Soloy Clinic

I have learnt a lot from Panamanian nurses how they utilize with the limited resource they have compare to wealthiest nations like United State in term of health care system. Panamanian community nurses believe a community’s health is affected by many factors, including access to health care and environment condition. Instead of waiting for community to come to the clinic or hospital with an illness, community health nurses are going into door to door in order to help community improve their health. Nurses are aware that in rural communities they are serving do not have access to health care, including preventive care and health education. Therefore, nurses give community reliable and useful information about how to protect their health. They tell the community they serving about locally available health care programs and services to improve access to health care. They also educate and provide direct health care services to vulnerable and those at risk populations.

Panamanians believe that immunization is an important component of community health because it prevents many communities from becoming sick with a communicable disease. Nurses are going door to door to get community vaccinated. Getting vaccinated not only prevents community from getting sick but also reduces the risk to those with less protection; like infants or community with chronic diseases. Panamanian health nurses play an active role in advocating how to improve access to health care services.

The other day in the clinic I was assessing mother and child. I noticed something about community culture. I do not know if this cultural thing or not I was assessing vital sign of infant. I attempted to put infant on the scale and the nurse told me let the mother put her infant on the scale. Since then I let the parent to put the infant on the scale. Even if you give injection the mother will prepare the site to injected. I did not ask the reason behind that and I assumed the mother would protect her infant.

Muchas gracias