Chapter 33: New Arrivals

I am a health assistant working in a Basic Health Unit and the village where I have been posted is small and quiet, and the people are simple and innocent. They have great faith in us as health workers, and the medicines we supply to them. In a community, we have to work as a team therefore when modern medicine does not work; we refer patients to other indigenous/ traditional medicine according to their will and wish.

Here I am relating anincident that I had to attend as a part of my job. It was raining and cold in the month of December. I had just gone to sleep after doing some reading and prayer. I heard a knock and opened the door to find a villager soaked in the rain. He looked anxious. I knew his wife who was almost full-term and due to deliver any time. The wife had started with labour pains and he requested me to accompany him and attend to his wife immediately. I dressed up quickly, carried the delivery kit, took out an umbrella and went out with him. The walk was not silent as dogs were barking at us or at something else all the way to his house. The house is four hours walk away and therefore during the walk, I asked how severe was the pain and if anything had leaked from the private part, water or blood. He replied that she had complained of pains since the afternoon but at that time it was mild and she could tolerate it. During the night, she complained that it was becoming unbearable and requested that I should be called. I asked if there were any other problems, on which he replied that he had noticed nothing.