolfo, followed by Lucas Lucco. Finally, we danced for a while before returning to the PitTico around 3:00 am where we ate the X-Tudo the other night. This time however, I got a much smaller version of the sandwich!

The concert in Pequaria

Sunday morning: Hippie Fair

 The hippie fair with my host parents

The Hippie Fair is where my host parents work. Every Sunday morning they go there to sell the clothes that they make. It is quite an adventure and so hot. This type of fair has many versions, but I was told that this one for clothes is the biggest hippie fair in South America!

Sunday afternoon: Goias v. Atletico Soccer Game

The soccer game was also quite a great experience. It was the championship for the state of Goias' first division. We had to find tickets once we got to the stadium and there were so many people in line that we did not make it in the stadium for the beginning of the game. And, getting into the stadium was a battle! People were pushing in every direction and I was literally pushed through the gate. There were 30,000 people there! Luckily Goias, the team we were cheering for won, but it was close! Goias tied the game with five minutes to go and then won the championship with the tied score, since they were ahead in the bracket. I thought I might melt in the heat but it was fun to see the fans and feel the excitement.

 Vai Goias! GOOOLLLL!

May 17, 2013: Day 10 at Maternidade Nascer Cidadao

After a very interesting course in Shantala today as well as eleven hours at the hospital, I have seen sixteen births in two weeks--four cesarean sections and twelve natural births. Shantala is a series of massage techniques for babies to be used by the parents to promote healthy living and bonding between the baby and massage-giver.

Our lovely model baby, Ana Beatrice, and her mother following the instructions of teacher, Sister Ellen, to demonstrate Shantala

Ana Beatrice meets the other baby in the class (yes it is a doll)

Ana Beatrice and I! Such a happy baby!

After the class, in which I met some of the new interns with whom  I will be working, I caught a second baby today. This one was a girl and I happened to be in the room when her mother realized that her head was coming! By the time the doctor arrived, the head was out but the rest of the baby got stuck (I guess I should mention that this baby was rather large...) so I had the privilege of leaning all of my body weight on the mother's belly while the doctor delivered the rest of the baby. What a crazy few minutes! However, both mother and baby are happy and healthy and should be able to go home on Sunday. It is also interesting to note that this is the first baby I have seen here that did not have a mass of dark hair on her head. She was, in fact like many American babies, bald.

May 15, 2013: Day 8 at Maternidade Nascer Cidadao

Today it was my pleasure to visit baby Samuel and his mother after helping with Samuel's delivery yesterday. 

Both mom and baby are doing very well after the birth and should be ready to go home tomorrow morning.

May 14, 2013: Day 7 at Maternidade Nascer Cidadao

Today the number of births I have seen at Maternidade Nascer Cidadao rose to twelve. The best part is that for the twelfth, I helped catch the baby as he was born after remaining with his mother as a doula for the majority of her labor. On Saturday, I took a class at the hospital for doulas (women who assist other women during labor, helping ease pain, promote productive breathing, and provide communication for the patient to the doctors and nurses). I was grateful that today I could test what I learned. It is very difficult since I only know how to say a few things in Portuguese that have to do with labor! Overall, it was an 
excellent experience, even though it kept me at the
hospital for almost twelve hours.

 One of the directors of Maternidade Nascer Cidadao spoke at the doula class on Saturday regarding the purpose of having doulas during the birthing process.

I made some new friends at the doula class.

I also will mention the crazy sandwich I had for dinner tonight because it is very popular in Goiania. It was called X-Tudo. It is a thick bun that has a piece of hamburger with bacon, sausage, corn, lettuce, tomato, cheese, and potato sticks on it. I have no idea how I even fit it in my mouth, but it was so delicious!!

Finally, after dinner I met some more of my host family's extended family. Tonight I met my host mother's side of the family after meeting my host father's side of the family over the weekend. Both halves of the family are lovely and so welcoming. Also, there are so many of them that I fit right in.

    

 This is the X-Tudo that I tackled!    

May 10, 2013: Day 5 at Maternidade Nascer Cidadao, End of Week 1

Me with the Directors of the Maternidade Nascer Cidadao (in my scrubs!) 

and one of the doulas who will be having her own baby in a few months.

This week I have seen a total of eight births, given baths, taken many fetal heartbeats, and tomorrow I am attending a doula class for the community at Maternidade Nascer Cidadao (it's in Portuguese though so hopefully I understand some of it).

One thing I learned today that was striking was that Brazil has a lack of obstetricians. At this hospital, unless there is a major problem, the births are attended by obstetric nurses and interns from the universities in the city, which is much different than in the United States. Maternidade Nascer Cidadao only has three obstetric doctors who also all have their own practices at other locations. I also was told that the hospital very recently had to discontinue its prenatal care because it did not have enough staff and the doctors did not have enough time. Therefore, the women are forced to go to the public health clinics in the city for prenatal care which do not have doctors or money either. Despite this though, everyone is willing to teach me whatever they are doing and share whatever they have. Obrigada por tudo!