A universal truth is that nothing brings people together like food – especially when it’s lots of delicious food!
On Saturday, Yian and I were lucky enough to be invited to a real Brazilian barbeque, or churrasco as they call it, at the home of one of the technicians from the Prevention Unit. It was a wonderful occasion to meet new people, practice my Portuguese, and eat the most delicious food I have ever tasted. I ate way too much!
So much delicious food!
Me, Yian, and the ladies of the Prevention Unit
One of those new people we got to meet was a nurse in the Prevention Unit named Creusa, who is quite possibly one of the coolest people on the face of the planet.
From left to right: me, Mariana, Yian, and Creusa
In 1994, the Prevention Unit here at HCB was just getting its feet on the ground, and Creusa was tasked with developing the first mobile unit. This meant that Creusa went door-to-door in the city of Barretos, carrying a portable gynecological table on the back of a bicycle, offering gynecological exams and pap smears to women in their homes. It was the beginning of pretty much the coolest program ever, and these days, Creusa still heads out on the Mobile Units that are screening for skin, prostate, cervical, and breast cancer all across Brazil.
We had an excellent opportunity to visit two of the mobile units yesterday, which are pretty amazing. Each of these mobile units is staffed with one nurse, three technicians, and a radiographer. Two technicians are in charge of performing mammograms, and the other technician does pap smears. The radiographer develops the mammogram results, because on the mobile units they are forced to use analog mammography units, instead of the digital ones they have at the hospital.
A Mobile Unit
The analog mammogram machine
Inside the dark room, where the mammograms are developed
The gynecological exam room
HCB has a deal with all of the cities they visit, that if there is something questionable about a patient’s exam, the hospital will bring that patient to Barretos and take care of them, with the hospital footing the bill. Some of these mobile units go to the far north of Brazil, so the journey can be quite long.
We stayed a little closer to home yesterday, when we got up super early to head out to Monte Azul with a unit that screens for breast and cervical cancer. Monte Azul is a small town about an hour from Barretos, with about 20,000 people. We were parked in front of a women’s health clinic near the center of the city. This mobile unit will stay in Monte Azul until July 6, offering free pap smears and mammograms everyday.
The local Women's Health Clinic in Monte Azul
A banner inviting women to get their mammograms and pap smears done at the mobile unit
In the afternoon, after a wonderful lunch at a churrascaria, we headed over to Bebedouro, to visit with the other mobile unit screening for breast and cervical cancer, which will stay until the end of August to offer their services. Bebedouro is even smaller than Monte Azul, and it is a very poor city. We were told that the neighborhood around the clinic where the mobile unit was parked was very dangerous at night.
The mobile unit in Bebedouro
A street in Bebedouro next to the health clinic
Sometimes, when we’re at the main hospital or tucked away in our apartment, it can be difficult to remember that we’re actually in a developing country. Looking at how wonderful HCB is at taking care of patients, it’s hard to remember the vast health disparities across Brazil, where not everyone has access to the great care available here at the hospital. Visiting the mobile units was a reminder that these disparities do exist, even within São Paulo state. I’m trying to be mindful of these things as I continue with my internship here, and I’m hopeful that continuing to visit with the mobile units and the nurses and technicians who work there will be a constant reminder of the people who need help the most and the work that I want to do.
That about wraps up yesterday’s big adventure. Yian and I have some great ideas about how to help out the mobile units while we’re here, and I can’t wait to get started on them!
Tchau!
Jessica