eMagazine August 2022

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OUR PEOPLE, OUR MISSION Global Health eMagazine August 2022 Highlights Clinical Case of the Month Reflections Health Disparities Within Our Borders Nursing Division Art to Remind Us of Who We Can Be Our Beautiful Planet Among the Letters Congratulations Global Health Team Calendar Resources An American Nursing Student Working in a Hospital in Greece: An Experience of a Lifetime Part 1/2 Written by Amanda Towey Nursing Student at Western Connecticut State University Amanda Towey participated in a student exchange program between Western Connecticut State University in Danbury, CT, and International Hellenic University (Alexander Campus) in Thessaloniki, Greece. Program funding was provided by Eramus, Dr. Monica Sousa, Professor of Nursing from Western Connecticut State University was the co-faculty lead on this project. For the last two-and-a-half months, I have been given the wonderful opportunity to explore healthcare abroad in Thessaloniki, Greece. As a junior student nurse at Western Connecticut State University, my education has been centered around healthcare in the United States. As expected, medical management is different between the two countries. Greece’s health system aims to provide free access to healthcare for its residents. I have been privileged to fulfill my externship at Papageorgiou Hospital, one of Thessaloniki’s newest public hospitals located a few miles outside of the city center. The hospital staff have welcomed me and made me feel like I was truly a part of the healthcare they provide. As a foreigner who speaks only a few short phrases and words in Greek, I have relied heavily upon observation, gathering as much information as possible through the wonderful nurses and nursing students that have taken the time to answer my questions. To begin, I am working on one of two surgical units at Papageorgiou Hospital called A’XEI. The unit has twelve rooms. The staff consists of doctors, medical students, nurses, nursing students, aids, and housekeeping. All healthcare settings have position hierarchies, and in my unit, each member of the staff treats each other with respect and works together to ensure the best patient care. There is always adequate staffing, which is not something I am used to in U.S. hospitals. The patients are admitted before surgery and return to the unit to be cared for after the procedures are completed. Upon observation, most of the patients receive open abdominal/gastrointestinal surgeries, with very few performed laparoscopically. They are taken into the private admitting room where an EKG, blood work, and a PCR COVID test is done. There are also patients who are admitted onto the unit for nonsurgical reasons, and that is due to the “on call” days. Every four days Papageorgiou Hospital is on call to receive all ambulance and emergency admissions. A’XEI receives overflow patients every eight days because there are two surgical units at the hospital. The day after the hospital is on call, oftentimes six or seven patients are assigned to each of the seven larger rooms. It has been noticed 16
OUR PEOPLE, OUR MISSION Global Health eMagazine August 2022 Highlights Clinical Case of the Month Reflections Health Disparities Within Our Borders Nursing Division Art to Remind Us of Who We Can Be that the patient population is younger, and many have been in car accidents. These patients are not admitted in the same way that the patients scheduled for surgery are. The patient population at Papageorgiou Hospital consists of those who are not able to afford private healthcare. Each patient at the hospital, no matter how long or extensive their stay, will not have to pay for care. The nurses have explained that many of the patients seen on the unit and in the hospital are low-income, elderly, and nomadic people who speak a different Greek dialect. They typically live outside in tent communities outside the town or city. Further, patients have more freedom to walk around the hospital, wear their own clothes, and venture into the waiting area of the unit than they do in the U.S. Walking into the main lobby, you see staff, families, and patients who have IV poles with medication. The patients have friendly demeanors even when they are suffering. They make an effort to learn how to say “good morning” to me in English and ask me where I am from. Every single day I look forward to my shift on this unit and caring for these wonderful patients. Religion is also a large part of the patient population at Papageorgiou Hospital, and religious practice is highly respected in the unit. A’XEI has religious pictures, holy books, and a section of the waiting area designated for religious practice. Patients have pictures under their pillows, and on the walls, surrounding them in a time of need. I have seen patients reading holy books and praying quite often. Follow Part 2 in the September issue. Our Beautiful Planet Among the Letters Congratulations Global Health Team Calendar Resources (Steve Scholand) 17 17
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eMagazine August 2022

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