Shadowing experiences at a rehabilitation center in Patagonia Chile

Corporación de Rehabilitación Club de Leones Cruz del Sur,

Punta Arenas, Chile

"Patagonia" refers to the southern region of South America shared by Chile and Argentina. The other two fellows and I are working at a rehabilitation center called Corporación de Rehabilitación Club de Leones Cruz del Sur. The center is dedicated to serving the physically or mentally disabled (of all age groups and conditions) here in Punta Arenas, Patagonia, Chile.

Punta Arenas is geographically isolated from central Chile. The efforts of the center and the help it has received from former fellows and other employees to provide extensive support to the disadvantaged and disabled in the community are tremendous. Medical conditions such as Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, and autism spectrum disorder are most commonly seen. During part of the day, Tessa, Anjalene and I are shadowing the rehabilitation specialists and during the rest of the day, we're performing data analyses of a sleep study that was conducted among college students in both Chile and Peru.

Main activity room in the center

The professionals I shadowed included kinesiologists, speech therapists, a pediatrician, and a nursing assistant. They are all immensely caring and very knowledgeable about their work. I’ve observed the pediatrician do a physical exam on a 10-year-old patient with Down syndrome who complained of a head cold. The nurse assistant fed liquid servings to a couple of children with cerebral palsy through an external tube that was inserted into their stomachs. I observed one toddler with a speech impediment say his first clear animal sound (“moo”) as he repeated after the speech therapist. It was moving to see the therapist’s excitement about the child’s progress (regardless of how little it may have been) as well as the heightened energy she had to sustain to keep the child’s attention for just half an hour. I observed the kinesiologists work with a couple of infants who were a little late in their crawling stages. All of the specialists work together in a wonderful way to improve the conditions of many individuals throughout this region.

A couple of patient cases

• The cases at the center aren’t always “uncomplicated”. Not all patients that come in with a certain disability are from “uncomplicated” backgrounds or circumstances, where they are raised by two loving parents who strive to do their best in making their lives as unburdensome as possible. I’ve seen one child (about four years old) with cerebral palsy in a therapy session with a kinesiologist. The child's father had a mental disability of his own, and the mother appeared depressed and much older than the dad.

• The center's pediatrician shared with me the story of a 15-year-old girl whose several-month old baby had been hospitalized since his birth. She was raped by a family member, chose to carry her pregnancy to term, gave birth to a baby with innumerable complications, and couldn't bring him home because he’s been hospitalized his entire life.

These stories and many others are heart-wrenching. It takes immersion experiences to see and understand the complexity of such situations that others are enduring. Unfortunate circumstances are globally ubiquitous and variable in their magnitude.

What can I do? I always ask myself this question when I learn about another person's hardships. Oftentimes I feel utterly useless. However, I'm learning more and more that even though I may not have the education and training to give a troubled individual therapeutic treatment for his ailments (mental or physical), let alone the wisdom to give advice about overcoming adversities, there are a couple of important things that I can do: Listen and respect.

Listen to the person's story to understand what she is going through, and allow the account of her difficulties to humble you and incite within you a desire to offer support and comfort. Respect her cultural upbringing, socioeconomic background, and lifestyle, at least one of which will have played a part in the incipience of her afflictions. Listening to and respecting others allows us to play a role (no matter how small) in remedying their hurt and troubles.