This morning I woke up and met Cheryl Wilkinson for lunch and some souvenir shopping. We went downtown to the Paradise Cafe and then walked around in the various shops. Over the past two months I have tried really hard to not look like too much of a tourist, but I think I dropped my guard a bit today as I was wandering in and out of various Alaskan gift shops. As I was walking I did meet a Vanderbilt alumni. He graduated from the divinity school and was in Alaska doing some mission work. One of my professors from this past semester has a husband who is a professor in the Divinity School. He remembered having this particular professor and we shared stories about the Segovias for a few minutes in downtown Juneau, AK. Just another example of how small the world really is.
After lunch I met up with the Bornstein family and went for my final hike. We went "out the road" to a place called Cowie Meadows. For some reason, I am absolutely terrified of bears. Ever since my first hike to the John Muir Cabin, I have never been out in the woods and not thought of seeing a giant bear lurking around the corner. Every time a bird chirps or a twig snaps under my feet my heart skips a beat (or six) and I stop in my tracks. Lucky for me, I have been out hiking and running and yet to see a bear - until today.
The first part of the hike was actually quite enjoyable. We went to Cowie Meadows Cabin and then further along the coastline to the Blue Mussel Cabin. Along the way we saw lots of Fireweed and other flowers and berries. These forest service cabins are pretty neat. For a nominal fee you can rent them for the night and camp out. Each is equipped with a gas heater and a sink. Enough to make you feel comfortable, but not enough to ruin the mystique of camping.
The Blue Mussel Cabin is right on the water and it is not uncommon to see humpback whales wander into the cove. We went a little past Blue Mussel Cabin and came across a tree that was smoking. Someone had started a campfire and had not laid a proper base so the fire went underground. There was smoke coming from some holes in the ground right around the base of the tree. It was really interesting to think that there was a fire underground that I could not see. We took some pictures and then started our walk back to the trailhead.
Before every hike I ask Dr. Bornstein, "What are the chances that we see a bear today?" He usually just laughs and tells me that a bear sighting would be very unlikely. We made it maybe three quarters of the way back to the start of the trail when we my worst fear came to fruition. Standing no more than 60 or 70 yards away was a giant male grizzly bear. The bear saw us as soon as we saw him and began to look our way. His ears popped up and he stood to get a better view of us. We stayed together and retreated back off of the trail. We walked away, slowly, until Dr. Bornstein eventually went to check on the bear. The bear was still checking us out very curiously and eventually began to cross the meadow and come over towards our side.
The scariest thing about the bear sighting is that once the bear sees you, you are no longer in control. You could be 400, 500 yards away and the bear could very easily catch you if he/she so desired. That's what makes me so uncomfortable is the sense that even if I do everything I am supposed to do in a situation like this I am still completely at the whim of a 2,000 pound, 8 foot tall wild animal.
Eventually we ran into some thick brush and were forced back out onto the main trail. We could no longer see the bear so we assumed that we were in the clear. We all breathed a sigh of relief and began walking briskly towards the trailhead. About two minutes later we were stopped in our tracks again as we heard rustling and crashing from the brush no more than 50 or 60 feet away. We never actually saw the bear this time due to the thick brush, but it was there and we were very close.
At this point I had just about had enough of hiking so I did my best to try and get to the car as soon as possible. Unfortunately my hiking mates had other ideas. All of a sudden Dr. Bornstein needed to use the restroom and Sam decided he wanted berries (you know, the same berries the bears like to eat). I was so scared and ready to go. I think a lot of my fear came off as humor, but it was definitely no laughing matter.
The Bornsteins bought me pizza and soda to settle my nerves after our hiking adventure. What a scary day. Tomorrow is my last full day in Alaska...
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Day 60 - Retirement
Today, after nearly 9 weeks on the job, I announced my retirement from SEARHC Dental. In January I blindly googled "Alaskan dentistry", and sent off emails to various organizations, private practice dentists, and public health clinics. Lucky for me, Dr. Tom Bornstein was the first to respond and give me an opportunity to develop a project with SEARHC. Over the past 9 weeks I have seen and accomplished so much.
I traveled to Hoonah, Haines, Sitka, and Skagway. I traveled by car, bus, plane, ferry, boat, and bike. I saw small Alaskan villages and large tourist destinations. I met people from all over the United States - each with a unique story and perspective. I saw and did many things. I walked on a glacier, rode on a dog sled, flew above mountains ridges in a helicopter, and hiked for hours.
From the clinic side of things, I also feel like I accomplished a lot. I developed two surveys that will hopefully improve the patient experience at SEARHC in the future. One survey, administered via telephone, was to address the high missed appointment rate in the clinic. The other, administered in waiting rooms all over Southeast Alaska, was meant to survey patients on new patient education material. I also found time to work with Dr. Hort to stock a vending machine with Xylitol products and do many other exciting things at the clinic. Beyond all of this, I found time to meet new people and see things from a different perspective.
What an amazing experience - one that will certainly take some time to soak in. Throughout the course of the weekend I will work on one final summary post but, for now, there are too many emotions and too many thoughts running through my head for me to capture the meaning of my summer project experience in a clear and concise way.
I still have a few more days in Alaska to get in some final sightseeing and souvenir shopping. Almost home...
I traveled to Hoonah, Haines, Sitka, and Skagway. I traveled by car, bus, plane, ferry, boat, and bike. I saw small Alaskan villages and large tourist destinations. I met people from all over the United States - each with a unique story and perspective. I saw and did many things. I walked on a glacier, rode on a dog sled, flew above mountains ridges in a helicopter, and hiked for hours.
From the clinic side of things, I also feel like I accomplished a lot. I developed two surveys that will hopefully improve the patient experience at SEARHC in the future. One survey, administered via telephone, was to address the high missed appointment rate in the clinic. The other, administered in waiting rooms all over Southeast Alaska, was meant to survey patients on new patient education material. I also found time to work with Dr. Hort to stock a vending machine with Xylitol products and do many other exciting things at the clinic. Beyond all of this, I found time to meet new people and see things from a different perspective.
What an amazing experience - one that will certainly take some time to soak in. Throughout the course of the weekend I will work on one final summary post but, for now, there are too many emotions and too many thoughts running through my head for me to capture the meaning of my summer project experience in a clear and concise way.
I still have a few more days in Alaska to get in some final sightseeing and souvenir shopping. Almost home...
Days 58 and 59 - Silverbow, Monday Funday, and Xylitol
The last two nights have been busy and hectic so I haven't had a chance to write at all. Tuesday, I went with some members of the dental staff to dinner at the Silverbow. On Tuesday and Wednesday nights, the Silverbow shows a movie for free so a few members of the staff are regulars. This week, "Invictus" was the free movie. I had yet to see it, so I figured it was a good week to go. We all met up after work - ate, played cards, and watched the movie. On Wednesday, I went over to Rachel's house for a BBQ. Every Monday, Rachel and a few other dental assistants go over to her house for a huge BBQ and night out together. It is usually on Monday (hence, Monday Funday) but this week we had it on Wednesday. We grilled and just hung out. I like the nights where I can just hang out on a couch and play video games or watch TV. The little things you take for granted when I am at home are the things I miss the most.
One of the coolest things about my summer experience has been interacting with all of the different members of the dental team. Very few are actually from Alaska, so if you walk around the office most parts of the United States (and some of South America and Europe) are represented. At no other place would people with such varied and diverse backgrounds make such a strong effort to get along and spend time together. Everyone is intrigued by each others backgrounds and stories. Very neat.
On the clinic side of things, I have really started to wrap things up. The big project for this week was to get the vending machine up and running. I stocked all of the products, made price labels, and set the prices electronically. I also took change and loaded it into the appropriate slots. I know more about vending machines then I ever wanted to know. Also, there is a Xylitol brochure and poster that will sit next to the vending machine to provide patients more information. I am hoping that the vending machine is a success because there are 6 vending machines currently sitting in storage waiting to be shipped to other clinics.
Hard to believe I proposed an idea 6 months ago and now that idea has become a reality. It hasn't been easy - I've worked hard, traveled a lot, and had to adjust the outcome of the project slightly - but, in the end, it has been such an incredible experience. Tomorrow is my last day at the clinic. We are having a BBQ luncheon for my last day and I will have to say goodbye to a few members of the staff. Can't wait...
One of the coolest things about my summer experience has been interacting with all of the different members of the dental team. Very few are actually from Alaska, so if you walk around the office most parts of the United States (and some of South America and Europe) are represented. At no other place would people with such varied and diverse backgrounds make such a strong effort to get along and spend time together. Everyone is intrigued by each others backgrounds and stories. Very neat.
On the clinic side of things, I have really started to wrap things up. The big project for this week was to get the vending machine up and running. I stocked all of the products, made price labels, and set the prices electronically. I also took change and loaded it into the appropriate slots. I know more about vending machines then I ever wanted to know. Also, there is a Xylitol brochure and poster that will sit next to the vending machine to provide patients more information. I am hoping that the vending machine is a success because there are 6 vending machines currently sitting in storage waiting to be shipped to other clinics.
Hard to believe I proposed an idea 6 months ago and now that idea has become a reality. It hasn't been easy - I've worked hard, traveled a lot, and had to adjust the outcome of the project slightly - but, in the end, it has been such an incredible experience. Tomorrow is my last day at the clinic. We are having a BBQ luncheon for my last day and I will have to say goodbye to a few members of the staff. Can't wait...
Monday, July 12, 2010
Day 57 - My last week
Today was my final Monday in Alaska. It's amazing how different it felt walking into the clinic today then it did 9 weeks ago when I arrived for the first time. Instead of nervously waiting in the lobby to meet Dr. Hort like I did in mid-May, I walked confidently into the back of the clinic ready to showcase what I have been working hard on all summer.
I spent the morning finalizing my waiting room survey data and preparing my patient education material proposal for Dr. Bornstein. We met in the afternoon and he appeared to be very intrigued by what Dr. Hort and I have come up with. It was also rewarding to be able to present to him the statistics from the telephone survey - most of which reflect positively on the clinic. I know that this is an issue he has wanted to address for a long time and it will be nice to have some analysis and data to bring to the board of directors.
One of the my main points of emphasis over the past week has been to ensure that everything I have done over the past 9 weeks remains easily accessible for anyone on the SEARHC staff. Because of time constraints and needing to be realistic with my own expectations, I have realized that I could not have possibly developed a survey, conducted hundreds of interviews, analyzed all of the data, and then created a series of educational materials for OB patients during the time frame of my summer project. I will leave with certain pieces of patient education material developed, but another focus point is ensuring that I have laid the groundwork for the SEARHC dental staff to be able to finish what I have started in the coming months. This includes brainstorming, outlining, and researching.
I have created an outline for a 6 month plan to disseminate various pieces of educational materials utilizing many different types of media. This ranges from social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter to local gatherings with community leaders in small Alaskan villages. In addition, I have provided the dental team with months worth of research to help them ease into becoming responsible for the new patient education material we have worked so hard to develop. As many of the staff members I have worked with have told me, it seems that SEARHC attempts to develop something new and innovative every year, only to fall short on sustainability and creativity. Let's hope this time it's different!
This evening I went to the mall to get a haircut and to purchase new headphones. For those who rely on public transportation, you know that having a charged iPod and a working set of headphones are vital to an enjoyable bus experience. The trip to the mall also made me look forward to coming back home and having my car back.
The public transportation system has been very useful and cost efficient, but it is often so time consuming. Take today's example: I had a 6:30 haircut appointment at the Nugget Mall which is about a 5 minute car ride from the dorm. I had to leave my apartment at 5:55 to catch the 6:00 bus that arrived at the mall around 6:15. After looking through the stores and getting a haircut I caught the 7:15 bus back to the school and walked into my dorm room at 7:45. What should have been a 40 minute experience turned into a nearly 2 hour experience. At least the people who ride the bus make it interesting.
