I Felt Like I Was Doing MacGyver Medicine - MSF Doctor

News24 ^ | Oct 14, 2014

[Covenantor]

I Felt Like I Was Doing MacGyver Medicine - MSF Doctor

Johannesburg - Lack of equipment in Ebola-stricken countries is forcing doctors to improvise as they try to administer much needed healthcare, Medicines Sans Frontieres (MSF - Doctors Without Borders) staff said on Tuesday.

"I had to do a blood transfusion on a child using a syringe," paediatrician Dr Julia Switala told reporters in Johannesburg.

"I have seen and done things I never thought I would do. It felt like I was doing MacGyver medicine," she said referring to the resourceful television character.

Switala said she spent four months in Sierra Leone where she had initially worked at a children's hospital which had to be changed to an Ebola centre due to the high rate of infections, and transmission of the virus.

At least 18 South African doctors working for MSF have been assigned to work in West Africa as part of MSF's international Ebola response.

According to French news agency AFP the Ebola virus outbreak has already killed more than 4 000 people, mostly in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone.

Underfunded health systems in West Africa have been crippled by the virus, which has spiralled out of control and infected 7 400 people since the beginning of the year.

Switala was among a group of four doctors sharing their experiences of being at the centre of the outbreak and the fight against the virus.

She described the problems doctors faced in the three countries. Apart from the lack of resources, cultural practices were contributing to the spread of the virus.

"Cultural practices make it very difficult to manage the outbreak. Funerals there involve a lot of touching," she said.

‘Gripped by fear’

Switala added that communities were gripped by fear. She described her experience in Sierra Leone as being like a waiter on the sinking Titanic.

"One moment you want to serve the soup hot while at the same time the water is up to your knees and you have to scoop it out," she said.

She questioned the number of deaths being reported and said it could be higher. Switala added that with many families living in fear and hiding bodies, it was difficult to ascertain the correct figure.

"If it is 4 000 people, think about the people that they have come into contact with," she said.

Switala also spoke about the tough decisions they had to make while working in West Africa.

She said some hospitals were abandoned by staff and patients for fear of Ebola. She said they kept on working but the risk of Ebola transmission during emergency births where there was bleeding, was high.

"Ebola has also meant our team had to take the toughest decision yet - to stop resuscitating children because the risk is too great of a potentially Ebola-sickened child's vomit or saliva infecting the few nurses and doctors."

She said the world had to unite and called on South Africans to assist in the fight against the spread of the virus.

Health problems

Until Ebola could be brought under control, other medical conditions would remain unattended.

"We have to beat Ebola first before we can get back to dealing with the massive health problems," she said.

Medical team leader Jens Pedersen who spent four weeks in Monrovia, Liberia, said doctors were overwhelmed by what they experienced.

He said as much as they tried to curb the spread of the virus, they always found themselves two steps behind.

He spoke about the frustrations experienced by doctors.

"Everything takes longer. It takes two to three times to do anything as compared to a hospital," he said.

He appealed to all the people who made promises to make available funds and resources to keep their promise to ensure the outbreak was brought under control.

[Covenantor]

A peek at life on the Ebola frontlines.

[PapaBear3625]

There comes a point where triage dictates that you focus on maximizing the number of saved, by eliminating care to those unlikely to survive. Just give them a hot-shot of morphine and move on.

[Covenantor]

I felt like I was doing MacGyver medicine - MSF doctor

[Patriot365]

A peek at Africa!

[Revelation 911]

It felt like I was doing MacGyver medicine,"

racist ass /sarc

I was in the hardware store recently and a fight almost broke out when a Hispanic person used the phrase "Mexican speedwrench"....the white guy got offended....the Mexican got called a racist LOL

[Smokin' Joe]

Ping...

A link to this thread has been posted on the Ebola Surveillance Thread

[Tupelo]

What we forget is, a huge swath of Africa still hasn’t made it to the 18th Century yet.

I think that also explains a lot of what is happening in this country.

[jonrick46]

As Sierra Leone’s president, Ernest Bai Koroma, spends billions of the country’s money building six massive luxurious mansions, the health care system is in shambles. The government is up to its eyeballs with corruption which has rendered Sierra Leone as a security risk to the entire world as it fails to deal with the Ebola virus.

May the people of Sierra Leone wake up to the peril that Ernest Bai Koroma’s corruption has put them in. Likewise, it is time the American people wake up to the corruption the Obola Administration has suffered our national security.

[null and void]

A peek at life on the Ebola frontlines.

Or a preview of coming attractions!

Bring Out Your Dead

Post to me or FReep mail to be on/off the Bring Out Your Dead ping list.

The purpose of the “Bring Out Your Dead” ping list (formerly the “Ebola” ping list) is very early warning of emerging pandemics, as such it has a high false positive rate.

So far the false positive rate is 100%.

At some point we may well have a high mortality pandemic, and likely as not the “Bring Out Your Dead” threads will miss the beginning entirely.

*sigh* Such is life, and death...

[Vermont Lt]

What the hell is a Mexican Speedwrench. I am sure we have them in New England...but I would bet we call them something else.

[Tijeras_Slim]

Probably a visegrip.

[tacticalogic]

What the hell is a Mexican Speedwrench. I am sure we have them in New England...but I would bet we call them something else.

Not sure what they call it in New England. Around here we call it a "cutting torch".

[Vermont Lt]

I actually looked it up.

Generally, its an adjustable crescent wrench. Although I can be applied to hammer, torch, big rock, or any other “tool” that can be used to remove a nut from something.

Someone could write a book about “tool” slang.

I got “the talk” when I was about ten when I was helping my Dad wire something. He told me to give him the “male” end of the plug. I asked him what the difference was. He just looked at me like I was an idiot, took the male plug and shoved it into the female plug.

“See?! Male into Female. Get it?”

That was the extent of my sex education in the 1960s.

[tacticalogic]

Someone could write a book about “tool” slang.

One of my favorites is "dead nuts".

[PLMerite]

“See?! Male into Female. Get it?”

That was the extent of my sex education in the 1960s.

---

Except for a little about technique, what more do you really need to know?

[Vermont Lt]

And really, you did not want to get the electrical components the least bit moist...so I forgive him.

[ElenaM]

Thanks for the heads-up. I can only imagine. . ..