Discoveries
in country
+ Thoughts
Home is where the heart is
Home Visit
After landing less than 24 hours ago, we were already in the mix of things. In St. Marks, we journeyed door to door and asked the community's members if they wanted to have their blood pressure and blood sugar assessed as well as have a breast exam. Shocked at the disparity in health education and compliance, I walked away with more than just excellent glucose monitoring skills...
I walked away from each home with an understanding of the bigger picture patient model.
The holistic nursing patient model does not cease to only look at the diagnosis and treatment plan. The holistic nursing model sees the patient through a systems-approach lens in which barriers to optimal emotional, spiritual, physical, and mental wellbeing are assessed and discussed. During these home visits, we were able to practice this model of nursing care. I talked about topics ranging from financial obstacles to food scarcity to cultural norms that surrounded this rural Grenadian village.
Service Learning
Golden Ages Center
Women's Health Symposium
Service learning is a teaching method that integrates meaningful service to the community with curriculum-based learning. In a city called Grenville, we met the a group of delightful "golden aged" community members at a senior center. Susan and I were able to present the group with pertinent information on ovarian cancer. We handed our pamphlets, which we had constructed in our pre-travel time, and discussed symptom detection, preventative measures, and risk factors. It was exciting and relieving to see all of the audience members engaged and leaning in. After each of our teams presentations, we performed basic health assessments on each adult which included.
This was an incredible experience because
health education is a core
nursing role in both of our
healthcare systems.
Grenada Red Cross
We were able to provide basic healthcare for the Grenadian Disability Association at a clinic hosted by the Red Cross. At this clinical site I discovered how much language matters in the interview process. Language is the very means by which health interviews are conveyed. A language barrier is often implicated in less than optimal patient care and outcomes.
Upon receiving an extremely high blood pressure reading on my first patient, I asked her whether she had ever been diagnosed with high blood pressure. She quickly replied "no." However, during further questioning about her medications, she said she had a medication for “pressure." As I reflect on the situation, it is possible that the woman couldn’t understand my American accent and denied having high blood pressure. Through this experience, I learned to rephrase questions to my patients to receive a more accurate, well-rounded, thorough health history.
My view of Grenadian culture changed today because I was able to see such a marginalized population and how they desperately needed medical attention. They are probably the most underserved population because there aren’t as many resources for disabled individuals within the healthcare structure.
Many disabled Grenadian’s have HTN and uncontrolled diabetes as well as poor dental health. However, these people are genuinely seeking guidance, support, empowerment,
and help which in my opinion, is different from what we see in the US.
This was a great intergenerational clinical experience because we saw patients from age 3 to age 70.
Grenadian Disability Association
Health Fair
Kidney Foundation
Downtown st. Georges
Our first health fair was hosted on behalf of the Kidney Foundation of Grenada in effort to bring awareness to Kidney health on March 9th, World Kidney Day. In the busiest, most central part of Grenada, we saw over 400 individuals in a matter of a few hours. Our team collaborated with other volunteers to provide eye sight, BMI, blood sugar, blood pressure, and breast exams at no cost.
This health fair tested our flexibility, patience, and teamwork but each of us walked away more confident with patient interaction and nursing skills.
Grenville, St. Andrew Parish
Our second health fair in Grenville was hosted on behalf of UF College of Nursing (us!) and our partnership with the St. George's University nursing program. This health fair took place inside a primary school house and our patient population ranged from young mothers with little children to elderly gentlemen. We performed similar assessments as our first health fair as well as including informational pamphlets on various health conditions like diabetes mellitus, hypertension, congestive heart failure, etc. We also had a kids booth where a craft station was set up and a dental care section where we switched out teaching patients about dental hygiene.
At the end of the fair, we sat in a circle with St. George's nurses and discussed what we learned from each other, which was that...
We may have different ways of
assessing patients; however,
at our core we are all nurses
and our compassionate heart
for others unites us.
