Hey everyone,
Sorry I haven't been faithful to my Lent resolution, but luckily the reason for my delay has given me fodder for another post: what happens if you're sick.
So, the good news is I'm not really sick per se. I've torn my ACL (womp womp) which is something I always think of happening to really athletic people, so now I can stop pretending I'm going to start working out and still feel good about myself. Good news, my knee doesn't hurt and I can walk around fine, even if I can't show Ugandans how well American girls play football (soccer) -- I'll leave that to the other amazing women in my cohort. The next steps are still unclear, but I thought in the interim, while I have the internet of Kampala, it might be nice to write a quick blurb describing the Peace Corps Medical Office (PCMO) and how they handle illness/injury.
A disclaimer: I'm writing this without consulting any PC handbook or policy manual, so the following is based on my personal observations, but should not be taken as PC Policy, and my experiences may differ from that of other PCV's.
Based on my experience, Peace Corps covers your health care needs while you're in country. Before coming to country, we were instructed to bring enough prescription medication for 3 months while we get set-up in country. Then during PST, perhaps even as soon as the first week, PCMO held an individual, private consultation with each PCT and asked for a list of each person's prescriptions. After this consultation, we were given a Medical Kit (Med Kit) stocked full of medication (your standards: Tylenol/Advil, oral re-hydration salts, bandages, medical scissors and whistle, to name a few) and some other add-ons such as anti-malarial pills, at-home malaria tests, all of the mosquito repellent and sunscreen your heart could desire, and our requested prescriptions. We are given enough medication for roughly 3 months at a time, and then we are sent replacements / additional supplies every 3 months. We can request which medication we receive in our re-stock by emailing PCMO at any time, and, if we're in Kampala, we can pick-up extra medication then as well.
So overall, we're very well supplied when it comes to medication, which is why my parents received a lifetime of Advil and Tylenol mailed back to them very shortly after I arrived at staging. Which brings us to the inevitable: despite the best prevention, what happens when the inevitable happens and I find myself held hostage by my bowels or convinced I've contracted every viral disease known to (wo)man?
Call PCMO.
That is the mantra we are told ad nauseam (ha). What do you do when anything (and I mean anything) goes wrong?
Call PCMO.
Doesn't matter what time or what day, there is a medical duty phone that is assigned to a physician 24/7 that we are instructed to call in case of any medical questions or concerns.
Call PCMO.Call PCMO.Call PCMO.Call PCMO.Call PCMO.Call PCMO.Call PCMO.Call PCMO.Call PCMO.Call PCMO.Call PCMO.
Got it?
So after you call PCMO, they basically take over to get you back on your feet. If there's a concern it might be malaria or some illness/injury that requires more serious attention, you'll be instructed to head directly to Kampala: do not pass go, do not collect $200. If they suspect it's malaria, you'll also be instructed to take an at-home malaria test and, possibly, begin taking some additional medication. PCMO does not mess around with malaria.
My experience with PC Uganda is that our PCMO is staffed with professional, caring, and qualified doctors and nurses that administer a level of care with which I would be satisfied in the U.S. In fact, if I had to find one fault to find with PCMO it is that they are too cautious in their care -- not a bad flaw for your health staff to have.
For example, back to me (always, ha.), PC Uganda mandated that each PCV receive a personal visit from a PC doctor while at site in order to see volunteers "in their natural habitat" and become familiar with the medical care available at each volunteer's site. While a doctor was at my site, I mentioned there had been some pain in my knee. When I first brought it up, I basically dismissed it as nothing more than some stiffness from an agitated muscle, but figured I'd bring it up while the doctor was there. Despite finding no problems during in the at-home examination, the doctor told me that if I wanted it looked at more thoroughly, an MRI was an option. Deciding a more thorough examination couldn't hurt, the next morning, I was traveling by air-conditioned car to Kampala. The life of luxury.
Once in Kampala, I was taken to have an X-Ray and an MRI, brought to a local orthopedic specialist, and calls were put in to Washington for their opinion. It was a very thorough process. And, during all of this, I was always kept in the loop and treated with exceptional courtesy and professionalism. I've joked that you could join Peace Corps just for the medical care alone.
In short, if you get sick, you will be fine; in my experience I've found that Peace Corps will move Heaven and Earth to make sure you recover, even if it means sending you home to Washington.
As I've said, I'm not quite sure what the path to recovery looks like for me, but when I know, I shall keep you posted. For now, please accept this post as my apology for missing the last few weekends, and look forward to more posts soon.
In the mean time, please enjoy this picture of me sleeping in a bus with my cohort. #SlackJaw:
