Rosa Marie Compton: Oaxaca, Mexico - First Week! 

Reflection by Rosa Marie Compton, College of Health Professions

During my first week of Oaxaca, (February 5 to February 12) I have had the opportunity to participate in a variety of clinical and cultural experiences! Each day I go to a local clinic from 8-12 with other Child Family Health International students and take 2-hour Spanish classes in the afternoon. This week we visited Hospital Civil, which is a general hospital sponsored by the government and civil organizations in Oaxaca. The hospital provides primary, secondary, and tertiary care. I enjoyed meeting Mexican medical students, residents, and a fellow occupational therapist during this rotation. I observed rounding on patients and several different surgeries (ventriculoperitoneal shunt, hemicolectomy, osteomyelitis surgery, and appendectomy). I noticed both similarities and differences to clinics in the United States. For example, there were no electronic medical records, and all documentation was either completed by hand or a typewriter.

Technology such as ultrasounds and other surgical devices were also not as highly utilized. The occupational therapist at Hospital Civil was more involved with the psychological factors of the patients’ healing process than my experiences in the United States. I enjoyed going with her to check on patients and visit with them and their families. In addition to our clinical and public health activities, the Child Family Health International program provides weekly lectures about the local healthcare system and socio-economic determinants of health. This week a healer from one of the nearby villages explained the ancient rituals of spiritual cleanses, herbs typically used, the generational lineage of healers, and how they address the mind, body, and soul.

I have loved learning more about Oaxaca’s rich culture. There are 16 different indigenous groups in the region that have maintained their unique traditions and languages. The first Oaxacan people group, now widely known as the Zapotecs, emerged around 2,500 years ago. We visited Zona Arqueologica Mitla, which is a Zapotec burial site with Mixtec influence. The adjacent Church of San Pablo is one of many Spanish remnants after their arrival in the 1500s. We also got a lesson on the hand-woven Teotitlan rugs, saw Arbol del Tule, which has the largest tree trunk in the world, and visited Hierve el Agua, a likely sacred place of the Zapotecs with antiquities of a complex ancient irrigation system.

I am so thankful for this opportunity and am looking forward to expanding my understanding of global health in the coming weeks!

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