Arriving at the Mother & Child Hospital after work, I meet my host sister. We make our way to the second floor via the open stair-well at the south end of the building. I’m grateful we arrive together because I had not yet figured out how I would find a patient, knowing only the mother’s nick name and not enough Lao to explain the situation.
Outside the first room on the left are a half dozen pairs of shoes. We take off our shoes and enter the room. There are two beds in the room and three extra gurneys lined up alongside the wall. I have visited in several hospitals outside of North America and already two or three times in Laos, but this visit again provides a new experience.
The mother is not in the room when we arrive, as she has gone down the hall to the washroom, as there are no facilities within the room. The baby lies on a small mattress on the mother’s bed, protected by a small pillow on either side. The baby is wrapped in a receiving blanket and wears a cap on his head and little cotton mittens on his hands to keep him warm and protect him from scratches.
Only seven hours old and he is welcomed to the world by six visitors in the short time I’m there. The mother talks of her birthing experience. She arrived at the hospital only a few hours before giving birth. As her water had not yet broken, she was given intravenous drugs to encourage the process. When asked if she screamed while giving birth, she replies, “No!” She then mimics how she winced and pressed her lips. Apparently Lao women don’t scream while giving birth, as the doctor will not like it.
During the visit we discover her room is actually just on the other side of the delivery room and we hear not a sound. I suggest that this might be a difficult room to be in because of all the coming and going from the delivery room, but she is delighted with the space, as the room has air conditioning, good air circulation and only two patients. When later we go to visit another maternity room, I agree that she indeed has the best spot.
The room with eight new mothers and their babies has only fans and with each person having at least two other family members present to care for the new mother and child, it is anything but a restful place. Patients are required to bring with them everything but the patient’s bed. All food is brought in by family members. For most mothers, if there are no medical concerns, they are discharged within 24 hours.
It is currently peak birthing season and so the delivery room is a very busy place. Many couples get married immediately after Buddhist Lent in early October and so 9-12 months later the hospital is a busy place. Many couples also hoped to have a baby born on 9-September-2009.
Despite there being only the very bare necessities, the atmosphere created by the presence of many family members and friends says, “Welcome little ones! Welcome to a community who cares about you.”
Tomorrow the mother will return home and begin the traditional post natal practices, but that’s another story.
2 comments:
yes, in the filipino culture - it is considered essential to visit the family IN the hospital and not to wait until the family goes home! very opposite of what north americans do. Poor north american women who marry into filipino families :)
Good to know what is expected in Filipino culture!
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