The Dhaka Project

Yesterday evening, the hospital called us saying that Chika's condition was really bad and that they did not want to take responsability to treat her. By the way that's the same people who told us the same morning that she was not in pain because she had no facial expression!!!!
Maria started to call different doctors and nurses volunteers in order to get advice. She needed to be transfered to a special unit. Finally we found one with a great website telling us it was the ultra modern burnt unit of Dhaka. I was so happy as I could imagine her beeing treated in the best conditions... (western twist of mind!)
We managed to get an ambulance and we went there with Maria and the boys, always with us as a fantastic support.

When we arrived at the hospital, I went through the normal hospital before get to the special unit. I thought I will collapse looking through the doors in the rooms. Common rooms with maybe 12 beds + patients on the floor. Family eating in the middle, dirty cloth and other things I don't want to discribe. I started to be nauseus.

Finally we reached the unit. Oh my god, old curtains dirty covering the windows to hide plastic covered beds with patients waiting in pain. So many people get burnt. In a period of time of 3 hours we saw 5 people burnt and all of them because of domestic accidents. Cooking with wood, mosquito coil set on fire a mosquito net (the 25 years old boy was totally burnt even his face - no more left ear).

Chika like many other ladies, one was just there next to her, are cooking bended down in front of a small fire place feeded with wood on the floor. He cloth got on fire but by the time she realised it, it was too late. She could not control or stop it.
We spent 3 hours there facing first the bureaucracy giving us lectures, going particularly slowly and telling us no beds were available. We have to admit that this hospital has 50 beds available for 250 patients. Maria decided to go to check by herself the space available. We went up and honnestly I had to stop after the 2nd floor as I was getting sick. I don't know how she can do it, I guess I need more "Maria's training".....
People and kids in corridors, on the floor, no matress, don't even talk about hygiene.... Maria found a bed and we went back downstairs to check Chiqa. Couple discussions later she was admitted in the treatment room.

That's the best unit of the country but it's a self service hospital meaning that the doctor gives you prescription even for the saline transfusion and the gloves and you need to go yourself to the pharmacy which is an ugly shop outside of the hospital in a dark and dirty alley.....
With all our medic, we came back and then they started to treat her. I had to come out of the room but Maria stayed there and appeared couple of minutes later with an empty pot of cream and gloves on telling me she needed more..... Maria had to show them how to put the cream as they were really hurting her.
You have to imagine that they use cotton to clean to remove the dead skin so it was getting stuck. But they have nothing else. Finally she got ready and then we heard that the bed we thought available was on the children's ward so we could not get it. We had to go to buy floor mat for her and her sister then blanckets and pillows. Maria found a small corner in a corridor and set up a "bed" for Chika...
One of the boy in the patient room dowstairs was really in pain but if you don't have money, you don't have medication.... So we bought pain killers for him and then full treatment as it is just not human to see someone suffering so much!!!

We left after midnight with a strange feeling. It's honnestly a horrible environnment if we think in our "spoiled developped medical way" but the doctors really do miracles with what they have.
This morning Massud went there. Chiqa was sleeping wich is a very good news meaning that she is not in pain. Her parents will come to visit her today. No news of the husband. It seems he does not really care and is sitting at home pissed off because she cannot bring income for a while... Her 6 weeks baby with scabies is being treated now and recovering slowly!