Clinical Cultural Immersion: The Peru Experience

Student Narratives - 22 March 2006 - Allison Roane

We continue to learn, serve, and grow professionally and personally…

This past week in Peru proved to be a continuation of our learning experience.  Some members of our group were able to go on food delivery home visits.  Laura and Blair assisted with delivering meals that were prepared in the kitchen at the mission to needy families within the community.  The families that receive the food do not have running water, therefore they bring their containers to the van to be washed before they are filled.  It was fulfilling to see how grateful the people were who received food.

This past weekend, we were able to have an outing to the Colca Canyon, which is a beautiful area.  The canyon itself is nearly twice as deep as the Grand Canyon.  During the trip, we were able to enjoy swimming in the hot springs which are natural pools of water that are heated volcanically.  On Sunday, we rose early to be able to visit the Condor’s crossing.  Here we were able to see the juvenile condors flying directly above our heads. After visiting the crossing, we continued driving and stopped at many scenic lookout points where women were selling their homemade crafts including, hand embroidered purses, hats and other items.  Also during our travel, we were able to stop and see an Inca burial site on the mountain side.  These tombs were built into the mountain facing East. The Incas believed that when the first sun hit the tomb, it would guide their dead to the Milky Way.  Here the soul would spend three years walking leading them back to Earth eventually to live in nature. On this day, because of the change in altitude, we were able to experience rain, sun, hail, thunderstorms, snow and fog.

Monday, March 21st, four of us had the opportunity to visit both a private and a public hospital with Maria, the local social worker.  There was an obvious distinction between the two hospitals.  The public hospital did not approximate the standards that we see in public hospitals in North Carolina.  Patients were separated only according to gender.  There were male units and female units and each unit was an “open ward” with the capacity for approximately forty patients.  There were no curtains or partitions to provide privacy.  This was difficult to comprehend because we are taught early in our studies the importance of privacy especially in a hospital setting. 

The private hospital was strikingly similar to hospitals in the United States.  Unfortunately, the majority of the population cannot afford the luxury of the private hospital.  Even the nurses who work in the private hospital cannot afford care in the facility.  The only people who can manage the high prices for care in the private facilities are doctors, business men, and engineers.  We were saddened to acknowledge this somber fact.  However, Father Alex has successfully negotiated the construction of a hospital in Alto Cayma that is expected to be fully operational within five years.  This will provide valuable services to the people of this community.

Sincerely,

The Alpacas and The Condors

Photos

Blair assisting church volunteers in a community member’s house

One of the juvenile condors we saw flying overhead

Most of the students at one of the lookout points

Erin C. and Blair

Taken during our drive back to the mission from Colca Canyon

One of the courtyards at the public hospital

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Please check the website each Monday and Wednesday for newly posted written and pictorial accounts of the students' experiences.