Tomorrow is a big day as it is the grand opening of the vending machine. I am also presenting my findings at the staff meeting and will have an opportunity to thank everyone for being so kind and helpful over the past two months. Almost done...
I spent the morning finalizing my waiting room survey data and preparing my patient education material proposal for Dr. Bornstein. We met in the afternoon and he appeared to be very intrigued by what Dr. Hort and I have come up with. It was also rewarding to be able to present to him the statistics from the telephone survey - most of which reflect positively on the clinic. I know that this is an issue he has wanted to address for a long time and it will be nice to have some analysis and data to bring to the board of directors.
One of the my main points of emphasis over the past week has been to ensure that everything I have done over the past 9 weeks remains easily accessible for anyone on the SEARHC staff. Because of time constraints and needing to be realistic with my own expectations, I have realized that I could not have possibly developed a survey, conducted hundreds of interviews, analyzed all of the data, and then created a series of educational materials for OB patients during the time frame of my summer project. I will leave with certain pieces of patient education material developed, but another focus point is ensuring that I have laid the groundwork for the SEARHC dental staff to be able to finish what I have started in the coming months. This includes brainstorming, outlining, and researching.
I have created an outline for a 6 month plan to disseminate various pieces of educational materials utilizing many different types of media. This ranges from social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter to local gatherings with community leaders in small Alaskan villages. In addition, I have provided the dental team with months worth of research to help them ease into becoming responsible for the new patient education material we have worked so hard to develop. As many of the staff members I have worked with have told me, it seems that SEARHC attempts to develop something new and innovative every year, only to fall short on sustainability and creativity. Let's hope this time it's different!
This evening I went to the mall to get a haircut and to purchase new headphones. For those who rely on public transportation, you know that having a charged iPod and a working set of headphones are vital to an enjoyable bus experience. The trip to the mall also made me look forward to coming back home and having my car back.
The public transportation system has been very useful and cost efficient, but it is often so time consuming. Take today's example: I had a 6:30 haircut appointment at the Nugget Mall which is about a 5 minute car ride from the dorm. I had to leave my apartment at 5:55 to catch the 6:00 bus that arrived at the mall around 6:15. After looking through the stores and getting a haircut I caught the 7:15 bus back to the school and walked into my dorm room at 7:45. What should have been a 40 minute experience turned into a nearly 2 hour experience. At least the people who ride the bus make it interesting.
Tomorrow is a big day as it is the grand opening of the vending machine. I am also presenting my findings at the staff meeting and will have an opportunity to thank everyone for being so kind and helpful over the past two months. Almost done...
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Day 55 - Dinner party with the dental staff
The weather was not great again today so I spent most of the day getting organized and lounging around. Now that I have settled back into Juneau I have started to utilize the Rec Center at UAS more than I did in the past. I talked with the student worker at the front and bargained my way into a 20 visit pass for $20. I won't use all 20 visits, but I will make one of my roommates happy when I leave next week. I went to the Rec Center today and ran on the indoor track (my alternative to running outside in the rain).
Tonight, Dr. Sohonage had all of the dentists over for dinner to welcome the new residents. The food was great. We had salmon, halibut, and crab cakes. They were all made from fish and crabs caught by a SEARHC employee. The food I have eaten here brings new meaning to the word "fresh".
That's about it from here. Tomorrow is Dr. Bornstein's birthday so I am heading over to his house for dinner and cake. Other than that, not much planned.
Tonight, Dr. Sohonage had all of the dentists over for dinner to welcome the new residents. The food was great. We had salmon, halibut, and crab cakes. They were all made from fish and crabs caught by a SEARHC employee. The food I have eaten here brings new meaning to the word "fresh".
That's about it from here. Tomorrow is Dr. Bornstein's birthday so I am heading over to his house for dinner and cake. Other than that, not much planned.
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Day 54 - Dog sledding, Perseverance Trail, Mt. Roberts, Salmon Bake
For the record, I actually did spend a few hours in the clinic today. I continued to work on developing my patient education material and work on my presentation to the staff on Tuesday. However, what I did outside of the office today was much more exciting so i will focus on that instead.
I woke up early this morning to catch the bus to TEMSCO, the helicopter company that flew me to the Juneau Ice Field for my dog sledding experience. It was awesome. I had never been in a helicopter before and, as you could imagine, the views of Juneau and the surrounding islands from 5,000 feet in the sky are pretty amazing. We passed over ridges and mountaintops and eventually flew over the Mendenhall Glacier. I have seen the glacier from the west side and the east side, but it takes on a whole new personality when you see it from the air. The helicopter dropped me off deep in the Ice Field where there is still snow covering the thousands of feet of ice. We met the mushers (many of whom have raced in Iditarod) and then we got to meet the dogs.
We spent almost half an hour learning the names of the dogs on our sled, what their stories were, and why there were in the particular spot on the sled. After the introductions we did a 30 minute dog sled trail. I was with a couple from a cruise ship so we took turns driving the sled and sitting in the passenger seat taking in the views. At each stop we got off, spent time with the dogs and watched as they cooled down by eating or rolling in the snow. It was funny to see the difference in personality between the dogs. The dogs in the front of the pack are generally considered smart and responsible so when we would stop they would quietly sit down and await orders to continue. The dogs in the back, however, would jump around and bark - begging for attention.
After the ride, we thanked the dogs and then walked around the dog camp a bit more. There are over 200 dogs and 15 people who live up on the glacier during the summer months. We finished the tour a little early so the musher took us over to meet the future of dog sled racing - the husky puppies. The helicopter picked us up and returned us to the TEMSCO base. It was an awesome 90 minute tour and one of the coolest things I have done so far.
After work, Dr. Bornstein picked me up and we went for a run on the Perseverance Trail. The snow has melted so what was a 6 mile run a few weeks ago has turned into an 8 or 9 mile run. We decided we hadn't had enough exercise so we hiked from the base of Perseverance Trail to the tram station on top of Mt. Roberts. When you've run 8 miles, what's another 50 minutes of hiking and 1,800 feet of elevation? The hike was nice though as there were many ripe salmonberries and blueberries that we picked and ate along the way. Our reward for hiking to the tram station was a chance to see a rehabilitated bald eagle and a free ride to the bottom. The Mt. Roberts Tramway is a pretty big tourist attraction so I'm glad that I can say I crossed it off my list of things to do before I leave.
For dinner, I drove out to Thane with a bunch of friends from the clinic and ate at the Thane Salmon Bake. They had unlimited salad, salmon, halibut, cornbread, and drinks. The food was pretty bad. It started to rain as we left the restaurant, which was the first time it had rained in almost 50 hours. I am not certain, but that could be a Juneau record for the month of July (at least during my time here!).
It's been a long exhausting day so I'm headed to bed. Tomorrow is Saturday so I get to sleep in and just hang out...
I woke up early this morning to catch the bus to TEMSCO, the helicopter company that flew me to the Juneau Ice Field for my dog sledding experience. It was awesome. I had never been in a helicopter before and, as you could imagine, the views of Juneau and the surrounding islands from 5,000 feet in the sky are pretty amazing. We passed over ridges and mountaintops and eventually flew over the Mendenhall Glacier. I have seen the glacier from the west side and the east side, but it takes on a whole new personality when you see it from the air. The helicopter dropped me off deep in the Ice Field where there is still snow covering the thousands of feet of ice. We met the mushers (many of whom have raced in Iditarod) and then we got to meet the dogs.
We spent almost half an hour learning the names of the dogs on our sled, what their stories were, and why there were in the particular spot on the sled. After the introductions we did a 30 minute dog sled trail. I was with a couple from a cruise ship so we took turns driving the sled and sitting in the passenger seat taking in the views. At each stop we got off, spent time with the dogs and watched as they cooled down by eating or rolling in the snow. It was funny to see the difference in personality between the dogs. The dogs in the front of the pack are generally considered smart and responsible so when we would stop they would quietly sit down and await orders to continue. The dogs in the back, however, would jump around and bark - begging for attention.
After the ride, we thanked the dogs and then walked around the dog camp a bit more. There are over 200 dogs and 15 people who live up on the glacier during the summer months. We finished the tour a little early so the musher took us over to meet the future of dog sled racing - the husky puppies. The helicopter picked us up and returned us to the TEMSCO base. It was an awesome 90 minute tour and one of the coolest things I have done so far.
After work, Dr. Bornstein picked me up and we went for a run on the Perseverance Trail. The snow has melted so what was a 6 mile run a few weeks ago has turned into an 8 or 9 mile run. We decided we hadn't had enough exercise so we hiked from the base of Perseverance Trail to the tram station on top of Mt. Roberts. When you've run 8 miles, what's another 50 minutes of hiking and 1,800 feet of elevation? The hike was nice though as there were many ripe salmonberries and blueberries that we picked and ate along the way. Our reward for hiking to the tram station was a chance to see a rehabilitated bald eagle and a free ride to the bottom. The Mt. Roberts Tramway is a pretty big tourist attraction so I'm glad that I can say I crossed it off my list of things to do before I leave.
For dinner, I drove out to Thane with a bunch of friends from the clinic and ate at the Thane Salmon Bake. They had unlimited salad, salmon, halibut, cornbread, and drinks. The food was pretty bad. It started to rain as we left the restaurant, which was the first time it had rained in almost 50 hours. I am not certain, but that could be a Juneau record for the month of July (at least during my time here!).
It's been a long exhausting day so I'm headed to bed. Tomorrow is Saturday so I get to sleep in and just hang out...
Friday, July 9, 2010
Pictures added
I had such a long and exciting day today. I am completely exhausted and can't even begin to start writing and describing everything I did. For now, keep busy with the pictures I uploaded to the Picasa album. Check back tomorrow for descriptions and details.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Day 53 - The sun
Funny story today. The weather today was beautiful. The clouds finally cleared up and the sky was a clear blue all day. The temperature was also perfect, right around 70 degrees all day long. And no, the funny story is not that I actually had a chance to see the sun in the middle of July. I was on the bus ride home and the bus passed by the bank where an electronic clock flashed the time and the temperature. When the temperature flashed it read, "96 degrees". The women next to me shouted, "96? Man, I knew it was hot today!" Only in Juneau, AK could a 70 degree day suddenly turn into a 96 degree day.
I worked very hard today to finish my telephone survey report. I am very proud of my efforts and excited to share my findings at the staff meeting on Tuesday. After I present to the staff, I will post my report on the blog so that everyone can get an idea of what kinds of issues I have been dealing with. It was fun to see my work culminate in a meaningful report that will serve this organization well into the future. Essentially, I am combining the voices of 100+ patients into one giant statement that will give dentists at staff at SEARHC a unique look into the mindset of their patient base.
At one point today Dr. Hort looked over and saw how hard I was working to make sure that no patient voice went unheard and that no suggestion or recommendation went unexplained. She reminded me that I wasn't getting a grade on the project and that it did not have to be perfect. Apparently, she has never seen me critique myself. Even without the motivation of a grade, I want to give my best effort and give back to the dentists and staff who have given so much to me over the past two months. I also spent a lot of time continuing to compile information for my patient education material. Tomorrow I will be outlining the patient education material and creating a rough layout of everything to present to Dr. Bornstein on Monday.
Because of the poor weather, I have been a bit lazy the last few weeks so it was nice to wear shorts and go running again today. I'm going to enjoy running in the 70 degree weather for the next week and a half because I will soon be confined to a treadmill by the heat and humidity in St. Louis.
Tomorrow I am also taking the morning off to go dog sledding. Unlike my failed expedition in Skagway, the weather is supposed to be nice so I should definitely get off the ground on onto the glacier. Check back for what I'm sure will be some pretty cool pictures.
I worked very hard today to finish my telephone survey report. I am very proud of my efforts and excited to share my findings at the staff meeting on Tuesday. After I present to the staff, I will post my report on the blog so that everyone can get an idea of what kinds of issues I have been dealing with. It was fun to see my work culminate in a meaningful report that will serve this organization well into the future. Essentially, I am combining the voices of 100+ patients into one giant statement that will give dentists at staff at SEARHC a unique look into the mindset of their patient base.
At one point today Dr. Hort looked over and saw how hard I was working to make sure that no patient voice went unheard and that no suggestion or recommendation went unexplained. She reminded me that I wasn't getting a grade on the project and that it did not have to be perfect. Apparently, she has never seen me critique myself. Even without the motivation of a grade, I want to give my best effort and give back to the dentists and staff who have given so much to me over the past two months. I also spent a lot of time continuing to compile information for my patient education material. Tomorrow I will be outlining the patient education material and creating a rough layout of everything to present to Dr. Bornstein on Monday.
Because of the poor weather, I have been a bit lazy the last few weeks so it was nice to wear shorts and go running again today. I'm going to enjoy running in the 70 degree weather for the next week and a half because I will soon be confined to a treadmill by the heat and humidity in St. Louis.
Tomorrow I am also taking the morning off to go dog sledding. Unlike my failed expedition in Skagway, the weather is supposed to be nice so I should definitely get off the ground on onto the glacier. Check back for what I'm sure will be some pretty cool pictures.
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Day 52 - Sustainability
My main focus today was on sustainability. I am really proud of the work I have done over the past eight weeks, so I want to ensure that all of my efforts continue even as I head back to school and the SEARHC staff goes back to their day-to-day routine. It is easy for a project to gain momentum when an unpaid, hard-working (sometimes) intern is dedicating nearly forty hours per week to a specific task, but it becomes a completely different dynamic when I pass off my project to somebody who may have other job responsibilities.
For this reason, I spent today focusing on how to make sure my project is sustainable. One of the main ways that I am going to do this is to develop a strong foundation of researched materials to leave in a database before I leave. I have focused on four main research topics: nutrition, vertical transmission, newborn child's dental timeline, and the correlation between a mother's oral health and her child's oral health. This material should get the SEARHC staff through the first few months after I leave as they adjust to finding the correct staff members to be in charge of the patient education material, how they will fit these new responsibilities into their schedule, and how efficiently and effectively the distribution of patient education material goes.
Also, today brought some excitement as the Xyltiol products for the vending machine finally arrived. Almost seven weeks ago I spent an entire afternoon finding gums and mints with a high concentration of Xyltiol and making sure that we had products that fit in the large slots and products that fit in the small slots in the vending machine. If you are at work or school tomorrow and stop by the vending machine at lunch, know that a lot more thought goes into the placement of the Reese's Cups than you would have ever imagined! Tomorrow we are going to the bank to pick up quarters, dimes, and nickels so that we can stock the machine the appropriate amount of change. Dr. Hort and I are also going to start pricing the items and loading them into the vending machine. The vending machine will be fully functional by the time that I leave, which is another exciting accomplishment.
For dinner tonight I went over to Dr. Nascimento's with Dr. Dee, the Wilkinsons, and Dr. Marcotte. Dr. Nascimento is one of those people that excels at everything she does. Over the past few months I have seen her teach herself to sew, paint, carve, and crochet without so much as batting an eyelid. Tonight, she cooked dinner without the aid of a recipe book and the food was so good we had to cut our card game short because we were all too stuffed full and tired. As we sat and ate I started to get a little sentimental knowing that I will be leaving this group soon. The project has not only exceeded my expectations through my community service, but socially as well. I never could have imagined that I would meet so many people who would make my summer in Alaska so enjoyable.
Another full day tomorrow. Time is winding down...
For this reason, I spent today focusing on how to make sure my project is sustainable. One of the main ways that I am going to do this is to develop a strong foundation of researched materials to leave in a database before I leave. I have focused on four main research topics: nutrition, vertical transmission, newborn child's dental timeline, and the correlation between a mother's oral health and her child's oral health. This material should get the SEARHC staff through the first few months after I leave as they adjust to finding the correct staff members to be in charge of the patient education material, how they will fit these new responsibilities into their schedule, and how efficiently and effectively the distribution of patient education material goes.
Also, today brought some excitement as the Xyltiol products for the vending machine finally arrived. Almost seven weeks ago I spent an entire afternoon finding gums and mints with a high concentration of Xyltiol and making sure that we had products that fit in the large slots and products that fit in the small slots in the vending machine. If you are at work or school tomorrow and stop by the vending machine at lunch, know that a lot more thought goes into the placement of the Reese's Cups than you would have ever imagined! Tomorrow we are going to the bank to pick up quarters, dimes, and nickels so that we can stock the machine the appropriate amount of change. Dr. Hort and I are also going to start pricing the items and loading them into the vending machine. The vending machine will be fully functional by the time that I leave, which is another exciting accomplishment.
For dinner tonight I went over to Dr. Nascimento's with Dr. Dee, the Wilkinsons, and Dr. Marcotte. Dr. Nascimento is one of those people that excels at everything she does. Over the past few months I have seen her teach herself to sew, paint, carve, and crochet without so much as batting an eyelid. Tonight, she cooked dinner without the aid of a recipe book and the food was so good we had to cut our card game short because we were all too stuffed full and tired. As we sat and ate I started to get a little sentimental knowing that I will be leaving this group soon. The project has not only exceeded my expectations through my community service, but socially as well. I never could have imagined that I would meet so many people who would make my summer in Alaska so enjoyable.
Another full day tomorrow. Time is winding down...
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Day 51 - Patient education material
Today, for the first time, the finality of what these last two weeks will bring began to sink in. I realized that I can't put off research for another day, or decide to go hiking instead of making a few extra phone calls - it's time to bear down and finish what I have started. While this may take a bit of the "fun" aspect out of my summer project, I have also started to realize how much I have taken on and how happy I will be with my finished product. And, like most, I do better when the end is in sight and the pressure of meeting a deadline grows stronger and stronger.
I began to outline the six month cycle for my patient education material today. Once I compiled all of the research data I began to summarize and recount all that had gone into compiling the data, why I felt it was important, etc. This report will eventually go to Dr. Bornstein for approval (hopefully by Wednesday afternoon) and editing to make sure the things we want to do will not be considered too radical or unacceptable by SEARHC standards.
On Sunday night at the Hort's somebody mused that Alaska had not been hit too hard by the economic recession and that the housing market had actually thrived in the past few years. I joked that the reason Alaska had remained unscathed is because everything in this state is 10 years behind the continental United States. So at some point in 2020 we will all be thriving again while Alaska will be hit with this sudden economic downturn...
On a serious note, a lot of what SEARHC has given to their patients in the past is very old fashioned and uniformed. A tri-fold brochure, an 8" x 10" poster - things that do not take into account the ever growing influence technology has on our society. My proposal contains a lot of technological integration - recognizing that the patient base is constantly connected on their cell phones or their computers. I'm hoping that our ideas will be accepted as the evolution of patient education and not as a knock against the conservative Tlingit culture.
After lunch, I spent the afternoon continuing to make my patient phone calls. I can continue the telephone survey through the end of the week and compile that data over the weekend. As I look back at where I started 7 weeks ago it is hard to believe that I have dialed over 300 numbers in the past few weeks.
I have definitely had better nights than I had tonight. Between the Cardinals 9th inning implosion (and the stampede of nasty text messages from my friends that quickly followed) and my mysterious Alaskan rash, I am just about ready for bed. The rash is nothing too serious. I spoke with Dr. Bornstein and he said the only rash I would have gotten from Alaska is if I was running through the brush without a shirt on and happened to stumble upon some nettles. Since I tip toe through the brush, fully-clothed because of my fear of bears that could not be the cause of the rash. I took some Benedryl and am hoping a good night of sleep will do the trick.
Off to bed and ready for a busy day tomorrow...
I began to outline the six month cycle for my patient education material today. Once I compiled all of the research data I began to summarize and recount all that had gone into compiling the data, why I felt it was important, etc. This report will eventually go to Dr. Bornstein for approval (hopefully by Wednesday afternoon) and editing to make sure the things we want to do will not be considered too radical or unacceptable by SEARHC standards.
On Sunday night at the Hort's somebody mused that Alaska had not been hit too hard by the economic recession and that the housing market had actually thrived in the past few years. I joked that the reason Alaska had remained unscathed is because everything in this state is 10 years behind the continental United States. So at some point in 2020 we will all be thriving again while Alaska will be hit with this sudden economic downturn...
On a serious note, a lot of what SEARHC has given to their patients in the past is very old fashioned and uniformed. A tri-fold brochure, an 8" x 10" poster - things that do not take into account the ever growing influence technology has on our society. My proposal contains a lot of technological integration - recognizing that the patient base is constantly connected on their cell phones or their computers. I'm hoping that our ideas will be accepted as the evolution of patient education and not as a knock against the conservative Tlingit culture.
After lunch, I spent the afternoon continuing to make my patient phone calls. I can continue the telephone survey through the end of the week and compile that data over the weekend. As I look back at where I started 7 weeks ago it is hard to believe that I have dialed over 300 numbers in the past few weeks.
I have definitely had better nights than I had tonight. Between the Cardinals 9th inning implosion (and the stampede of nasty text messages from my friends that quickly followed) and my mysterious Alaskan rash, I am just about ready for bed. The rash is nothing too serious. I spoke with Dr. Bornstein and he said the only rash I would have gotten from Alaska is if I was running through the brush without a shirt on and happened to stumble upon some nettles. Since I tip toe through the brush, fully-clothed because of my fear of bears that could not be the cause of the rash. I took some Benedryl and am hoping a good night of sleep will do the trick.
Off to bed and ready for a busy day tomorrow...
Monday, July 5, 2010
Day 50 - **New pictures**
Not a whole lot going on today - the clinic was closed so I had the day off. Spent the day relaxing and doing a whole lot of nothing. Tomorrow I start developing the patient education material and putting a final product together.
I am definitely entering the backstretch and can see the finish in sight.
I am definitely entering the backstretch and can see the finish in sight.
Day 49 - 4th of July
Today was a fun day, but definitely not the 4th of July I have become accustomed too. I woke up early and drove downtown with some people from the SEARHC office to get a good spot for the Juneau parade. The weather was awful - 40 degrees, freezing cold rain, and a strong wind - but we all stood huddled together as the parade started.
The parade was pretty cool. It was a collection of flat bed trucks decorated by local politicians and organizations. Every float throws candy to the kids lining the parade route, and kids collect this candy in large pillowcases. It is like Halloween in July. It was interesting to see the mix of Tlingit culture and American culture during the parade. The parade then continued over to Douglas Island and ended at Sandy Beach where there was lots of food and fair type activities. We drove over to Sandy Beach and ate hot dogs (trying to make it seem like the 4th of July even though the weather was better suited for Thanksgiving) before eventually succumbing to the numbing rain.
I never pictured myself huddled under a blanket in my bed, drinking hot tea on the 4th of July. I think I can say with absolute certainty that I will be spending every future 4th in a location with a minimum temperature of 80 degrees.
After warming up and getting some rest, the group went out to dinner at a restaurant called The Hanger. It's right on the harbor and one side of the restaurant is a giant window where you can look out over Douglas Island and see the cruise ships passing by. After dinner, we all congregated at Dr. Hort's house to wait for the midnight fireworks show. We were all skeptical that the city was going to shoot off the fireworks since the weather did not appear to be any nicer than it was yesterday when everything was canceled.
However, come 12:01 AM on July 5th, we finally got our 4th of July fireworks show. Because Juneau is surrounded by mountains on all sides the "boom" from the fireworks echoed for minutes at a time, trapped in between the mountains. That's about it for the 4th. I have tomorrow off so I'll have to find a way to keep myself busy before going back to work on Tuesday.
The parade was pretty cool. It was a collection of flat bed trucks decorated by local politicians and organizations. Every float throws candy to the kids lining the parade route, and kids collect this candy in large pillowcases. It is like Halloween in July. It was interesting to see the mix of Tlingit culture and American culture during the parade. The parade then continued over to Douglas Island and ended at Sandy Beach where there was lots of food and fair type activities. We drove over to Sandy Beach and ate hot dogs (trying to make it seem like the 4th of July even though the weather was better suited for Thanksgiving) before eventually succumbing to the numbing rain.
I never pictured myself huddled under a blanket in my bed, drinking hot tea on the 4th of July. I think I can say with absolute certainty that I will be spending every future 4th in a location with a minimum temperature of 80 degrees.
After warming up and getting some rest, the group went out to dinner at a restaurant called The Hanger. It's right on the harbor and one side of the restaurant is a giant window where you can look out over Douglas Island and see the cruise ships passing by. After dinner, we all congregated at Dr. Hort's house to wait for the midnight fireworks show. We were all skeptical that the city was going to shoot off the fireworks since the weather did not appear to be any nicer than it was yesterday when everything was canceled.
However, come 12:01 AM on July 5th, we finally got our 4th of July fireworks show. Because Juneau is surrounded by mountains on all sides the "boom" from the fireworks echoed for minutes at a time, trapped in between the mountains. That's about it for the 4th. I have tomorrow off so I'll have to find a way to keep myself busy before going back to work on Tuesday.
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Day 48 - 24 hours worth of rain
When I woke up today it was raining, and as I prepare to go to bed it is still raining outside. To top it off, at no time in between was it ever not raining. Welcome to Southeast Alaska! Dr. Dee is out of town this weekend, but he left me the key to his apartment so I could go over there and do laundry. He also has a TV, a nice leather couch, and wireless internet so I decided to spend the day there. Between all of the traveling and my busy schedule I have not gotten a chance to do laundry many times - there are some articles of clothing that have been in the bottom of my laundry basket so long I forgot I brought them to Alaska with me.
In the afternoon I met up with the Wilkinson's and went to the movies. We saw two movies - Toy Story 3 and Grown Ups. It was a good way to spend a rainy Saturday afternoon. We all had dinner at The Valley Restaurant and then headed back home.
Usually, Juneau has a fireworks show at midnight on July 3rd since it is too bright until about 11 on the 4th. However, due to the poor weather, the fireworks were delayed until tomorrow (the 4th) at midnight. So I went from potentially being one of the first people to celebrate the 4th of July with fireworks to probably being the last. Tomorrow there is a big parade and carnival downtown so I hope that the weather clears up. I have gotten used to the rain, but I hope it warms up a bit to make it feel a bit more like the 4th of July I am used to.
In the afternoon I met up with the Wilkinson's and went to the movies. We saw two movies - Toy Story 3 and Grown Ups. It was a good way to spend a rainy Saturday afternoon. We all had dinner at The Valley Restaurant and then headed back home.
Usually, Juneau has a fireworks show at midnight on July 3rd since it is too bright until about 11 on the 4th. However, due to the poor weather, the fireworks were delayed until tomorrow (the 4th) at midnight. So I went from potentially being one of the first people to celebrate the 4th of July with fireworks to probably being the last. Tomorrow there is a big parade and carnival downtown so I hope that the weather clears up. I have gotten used to the rain, but I hope it warms up a bit to make it feel a bit more like the 4th of July I am used to.
Friday, July 2, 2010
Day 47 - Another week down
Things are still going very well 7 weeks into my summer project. I just wrapped up my surveying and interviewing yesterday. The month of June was very exciting as I got to travel all throughout Southeast Alaska. I got interesting perspective from tiny villages such as Hoonah and from large, regional hospitals like in Sitka. In between, I managed to visit SEARHC's only clinic that serves non natives (Haines), and took a day trip to Skagway right on the U.S./Canada border. It's been a whirlwind month, but it's been a month that has shown me lots of different perspectives, mindsets, and beliefs. My project would not have had the same meaning had I not been able to travel (by land, boat, and air!), so I am thankful to SEARHC for giving me that opportunity and an unbelievable amount of freedom. Just last night I compiled all of the data and met with Dr. Hort to discuss where to go from here. We have come up with a pretty unique plan - one that should ensure that the work I have done here will carry on long after I am gone.
Since we decided to focus on the OB subgroup, our education material will focus on oral health related to the pregnancy cycle. One of the main things that we found out in our interviewing was that patients really only are interested in receiving education material at appointments, basically they only want to learn if they are not being inconvenienced. This is perfect when dealing with OB patients because they are frequently visiting the OBGYN and coming in and out of the medical comlpex on SEARHC's campus. The dental clinic has a presence in the medical complex so there is an easy connection between two. We will now work to design a monthly program that will give these pregnant women access to prenatal oral health information in a variety of ways. The program will be structured so that women are receiving something monthly, culminating in a dental gift basket following the birth of their child. The education material will be part of a six month cycle, starting in the third month of pregnancy. Women will receive something new from the dental clinic each month in a different manner.
We think this will be an effective way of distributing patient education material for multiple reasons. First, surveying allowed us to conclude that there is not one clear cut method in which people prefer to receive educational materials. Some love the concept of utilizing technologies such as email and text message, whereas other are completely satisfied receiving brochures or pamphlets. By setting up a monthly program that can correlate to a woman's pregnancy schedule, we can utilize many different methods of distribution. Possibly a brochure at month three, a conversation with a dental team member at month five, an informational video at month seven, and a gift at month nine. This is just an example, but the concept of diversifying the way in which we are reaching out to patients should ensure that people will find at least one effective piece of information as they go through the process.
Also, we found that there are three or four main pieces of information that these women are interested in learning about. So by creating a system in which they are receiving something new each month we are ensuring that everyone has an opportunity to learn many different things. This goes hand-in-hand with the concept of offering a variety of ways to distribute the education materials. Again, we think this will prove to be effective because it will ensure that people won't be bored by information fed to them over and over, time and time again. The patients will have access to lots of different information so they can always be on the lookout for something new.
I am really looking forward to working hard over the next two weeks to make this goal a reality. In addition to the patient education material, I will be submitting a report to Dr. Bornstein and Dr. Sohonage (the two directors of the dental clinic) detailing the results of my telephone survey on why people are continually missing their appointments. This data should prove useful in creating a more peaceful union between the dental staff and the administrative staff in the clinics. By interviwing so many patients in so many diverse locations I have really had an opportunity to gain a perspective that most in the SEARHC organization have not. I have, in a sense, started to think like a SEARHC patient and will give them a voice in my report and education materials that they wouldn't have otherwise had the opportunity to express or receive.
Besides the excitement of finally compiling data and finishing up a few telephone surveys, I had an opportunity to go hiking with Dr. Bornstein and Sam after work today. Among the cooler things about living in Alaska is that there is an endless amount of time to each day. Even if you work until 5 or 6 you still have a good 5 hours of daylight to go out hiking or exploring. This can also turn into a bit of curse because sometimes you are laying in bed at 10 PM and see it's still bright outside and kick yourself for not taking advantage of the extra hours of light. Today, Dr. Bornstein, Sam, and I went off to the East Glacier Trail. I have hiked this trail before, but not like I hiked it today. We veered off of the main path onto a small auxiliary path towards some old mining camps. Juneau has a storied history of mining, and many of the trails still have remains of old mining equipment. We hiked on old pipelines and sat and rested in camps filled with rusted stoves, pots, and pans. We even got to hike in a small cave that lead to the generator that powered a lot of the mining equipment. And, to top it off, it did not rain today!
After the hike, I went over to the Bornstein residence for dinner. We had fresh halibut caught from Fred Meyer Superstore. We concluded the night with an intense game of Bananagrams before I came back to the dorm. Today was an exciting day and a great kickoff to the final two week push of my project. Looking forward to an exciting 4th of July weekend...
Since we decided to focus on the OB subgroup, our education material will focus on oral health related to the pregnancy cycle. One of the main things that we found out in our interviewing was that patients really only are interested in receiving education material at appointments, basically they only want to learn if they are not being inconvenienced. This is perfect when dealing with OB patients because they are frequently visiting the OBGYN and coming in and out of the medical comlpex on SEARHC's campus. The dental clinic has a presence in the medical complex so there is an easy connection between two. We will now work to design a monthly program that will give these pregnant women access to prenatal oral health information in a variety of ways. The program will be structured so that women are receiving something monthly, culminating in a dental gift basket following the birth of their child. The education material will be part of a six month cycle, starting in the third month of pregnancy. Women will receive something new from the dental clinic each month in a different manner.
We think this will be an effective way of distributing patient education material for multiple reasons. First, surveying allowed us to conclude that there is not one clear cut method in which people prefer to receive educational materials. Some love the concept of utilizing technologies such as email and text message, whereas other are completely satisfied receiving brochures or pamphlets. By setting up a monthly program that can correlate to a woman's pregnancy schedule, we can utilize many different methods of distribution. Possibly a brochure at month three, a conversation with a dental team member at month five, an informational video at month seven, and a gift at month nine. This is just an example, but the concept of diversifying the way in which we are reaching out to patients should ensure that people will find at least one effective piece of information as they go through the process.
Also, we found that there are three or four main pieces of information that these women are interested in learning about. So by creating a system in which they are receiving something new each month we are ensuring that everyone has an opportunity to learn many different things. This goes hand-in-hand with the concept of offering a variety of ways to distribute the education materials. Again, we think this will prove to be effective because it will ensure that people won't be bored by information fed to them over and over, time and time again. The patients will have access to lots of different information so they can always be on the lookout for something new.
I am really looking forward to working hard over the next two weeks to make this goal a reality. In addition to the patient education material, I will be submitting a report to Dr. Bornstein and Dr. Sohonage (the two directors of the dental clinic) detailing the results of my telephone survey on why people are continually missing their appointments. This data should prove useful in creating a more peaceful union between the dental staff and the administrative staff in the clinics. By interviwing so many patients in so many diverse locations I have really had an opportunity to gain a perspective that most in the SEARHC organization have not. I have, in a sense, started to think like a SEARHC patient and will give them a voice in my report and education materials that they wouldn't have otherwise had the opportunity to express or receive.
Besides the excitement of finally compiling data and finishing up a few telephone surveys, I had an opportunity to go hiking with Dr. Bornstein and Sam after work today. Among the cooler things about living in Alaska is that there is an endless amount of time to each day. Even if you work until 5 or 6 you still have a good 5 hours of daylight to go out hiking or exploring. This can also turn into a bit of curse because sometimes you are laying in bed at 10 PM and see it's still bright outside and kick yourself for not taking advantage of the extra hours of light. Today, Dr. Bornstein, Sam, and I went off to the East Glacier Trail. I have hiked this trail before, but not like I hiked it today. We veered off of the main path onto a small auxiliary path towards some old mining camps. Juneau has a storied history of mining, and many of the trails still have remains of old mining equipment. We hiked on old pipelines and sat and rested in camps filled with rusted stoves, pots, and pans. We even got to hike in a small cave that lead to the generator that powered a lot of the mining equipment. And, to top it off, it did not rain today!
After the hike, I went over to the Bornstein residence for dinner. We had fresh halibut caught from Fred Meyer Superstore. We concluded the night with an intense game of Bananagrams before I came back to the dorm. Today was an exciting day and a great kickoff to the final two week push of my project. Looking forward to an exciting 4th of July weekend...
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Day 45 - Sitka, AK wrap-up
A busy morning on my final day in Sitka. I woke up early, ate breakfast, and spent a few hours in the dental clinic saying goodbye to those who were so nice and accommodating during my few days in Sitka. I also got a bit of work done since I can now compile all of the data from OB interviews in Sitka. Tomorrow is my last full day of surveying and interviewing. It's been a fun and interesting few weeks, but I am definitely ready to move on and put all of my information and data to good use.
I caught the Community Ride to the ferry terminal and headed back to Juneau. The ferry was just pulling away as the Cardinals were batting in the bottom on the ninth inning, trailing by 2 runs. Matt Holliday has just singled, bringing the tying run to the plate when, suddenly, I lost cell service. I spent the entire 4 hour ferry ride on edge until my phone finally regained cell coverage a few miles from Juneau and I could check the final score.
Of my 45 days in Alaska, today was by far the worst weather I have experienced. When I left Sitka it was raining sideways, so I was relieved when the ferry docked in Juneau and the rain had slowed to a slight drizzle. Unfortunately, the temperature had also dropped to the mid 40's which is not something my body is used to on June 30th.
I got back to the dorm and ate before quickly crashing into bed. Some days I have no problems staying up until 10 or 11 PM, but days like today it is hard to stay up past 7:30 or 8 (even with the sun still shining brightly!). Traveling takes a lot out of you, so I am glad that I will be in Juneau for the duration. It will also be nice to spend some time on the UAS campus. Tonight will only be the 7th night I have spent in the dorm since June 1st. I think that speaks to the amount of exploring and traveling I have been able to do and how that traveling has made my experience in Alaska much more rich and diverse. This trip has been a real lesson in independence, commitment, and learning. I couldn't have asked for a better experience up to this point...
I caught the Community Ride to the ferry terminal and headed back to Juneau. The ferry was just pulling away as the Cardinals were batting in the bottom on the ninth inning, trailing by 2 runs. Matt Holliday has just singled, bringing the tying run to the plate when, suddenly, I lost cell service. I spent the entire 4 hour ferry ride on edge until my phone finally regained cell coverage a few miles from Juneau and I could check the final score.
Of my 45 days in Alaska, today was by far the worst weather I have experienced. When I left Sitka it was raining sideways, so I was relieved when the ferry docked in Juneau and the rain had slowed to a slight drizzle. Unfortunately, the temperature had also dropped to the mid 40's which is not something my body is used to on June 30th.
I got back to the dorm and ate before quickly crashing into bed. Some days I have no problems staying up until 10 or 11 PM, but days like today it is hard to stay up past 7:30 or 8 (even with the sun still shining brightly!). Traveling takes a lot out of you, so I am glad that I will be in Juneau for the duration. It will also be nice to spend some time on the UAS campus. Tonight will only be the 7th night I have spent in the dorm since June 1st. I think that speaks to the amount of exploring and traveling I have been able to do and how that traveling has made my experience in Alaska much more rich and diverse. This trip has been a real lesson in independence, commitment, and learning. I couldn't have asked for a better experience up to this point...
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Day 44 - Sitka, AK v.2.0
Spent my second day in the OB clinic in Sitka today. But, before that, I spent the morning in the dental clinic talking with Colleen, the receptionist, and a few of the dental assistants - explaining my surveying and how I thought it could help the SEARHC organization better serve their patients. It is always interesting to hear the perspective of someone like Colleen who has been at SEARHC for many years because those people have insight into the evolution of the organization and what has worked in the past and what ideas were not quite as effective.
This morning I also had a run-in with a patient. I was walking through the clinic when I suddenly I saw a woman pointing at me an Colleen responding, "Yep, that's him." After the patient left, I asked Colleen why the patient had wanted to know who I was. Apparently, I called her during my phone survey and she was none too happy to receive my call. She felt scolded and disrespected by my call. It is funny to think of the different ways people interpret things. From a provider standpoint, I think that the phone calls are a great opportunity for patients to offer some feedback to dentists and administrators and explain why they weren't at an appointment. Further, the information the patients provide will eventually make their health care experience much more seamless and accessible. The patients do not appear to be having the same interpretation. Intriguing and interesting.
I also had the opportunity to make a few phone calls since one of the Sitka dentists was not in the office today. My numbers are climbing and the trends and reasons for missed appointments are becoming very clear. Dr. West, one of the dentists from Juneau, was in Sitka helping out in the orthodontics clinic so it was nice to see a familiar face and have someone to eat lunch with today.
I spent the afternoon in the OB clinic interviewing the patients who had an appointment. Last week, Valerie convinced 15 women to take my survey so that made up for the fact that there were only 8 patients the last time I was in Sitka. The afternoon got off to a good start as I interviewed the first round of women without a hitch. About an hour into the afternoon the women suddenly stopped coming over to speak with me. About that time, I overheard a patient talking angrily to the front desk worker. She was apparently furious about having an extra person in the exam room while she was interacting with the OBGYN.
She stormed over to the area where I was sitting and sat with her arms crossed. Valerie motioned over that I should avoid her at all costs so, what did I do?, went over and spoke with her. Before I could get a word out she said to me, "I don't understand. You are working for the dental clinic, why do you have to come into the exam room and observe?" Needless to say, I was a bit taken aback and confused. After explaining to her that I had absolutely no interest in being a part of her examination and that I only had a few questions her stance softened and we laughed about the misunderstanding.
One of the front office workers had gotten her signals crossed and did not completely understand the premise of my surveying. She thought that I was going to have to be in the exam room with the women during their invasive procedures. When the front desk worker was asking these women if I could be in the room with them she was offending them and, in turn, allowing them to opt out of my survey. Once I figured this out I explained that I, without a doubt, had no interest in shadowing during the actual physical and that I wanted no part of the inside of the examination room. Once we wrinkled out this small detail I had no problem getting plenty of interviews completed.
After that excitement, the rest of the day was pretty uneventful. I watched the Cardinals game (I'm not a machine, OK. I'm just Albert...) and took advantage of the free access to the weight room. Just finished packing my bag because I am heading back to Juneau tomorrow morning.
Hard to believe I have less than 20 days left in Alaska...
This morning I also had a run-in with a patient. I was walking through the clinic when I suddenly I saw a woman pointing at me an Colleen responding, "Yep, that's him." After the patient left, I asked Colleen why the patient had wanted to know who I was. Apparently, I called her during my phone survey and she was none too happy to receive my call. She felt scolded and disrespected by my call. It is funny to think of the different ways people interpret things. From a provider standpoint, I think that the phone calls are a great opportunity for patients to offer some feedback to dentists and administrators and explain why they weren't at an appointment. Further, the information the patients provide will eventually make their health care experience much more seamless and accessible. The patients do not appear to be having the same interpretation. Intriguing and interesting.
I also had the opportunity to make a few phone calls since one of the Sitka dentists was not in the office today. My numbers are climbing and the trends and reasons for missed appointments are becoming very clear. Dr. West, one of the dentists from Juneau, was in Sitka helping out in the orthodontics clinic so it was nice to see a familiar face and have someone to eat lunch with today.
I spent the afternoon in the OB clinic interviewing the patients who had an appointment. Last week, Valerie convinced 15 women to take my survey so that made up for the fact that there were only 8 patients the last time I was in Sitka. The afternoon got off to a good start as I interviewed the first round of women without a hitch. About an hour into the afternoon the women suddenly stopped coming over to speak with me. About that time, I overheard a patient talking angrily to the front desk worker. She was apparently furious about having an extra person in the exam room while she was interacting with the OBGYN.
She stormed over to the area where I was sitting and sat with her arms crossed. Valerie motioned over that I should avoid her at all costs so, what did I do?, went over and spoke with her. Before I could get a word out she said to me, "I don't understand. You are working for the dental clinic, why do you have to come into the exam room and observe?" Needless to say, I was a bit taken aback and confused. After explaining to her that I had absolutely no interest in being a part of her examination and that I only had a few questions her stance softened and we laughed about the misunderstanding.
One of the front office workers had gotten her signals crossed and did not completely understand the premise of my surveying. She thought that I was going to have to be in the exam room with the women during their invasive procedures. When the front desk worker was asking these women if I could be in the room with them she was offending them and, in turn, allowing them to opt out of my survey. Once I figured this out I explained that I, without a doubt, had no interest in shadowing during the actual physical and that I wanted no part of the inside of the examination room. Once we wrinkled out this small detail I had no problem getting plenty of interviews completed.
After that excitement, the rest of the day was pretty uneventful. I watched the Cardinals game (I'm not a machine, OK. I'm just Albert...) and took advantage of the free access to the weight room. Just finished packing my bag because I am heading back to Juneau tomorrow morning.
Hard to believe I have less than 20 days left in Alaska...
Monday, June 28, 2010
Day 43 - Back to Sitka, AK
Today I sailed on the ferry to Sitka, AK for the second time. This will be my fourth and final trip of the summer. On one hand, I am really glad I got to see lots of the Southeastern part of the state but, on the other hand, it will be nice to settle down and spend the last 2 and a half weeks in Juneau - sleeping in the same bed every night, interacting with people I know, and falling back into a routine. Of the 30 days in June I probably spent only 4 or 5 in my UAS housing. In addition to getting to settle back into a routine, I also won't have to hear my alarm go off at 6 AM to catch another ferry or plane until I head back home July 18th!
The ferry ride was pretty neat today. For some reason, the were a whole bunch of humpback whales the surrounded the vessel the entire ride. It was neat to see them shoot off spouts of water and breach. The ferry vessel has a naturalist aboard who comes over the intercom every time he sees wildlife in the water or on the nearby shorelines. Since there were so many whales today he came on every 5 minutes, "Whales starboard" or "Whales port side". His messages were followed by the boat's passengers running from one side of the ferry to another, crawling over each other hoping to catch a two second glimpse of a whale 500 yards away. It was like a 4 hour track meet from one side of the boat to another. Definitely not an environment conducive to sleeping.
I learned from my mistake last time and avoided a costly taxi from the ferry terminal to Mt. Edgecumbe Hospital. Instead, I utilized the Community Ride to get around town and get to my housing. The housing staff was prepared for my arrival this time - no surprises - and they even had a couple of extra perks that I did not have the last time. I now get access to the short term housing weight room and I was given the security password for the wireless internet connection in my room.
I spent just a few hours in the clinic today collecting phone numbers and gearing up for the final few days of surveying. Last time I was in Sitka the weather was really cold and rainy, but today was sunny and warm so I decided to see some parts of the city I didn't get to see the last time I was here. I took the Community Ride to Whale Park (since I didn't get enough whale viewing on the ferry). The park was really nice. There were boardwalks that went down to the coastline and there were binoculars that you could use to look out into the water to try and spot whales, sea lions, seals, or anything else that lives in the ocean. I was going to try and walk to the nearby Bear Fortress, a bear rehabilitation center, but as soon as I started to head in that direction it began to rain.
Instead, I went back into downtown Sitka and ate dinner. I ate at a Mexican place called Agave. Most of their food is cooked with Agave nectar, a honey like substance, and it was pretty good. Even though I get the meals from the diet office I felt I could let loose on a well-deserved, good meal after 6 weeks of hard work. On my way back to the hospital I stopped at historic Castle Hill. Initially, Castle Hill was an important spot for the Tlingit natives. Since it is elevated, the Tlingits built many of their most important buildings atop this hill. Eventually, the Russians invaded Sitka and overtook the hill, using it as an important epicenter for their enormous fur trade. In modern history, Castle Hill holds a lot of importance to the statehooddd of Alaska. When the US government purchased Alaska from Russia, Castle Hill was the ceremonial location where the Russian flag was lowered and the US flag was raised for the first time. Also, once Alaska became the 49th state of the United States, the first flag with 49 stars flew at Castle Hill.
Other than that there wasn't much going on today. Tomorrow will be busy with phone calls and surveying in the morning and patient interviewing in the OB clinic all afternoon. I am excited to see how many OB patients filled out the surveys I left with Valerie last week. I also want to stop by and meet with Martha Pearson and Litia Garrison again to update them on the progression of ideas for my patient education material.
Early morning this morning so that means an early night tonight...
The ferry ride was pretty neat today. For some reason, the were a whole bunch of humpback whales the surrounded the vessel the entire ride. It was neat to see them shoot off spouts of water and breach. The ferry vessel has a naturalist aboard who comes over the intercom every time he sees wildlife in the water or on the nearby shorelines. Since there were so many whales today he came on every 5 minutes, "Whales starboard" or "Whales port side". His messages were followed by the boat's passengers running from one side of the ferry to another, crawling over each other hoping to catch a two second glimpse of a whale 500 yards away. It was like a 4 hour track meet from one side of the boat to another. Definitely not an environment conducive to sleeping.
I learned from my mistake last time and avoided a costly taxi from the ferry terminal to Mt. Edgecumbe Hospital. Instead, I utilized the Community Ride to get around town and get to my housing. The housing staff was prepared for my arrival this time - no surprises - and they even had a couple of extra perks that I did not have the last time. I now get access to the short term housing weight room and I was given the security password for the wireless internet connection in my room.
I spent just a few hours in the clinic today collecting phone numbers and gearing up for the final few days of surveying. Last time I was in Sitka the weather was really cold and rainy, but today was sunny and warm so I decided to see some parts of the city I didn't get to see the last time I was here. I took the Community Ride to Whale Park (since I didn't get enough whale viewing on the ferry). The park was really nice. There were boardwalks that went down to the coastline and there were binoculars that you could use to look out into the water to try and spot whales, sea lions, seals, or anything else that lives in the ocean. I was going to try and walk to the nearby Bear Fortress, a bear rehabilitation center, but as soon as I started to head in that direction it began to rain.
Instead, I went back into downtown Sitka and ate dinner. I ate at a Mexican place called Agave. Most of their food is cooked with Agave nectar, a honey like substance, and it was pretty good. Even though I get the meals from the diet office I felt I could let loose on a well-deserved, good meal after 6 weeks of hard work. On my way back to the hospital I stopped at historic Castle Hill. Initially, Castle Hill was an important spot for the Tlingit natives. Since it is elevated, the Tlingits built many of their most important buildings atop this hill. Eventually, the Russians invaded Sitka and overtook the hill, using it as an important epicenter for their enormous fur trade. In modern history, Castle Hill holds a lot of importance to the statehooddd of Alaska. When the US government purchased Alaska from Russia, Castle Hill was the ceremonial location where the Russian flag was lowered and the US flag was raised for the first time. Also, once Alaska became the 49th state of the United States, the first flag with 49 stars flew at Castle Hill.
Other than that there wasn't much going on today. Tomorrow will be busy with phone calls and surveying in the morning and patient interviewing in the OB clinic all afternoon. I am excited to see how many OB patients filled out the surveys I left with Valerie last week. I also want to stop by and meet with Martha Pearson and Litia Garrison again to update them on the progression of ideas for my patient education material.
Early morning this morning so that means an early night tonight...
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Day 42 - Juneau lumberjacks
There is a breakfast place that is about a 3 minute walk from my dorm room. People say it is pretty good and, after eating there today, my only question is - how did it take me six weeks to eat there for the first time? I met the Wilkinsons, Dr. Dee, and Dr. West for breakfast at Southeast Waffle Company. The food was pretty good and the conversation was even better.
After breakfast (if a meal eaten at noon can still be counted as breakfast), we all went over to Douglas Island to spend the day at Gold Rush Days. The Gold Rush Days are a two day festival that highlights the logging and mining history of Juneau and the rest of Southeast Alaska. Yesterday, there was an exhibition of mining skills and today there was a group of lumberjacks that showcased their talents.
There were lots of bleachers set up around a huge pit filled with various tools and piles of wood. There were lots of neat skills showcases all throughout the day. We saw women throwing axes above their heads towards a target about 15 feet away. There was also a man who made a chair out of stump of wood using only a chainsaw. In addition, we saw the two person saw competition (where two people move a handsaw back and forth to saw of a slice of wood from a tree) and the tree climbing competition (you have to look at the pictures I posted to completely comprehend how cool it was). Each exhibition was pretty neat, but I think that everyone can agree that the highlight of the day was the log roll.
The was a huge tree trunk in the middle of a 4 foot deep pit of freezing cold water. The lumberjacks took turns competing against each other in a 2 out of 3 contest to see who could stay on the log the longest. Even though there were winners and losers, the crowd won every time because we got to see big, strong men and women flailing face first into the ice cold swimming pool. The looks on their faces and their accidentally audible curse words from sheer shock of hitting the water kept the crowds thoroughly entertained for a good hour. Besides the lumberjack competition, there was also the traditional fair staple - food on a stick - which kept us busy during the downtime in between events.
For dinner we all went to the Island Pub for pizza. All in all, between the weather and the company, it was a pretty fun Sunday. Tomorrow I leave for Sitka for my final few days of travel. Let's hope that Karen has my room ready so that my arrival will be much more seamless than the last time I showed up a few weeks ago...
**New pictures added**
After breakfast (if a meal eaten at noon can still be counted as breakfast), we all went over to Douglas Island to spend the day at Gold Rush Days. The Gold Rush Days are a two day festival that highlights the logging and mining history of Juneau and the rest of Southeast Alaska. Yesterday, there was an exhibition of mining skills and today there was a group of lumberjacks that showcased their talents.
There were lots of bleachers set up around a huge pit filled with various tools and piles of wood. There were lots of neat skills showcases all throughout the day. We saw women throwing axes above their heads towards a target about 15 feet away. There was also a man who made a chair out of stump of wood using only a chainsaw. In addition, we saw the two person saw competition (where two people move a handsaw back and forth to saw of a slice of wood from a tree) and the tree climbing competition (you have to look at the pictures I posted to completely comprehend how cool it was). Each exhibition was pretty neat, but I think that everyone can agree that the highlight of the day was the log roll.
The was a huge tree trunk in the middle of a 4 foot deep pit of freezing cold water. The lumberjacks took turns competing against each other in a 2 out of 3 contest to see who could stay on the log the longest. Even though there were winners and losers, the crowd won every time because we got to see big, strong men and women flailing face first into the ice cold swimming pool. The looks on their faces and their accidentally audible curse words from sheer shock of hitting the water kept the crowds thoroughly entertained for a good hour. Besides the lumberjack competition, there was also the traditional fair staple - food on a stick - which kept us busy during the downtime in between events.
For dinner we all went to the Island Pub for pizza. All in all, between the weather and the company, it was a pretty fun Sunday. Tomorrow I leave for Sitka for my final few days of travel. Let's hope that Karen has my room ready so that my arrival will be much more seamless than the last time I showed up a few weeks ago...
**New pictures added**
Day 41 - Only Fools Run at Midnight
I took the ferry back to Juneau this morning, but instead of taking the fast Fairweather vessel I took the slower, bigger Malaspina. The Malaspina moves at about 15 knots as compared to the 30 or 32 knots at which the Fairweather travels. Also, the Malaspina is much bigger with more space and amenities on the ship. There is a huge movie theater, a bigger cafeteria, and berths to spend time in or sleep in if you are going to be on the ferry overnight. I spent most of the ride on the top deck under the solarium. It's pretty neat because it is either a great place to sit when the sun is out and also when it isn't so sunny because there are large heaters that are fairly warm. I got cell service on the top deck so I sat up there and listened to the Cardinals game and tracked the World Cup on my phone.
After we docked in Juneau, Lisa Cone took me back to UAS. I spent the afternoon doing laundry and picking upa few groceries. It was really cold and rainy yesterday so it was not a good day to go out and do anything. Around 8 o'clock I went out to dinner with some people from the office and then I went off for the highlight of my day.
Tonight was the Only Fools Run at Midnight 5K. The race benefits SAIL (Southeast Alaska Independent Living) which is an organization that helps adults with special needs find independent living arrangements and job opportunities so that the can be a bigger part of mainstream society. There were about 10 or 12 people from the office who ran so we all met early to hang out and take pictures (the less dedicated runners/walkers also wandered over to a nearby bar to "carbo-load").
One of the coolest features of the race is that nearly everybody dresses up and attaches themselves to a giant rope to run as centipedes. There were some pretty elaborate costumes. The best costumes won prizes like whale watching trips, plane tickets to Glacier Bay, and signed items from the pride and joy of Juneau, AK - Carlos Boozer. If only I knew the prizes were so good I would have tried something a bit more creative that the dental theme.
Of course, even neater than the costumes, was the fact that we got to start the race at 11:59 PM and run through the streets of Juneau at midnight. Everyone dresses themselves in glow sticks so all you can see during the race are streaks of neon. It was a really neat experience and the t-shirt is definitely a great souvenir.
Off to bed since it's really, really late. Not much going on tomorrow. I'm hoping for good weather so I can spend some time outside...
After we docked in Juneau, Lisa Cone took me back to UAS. I spent the afternoon doing laundry and picking upa few groceries. It was really cold and rainy yesterday so it was not a good day to go out and do anything. Around 8 o'clock I went out to dinner with some people from the office and then I went off for the highlight of my day.
Tonight was the Only Fools Run at Midnight 5K. The race benefits SAIL (Southeast Alaska Independent Living) which is an organization that helps adults with special needs find independent living arrangements and job opportunities so that the can be a bigger part of mainstream society. There were about 10 or 12 people from the office who ran so we all met early to hang out and take pictures (the less dedicated runners/walkers also wandered over to a nearby bar to "carbo-load").
One of the coolest features of the race is that nearly everybody dresses up and attaches themselves to a giant rope to run as centipedes. There were some pretty elaborate costumes. The best costumes won prizes like whale watching trips, plane tickets to Glacier Bay, and signed items from the pride and joy of Juneau, AK - Carlos Boozer. If only I knew the prizes were so good I would have tried something a bit more creative that the dental theme.
Of course, even neater than the costumes, was the fact that we got to start the race at 11:59 PM and run through the streets of Juneau at midnight. Everyone dresses themselves in glow sticks so all you can see during the race are streaks of neon. It was a really neat experience and the t-shirt is definitely a great souvenir.
Off to bed since it's really, really late. Not much going on tomorrow. I'm hoping for good weather so I can spend some time outside...
Friday, June 25, 2010
Day 40 - Haines, AK Day 6
Hard to believe I've been in Haines for 6 days now, even harder to believe that this is my 40th day in Alaska! I went into the clinic in the morning to do my standard Friday phone calls, but the dentists in the Haines clinic do not work on Friday afternoons so I left around noon.
I met up with Sean Cone and we decided to go fishing since the rain finally stopped. I had to go and buy a fishing license because the fish and gaming commission is very strict on who can fish, how many fish you can keep, and the size and length of those fish.
There are a lot of neat intricacies to fishing in Alaska, but none more interesting than the arrangement with Canadian residents in Alaska. Residents of Canada can come to Alaska and purchase a fishing license at the in-state rate (the price difference is equivalent to going to a state university and not being from that state, albeit not on that scale!) and bring fish back across the border. It's a great deal because salmon fishing in Alaska is much better than in British Columbia or the Yukon so residents of those parts of Canada can make the easy day trip into Haines or another Southeast community, clean up on fish, and then drive back home and have a sockeye filet for dinner.
Unfortunately, the Canadian government does not extend the same luxuries to American citizens that hunt and fish in Canadian provinces. Canada, specifically the parts mentioned above, has a much higher population of deer, caribou, and moose than does Alaska. Despite the fact that the Alaskan state government allows Canadians to come and take their fish at the local rate, Alaskans cannot travel to Canada and hunt these animals at any type of reduced cost. This is a huge loss for a lot of the population in the Southeast of the state because many still rely on game meat to survive and feed their large families. It's a very interesting situation and makes you wonder why there isn't more give and take, or why the American government doesn't simply start charging Canadians the out-of-state rate.
Sean and I went to the Chilkoot River hoping to catch some sockeye salmon which are just now beginning to make their run through the fresh water rivers and lakes. On the way out to the river we saw a grizzly bear who had the same idea we did - he wanted to fish. Fortunately, we fished on the opposite side of the river. My first few casts were a little difficult because I am not used to fishing with such a strong current. You cast the reel upstream and let it flow downstream as you reel it back in. The problem is that every time the current tugs at the line it feels like a fish is biting. I was very jumpy and excited until I realized that I was simply dealing with current and rocks, not a 50 pound king salmon.
We fished upstream from an area of the river where they count the salmon that run through each day. The fishing commission directs fish through certain parts of the river and then counts them by sonar. They keep track of the numbers so they can set appropriate limits for the private and commercial fisherman to ensure that they are not depleting the salmon population. Yesterday over 400 sockeye salmon ran under the sonar whereas today only 30 or so swam through.
Today was also a beautiful day whereas yesterday was cold and rainy - a perfect day for fishing. If I had gone to Skagway today and fished yesterday I would have definitely been able to both dog sled and catch a salmon. But, naturally, I did the activities in the opposite order. Oh well, such is life!
Sean and I left the Chilkoot River and drove towards the Canadian border to fish on the Chilkat River although we had similar luck there. It is still a bit early for the salmon to be running in large enough quantities to catch them easily. In another month or so people will be catching so much salmon that they won't even be able to give it away. Even though we didn't catch any fish I still had a great time talking with Sean and spending the day out in the sun - sure beats work.
I came back from fishing and watched the Cardinals game. Almost as frustrating as not being able to catch a fish was the fact that nobody on the team can get a clutch hit or any hit for that matter. The Cardinals apparently do not play well on Alaskan time. For dinner we ate salmon that someone else caught, not as fun, but still good nonetheless. After dinner I finished packing and just relaxed. I convinced Lisa and Zach to come with me to Juneau tomorrow to run in the midnight race (more on that tomorrow...) tomorrow night. Not only will it be fun to spend an extra day with them, but Lisa is bringing her car so I won't have to walk from the Juneau ferry terminal back to the dorm, instead, I'll have a ride...
I met up with Sean Cone and we decided to go fishing since the rain finally stopped. I had to go and buy a fishing license because the fish and gaming commission is very strict on who can fish, how many fish you can keep, and the size and length of those fish.
There are a lot of neat intricacies to fishing in Alaska, but none more interesting than the arrangement with Canadian residents in Alaska. Residents of Canada can come to Alaska and purchase a fishing license at the in-state rate (the price difference is equivalent to going to a state university and not being from that state, albeit not on that scale!) and bring fish back across the border. It's a great deal because salmon fishing in Alaska is much better than in British Columbia or the Yukon so residents of those parts of Canada can make the easy day trip into Haines or another Southeast community, clean up on fish, and then drive back home and have a sockeye filet for dinner.
Unfortunately, the Canadian government does not extend the same luxuries to American citizens that hunt and fish in Canadian provinces. Canada, specifically the parts mentioned above, has a much higher population of deer, caribou, and moose than does Alaska. Despite the fact that the Alaskan state government allows Canadians to come and take their fish at the local rate, Alaskans cannot travel to Canada and hunt these animals at any type of reduced cost. This is a huge loss for a lot of the population in the Southeast of the state because many still rely on game meat to survive and feed their large families. It's a very interesting situation and makes you wonder why there isn't more give and take, or why the American government doesn't simply start charging Canadians the out-of-state rate.
Sean and I went to the Chilkoot River hoping to catch some sockeye salmon which are just now beginning to make their run through the fresh water rivers and lakes. On the way out to the river we saw a grizzly bear who had the same idea we did - he wanted to fish. Fortunately, we fished on the opposite side of the river. My first few casts were a little difficult because I am not used to fishing with such a strong current. You cast the reel upstream and let it flow downstream as you reel it back in. The problem is that every time the current tugs at the line it feels like a fish is biting. I was very jumpy and excited until I realized that I was simply dealing with current and rocks, not a 50 pound king salmon.
We fished upstream from an area of the river where they count the salmon that run through each day. The fishing commission directs fish through certain parts of the river and then counts them by sonar. They keep track of the numbers so they can set appropriate limits for the private and commercial fisherman to ensure that they are not depleting the salmon population. Yesterday over 400 sockeye salmon ran under the sonar whereas today only 30 or so swam through.
Today was also a beautiful day whereas yesterday was cold and rainy - a perfect day for fishing. If I had gone to Skagway today and fished yesterday I would have definitely been able to both dog sled and catch a salmon. But, naturally, I did the activities in the opposite order. Oh well, such is life!
Sean and I left the Chilkoot River and drove towards the Canadian border to fish on the Chilkat River although we had similar luck there. It is still a bit early for the salmon to be running in large enough quantities to catch them easily. In another month or so people will be catching so much salmon that they won't even be able to give it away. Even though we didn't catch any fish I still had a great time talking with Sean and spending the day out in the sun - sure beats work.
I came back from fishing and watched the Cardinals game. Almost as frustrating as not being able to catch a fish was the fact that nobody on the team can get a clutch hit or any hit for that matter. The Cardinals apparently do not play well on Alaskan time. For dinner we ate salmon that someone else caught, not as fun, but still good nonetheless. After dinner I finished packing and just relaxed. I convinced Lisa and Zach to come with me to Juneau tomorrow to run in the midnight race (more on that tomorrow...) tomorrow night. Not only will it be fun to spend an extra day with them, but Lisa is bringing her car so I won't have to walk from the Juneau ferry terminal back to the dorm, instead, I'll have a ride...
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Day 39 - Day trip to Skagway, AK
The majority of my summer has been centered around my project with SEARHC - identifying reasons for missed appointments, recognizing shortcomings and lapses between the administrative and clinical staffs at SEARHC, and working with patients to develop new education material - but I have also spent a fair amount of time exploring the culture and geography of Alaska. To me, one of the most unique aspects of the summer project is that it not allows gives you an intensive, hands-on opportunity in your field of interest, but the stipend also provides you with an opportunity to explore parts of the world that you may have never had a chance to travel to otherwise. Keeping this in mind, I have taken a few days over the past 6 weeks to forget about work and see something new or experience part of a culture that is different than mine.
All of my travels have been in Southeast Alaska which is a unique part of the state. First, the climate here is not what you would expect in Alaska. It is rainy, not snowy, and many places are covered with green Sitka Spruce trees and not hundreds of feet of snow. Southeast Alaska is also unique in that there are no roads, well, unless you count the large series of highways and byways that are in the water. The only methods of travel around the Southeast are boat or plane. Some of these villages are literally 20 or 30 miles from each other, however, your car or SUV is useless unless you load it onto the Alaska Marine Highway System. I am currently in Haines, AK which is just a 45 minute ferry ride from Skagway, AK. Since I will not be this close to Skagway again, I decided it would be a fun day trip to go and see what the city had to offer.
Skagway is a very interesting place. If not for the tourists off of the cruise ships in the summer, the city would not be a viable place to live. Between October and April only about 800 people live in the city. Come summer though, about two or three hundred extra people migrate to Skagway and work in the local jewelry or gift shops. Skagway is a big port for the major cruise lines so on some of the busiest days in the summer there may be 5 or 6 ships docked in the harbor. It is funny to think that the tourist population dwarfs the actual population of the city nearly 3 or 4 times over.
Initially, Skagway was a starting off point for the gold miners heading to the Klondike River during the gold rush of the early 1900's. People would travel from the continental United States, stop in Skagway, and then take the White Pass Trail into Canada towards Klondike. The city developed a reputation as a trade town, a last chance for hopeful miners to stock up with any necessary supplies. Skagway also competed with a nearby city called Dyea, which was also a starting off point for some of the gold miners. Dyea is the start of the Chilkoot Trail, another trail that lead into the Yukon and towards Klondike. Skagway eventually overtook Dyea because the city was able to build a railroad that eliminated the need to carry thousands of pounds of supplies over steep mountains during freezing cold winters. That railroad is still in service today and provides tourists with unmatched views of the expansive Yukon region. In addition to the railroad, other feature of the current town pay homage to its storied past. All of the storefronts are set up like they were over 100 years ago, and the entire city is designed to make tourists feel like they are about to embark on a difficult, dangerous journey in search of gold.
I took the 6 AM ferry to Skgagway so I arrived a little before 7. I had spoken with a women in the Haines dental clinic who lives in Skagway so she recommended a few things to see and do. Her first recommendation was a breakfast place called the Sweet Tooth Cafe. I sat and ate while the cruise ships unloaded and the stores opened. I then took a walk around the town (all 7 blocks of it!) to see what was there. Like I said, the town is completely geared towards tourists. Every store sells "unique Alaskan artifacts" or "the World's Best Fudge" or "High Quality Diamonds". It was still fun to walk around because in addition to those stores, there are a few buildings that are still in a historic state. I walked through the gold rush museum and watched a movie about the journey towards Klondike. Also, I walked through some old buildings that were still set up like there were in the early 1900's including the news depot and the saloon.
The highlight of my trip to Skagway was supposed to be a helicopter ride to a dog sled camp on the Denver Glacier. Once you got off of the helicopter you were supposed to get to walk around on the glacier and then drive the dog sled team through the snow. Unfortunately, the weather did not cooperate and I had to cancel my tour. I was scheduled to ride in a helicopter with a woman named Terri. She is a third grade teacher and was so excited because one of the lessons that she teaches is on Alaska and the Iditarod. What better way to teach about dog racing than by having a picture of yourself leading a husky over a glacier? Not only did her tour get rained out today, but she also got rained out yesterday in Juneau. The weather is Southeast Alaska is pretty unpredictable so you can either come to Alaska and never get rained on or come and never see the sun. While I felt bad for her, I am lucky because the same tour that operates the helicopter tours in Skagway operates tours in Juneau so I will be sure to use my refund before I leave. We traded email addresses and I agreed to send her my pictures from my sledding experience.
I ate lunch at Starfire, a Thai resturant, that was also very good. Jenna really did a great job with her suggestions. Skagway is fun for an hour or two, but if you do not go on any sort of excursion the town gets very small, very quickly. I was banking on having the helicopter ride use up a few hours of my day but, when that fell through, I decided that there was no way I would last in Skagway until the 8 PM ferry.
I took the early ferry back to to Haines and met up with the Cones and Stefan. We went out to dinner at a pizza place called, ironically, Klondike. The restuarant is on the town fairgrounds. A few years ago, Disney filmed a movie called "White Fang" in Haines. Once production ended, they left the set standing and it has since become a focal point of the town.
That's about it for today. I'm about to crash because of the early ferry and excitement of walking around Skagway. Tomorrow is my last day in Haines so hopefully the weather clears...
**New pictures posted**
All of my travels have been in Southeast Alaska which is a unique part of the state. First, the climate here is not what you would expect in Alaska. It is rainy, not snowy, and many places are covered with green Sitka Spruce trees and not hundreds of feet of snow. Southeast Alaska is also unique in that there are no roads, well, unless you count the large series of highways and byways that are in the water. The only methods of travel around the Southeast are boat or plane. Some of these villages are literally 20 or 30 miles from each other, however, your car or SUV is useless unless you load it onto the Alaska Marine Highway System. I am currently in Haines, AK which is just a 45 minute ferry ride from Skagway, AK. Since I will not be this close to Skagway again, I decided it would be a fun day trip to go and see what the city had to offer.
Skagway is a very interesting place. If not for the tourists off of the cruise ships in the summer, the city would not be a viable place to live. Between October and April only about 800 people live in the city. Come summer though, about two or three hundred extra people migrate to Skagway and work in the local jewelry or gift shops. Skagway is a big port for the major cruise lines so on some of the busiest days in the summer there may be 5 or 6 ships docked in the harbor. It is funny to think that the tourist population dwarfs the actual population of the city nearly 3 or 4 times over.
Initially, Skagway was a starting off point for the gold miners heading to the Klondike River during the gold rush of the early 1900's. People would travel from the continental United States, stop in Skagway, and then take the White Pass Trail into Canada towards Klondike. The city developed a reputation as a trade town, a last chance for hopeful miners to stock up with any necessary supplies. Skagway also competed with a nearby city called Dyea, which was also a starting off point for some of the gold miners. Dyea is the start of the Chilkoot Trail, another trail that lead into the Yukon and towards Klondike. Skagway eventually overtook Dyea because the city was able to build a railroad that eliminated the need to carry thousands of pounds of supplies over steep mountains during freezing cold winters. That railroad is still in service today and provides tourists with unmatched views of the expansive Yukon region. In addition to the railroad, other feature of the current town pay homage to its storied past. All of the storefronts are set up like they were over 100 years ago, and the entire city is designed to make tourists feel like they are about to embark on a difficult, dangerous journey in search of gold.
I took the 6 AM ferry to Skgagway so I arrived a little before 7. I had spoken with a women in the Haines dental clinic who lives in Skagway so she recommended a few things to see and do. Her first recommendation was a breakfast place called the Sweet Tooth Cafe. I sat and ate while the cruise ships unloaded and the stores opened. I then took a walk around the town (all 7 blocks of it!) to see what was there. Like I said, the town is completely geared towards tourists. Every store sells "unique Alaskan artifacts" or "the World's Best Fudge" or "High Quality Diamonds". It was still fun to walk around because in addition to those stores, there are a few buildings that are still in a historic state. I walked through the gold rush museum and watched a movie about the journey towards Klondike. Also, I walked through some old buildings that were still set up like there were in the early 1900's including the news depot and the saloon.
The highlight of my trip to Skagway was supposed to be a helicopter ride to a dog sled camp on the Denver Glacier. Once you got off of the helicopter you were supposed to get to walk around on the glacier and then drive the dog sled team through the snow. Unfortunately, the weather did not cooperate and I had to cancel my tour. I was scheduled to ride in a helicopter with a woman named Terri. She is a third grade teacher and was so excited because one of the lessons that she teaches is on Alaska and the Iditarod. What better way to teach about dog racing than by having a picture of yourself leading a husky over a glacier? Not only did her tour get rained out today, but she also got rained out yesterday in Juneau. The weather is Southeast Alaska is pretty unpredictable so you can either come to Alaska and never get rained on or come and never see the sun. While I felt bad for her, I am lucky because the same tour that operates the helicopter tours in Skagway operates tours in Juneau so I will be sure to use my refund before I leave. We traded email addresses and I agreed to send her my pictures from my sledding experience.
I ate lunch at Starfire, a Thai resturant, that was also very good. Jenna really did a great job with her suggestions. Skagway is fun for an hour or two, but if you do not go on any sort of excursion the town gets very small, very quickly. I was banking on having the helicopter ride use up a few hours of my day but, when that fell through, I decided that there was no way I would last in Skagway until the 8 PM ferry.
I took the early ferry back to to Haines and met up with the Cones and Stefan. We went out to dinner at a pizza place called, ironically, Klondike. The restuarant is on the town fairgrounds. A few years ago, Disney filmed a movie called "White Fang" in Haines. Once production ended, they left the set standing and it has since become a focal point of the town.
That's about it for today. I'm about to crash because of the early ferry and excitement of walking around Skagway. Tomorrow is my last day in Haines so hopefully the weather clears...
**New pictures posted**
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Day 37 - Haines, AK Day 3
Woke up early and headed to the clinic today. I spent the morning making the usual phone calls and patient interviews. Nothing really exciting or out of the ordinary. I am getting close to 80 phone interviews and hopefully I can push to about 140 or 150 before I wrap things up. It's tiring work but I think that the report I submit at the end will make it all worth it.
On my way to work I stopped by Mountain Market to have that "best cup of coffee in Haines". It was pretty good, but I'm not much of taste critic anyway. I ate lunch at Fireweed, a small bakery right near the dental clinic.
In the afternoon I took off and watched the Cardinals game. After the game, I went running again with Marnie and Leslie. The three of us ran out to Battery Point which overlooks the Lynn Canal and back towards downtown Haines.
I came back to the Cone's home and helped prepare dinner - steaks, salads, and potatoes. It was nice to sit and have a home-cooked meal while sitting around an actual kitchen table. It's funny to think of the little things that you miss when you are away from home.
After dinner we went out onto the boat to pick up our crab pots. It would have been fun, except it was pouring down rain. I guess I take the warm weather in the Midwest for granted, but if the people of Southeast Alaska took a day off every single time it rained nobody would ever get to spend time outside. We did catch a couple of crabs but decided to throw them back. There is an illness called PSP, Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning, that people can get if they eat certain bottom feeders which can trab certain algae in their systems that are toxic to humans. A man from Haines recently died from a suspected case of PSP, so people are not supposed to be eating crabs from the Lynn Canal until further notice. Since I am not a huge seafood fan anyway, that was all I needed to hear to sway me from even considering trying crab or other shellfish.
Tomorrow will be another early morning since Team USA plays at 6 AM. Stefan and I are going to get up and watch in the morning. A win and the team advances to the round of 16. Should be fun...
On my way to work I stopped by Mountain Market to have that "best cup of coffee in Haines". It was pretty good, but I'm not much of taste critic anyway. I ate lunch at Fireweed, a small bakery right near the dental clinic.
In the afternoon I took off and watched the Cardinals game. After the game, I went running again with Marnie and Leslie. The three of us ran out to Battery Point which overlooks the Lynn Canal and back towards downtown Haines.
I came back to the Cone's home and helped prepare dinner - steaks, salads, and potatoes. It was nice to sit and have a home-cooked meal while sitting around an actual kitchen table. It's funny to think of the little things that you miss when you are away from home.
After dinner we went out onto the boat to pick up our crab pots. It would have been fun, except it was pouring down rain. I guess I take the warm weather in the Midwest for granted, but if the people of Southeast Alaska took a day off every single time it rained nobody would ever get to spend time outside. We did catch a couple of crabs but decided to throw them back. There is an illness called PSP, Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning, that people can get if they eat certain bottom feeders which can trab certain algae in their systems that are toxic to humans. A man from Haines recently died from a suspected case of PSP, so people are not supposed to be eating crabs from the Lynn Canal until further notice. Since I am not a huge seafood fan anyway, that was all I needed to hear to sway me from even considering trying crab or other shellfish.
Tomorrow will be another early morning since Team USA plays at 6 AM. Stefan and I are going to get up and watch in the morning. A win and the team advances to the round of 16. Should be fun...
Monday, June 21, 2010
Day 36 - Haines, AK Day 2
The best part about being in Haines is the two-minute walk to work in the morning. In Juneau, I have to leave myself time for a 35 minute commute when planning my morning routine, but here I can just roll out of bed. I started early and got a few interviews out of the way. There are only two chairs in the Haines clinic (one hygienist and one dentist) so it isn’t difficult to complete the interviews. During the actual appointments I can use the empty desks to make my phone calls to the patients who missed their appointments.
The Haines clinic is unique because it is the only SEARHC clinic that serves patients that are not Native Alaskans. Since the population of Haines is 80% non-Native Alaskan the clinic sees the other patients on a sliding scale fee based on income. It’s a great service for the residents of the village and also leads to a smaller missed appointment rate. It’s interesting to note how the missed appointment rate declines when a percentage of your patient population is held fiscally responsible for their dental treatments…
For lunch, I went to the Mountain Market. The Mountain Market is an organic food store that is known for having the best cup of coffee in all of Haines. The also have great lunch sandwiches which is why I went this afternoon. The weather was great again today so I sat outside and enjoyed my lunch along with several eager crows.
After lunch I went back to the clinic to continue my phone calls. I met the physical therapist, Marnie, and got to talking to her about her job and life in Haines. It turns out she is a runner and so we decided to go for a trail run after work. I left a little early and walked back to the Cone’s home to hang out with Stefan. I helped him edit a powerpoint presentation that is a timeline of his time in Alaska. He is going to surprise the Cone’s by presenting them with all of his thoughts and pictures as a giant thank you for hosting him for the past six months.
Marnie picked me up and the two of us, along with her friend Leslie, went running up Racer Trail. The trail is named because it is host to a 4th of July race that starts at the bottom of the mountain, goes all the way to the top, and then goes right back down into town. The three of us ran the same route as the race – up and then back down. Marnie and Leslie were eager to run on the trails because they have just now dried up from the melted snow. Since Haines gets a lot of snowfall runners are reduced to street running during the winter months. In Haines running the streets is no fun since there is only one street and to do any kind of distance run you have to run in circles for hours. It took us about one hour and fifteen minutes to complete the loop.
After the run we went to the hotel in town to get dinner. Marnie’s boyfriend is the bartender and waiter at the restaurant so everything was on the house. Hopefully I’ll get to run with these two a few more times before I go back to Juneau.
I headed back to the Cone’s and decided to relax in their hot tub for a few minutes. I’ll post a picture of the view from the hot tub because it is impossible to describe how beautiful it is. It must be even more spectacular in the winter when everything around you is blanketed in snow.
That’s about it for today, but I don’t want to go to sleep because it is the summer solstice. Like I mentioned yesterday the sun rose around 3:15 this morning so I want to see how late it sets.
Until tomorrow…
The Haines clinic is unique because it is the only SEARHC clinic that serves patients that are not Native Alaskans. Since the population of Haines is 80% non-Native Alaskan the clinic sees the other patients on a sliding scale fee based on income. It’s a great service for the residents of the village and also leads to a smaller missed appointment rate. It’s interesting to note how the missed appointment rate declines when a percentage of your patient population is held fiscally responsible for their dental treatments…
For lunch, I went to the Mountain Market. The Mountain Market is an organic food store that is known for having the best cup of coffee in all of Haines. The also have great lunch sandwiches which is why I went this afternoon. The weather was great again today so I sat outside and enjoyed my lunch along with several eager crows.
After lunch I went back to the clinic to continue my phone calls. I met the physical therapist, Marnie, and got to talking to her about her job and life in Haines. It turns out she is a runner and so we decided to go for a trail run after work. I left a little early and walked back to the Cone’s home to hang out with Stefan. I helped him edit a powerpoint presentation that is a timeline of his time in Alaska. He is going to surprise the Cone’s by presenting them with all of his thoughts and pictures as a giant thank you for hosting him for the past six months.
Marnie picked me up and the two of us, along with her friend Leslie, went running up Racer Trail. The trail is named because it is host to a 4th of July race that starts at the bottom of the mountain, goes all the way to the top, and then goes right back down into town. The three of us ran the same route as the race – up and then back down. Marnie and Leslie were eager to run on the trails because they have just now dried up from the melted snow. Since Haines gets a lot of snowfall runners are reduced to street running during the winter months. In Haines running the streets is no fun since there is only one street and to do any kind of distance run you have to run in circles for hours. It took us about one hour and fifteen minutes to complete the loop.
After the run we went to the hotel in town to get dinner. Marnie’s boyfriend is the bartender and waiter at the restaurant so everything was on the house. Hopefully I’ll get to run with these two a few more times before I go back to Juneau.
I headed back to the Cone’s and decided to relax in their hot tub for a few minutes. I’ll post a picture of the view from the hot tub because it is impossible to describe how beautiful it is. It must be even more spectacular in the winter when everything around you is blanketed in snow.
That’s about it for today, but I don’t want to go to sleep because it is the summer solstice. Like I mentioned yesterday the sun rose around 3:15 this morning so I want to see how late it sets.
Until tomorrow…
Day 35 - Haines, AK Day 1
As I sit here and type, it’s hard to believe that I have already completed more than half of my summer project experience. It’s amazing how quickly I have progressed from “Day 1” to “Day 35”. Each day is still new, fun, and exciting and often brings a nice element of surprise.
Today I boarded the 8 AM Fairweather vessel to Haines. I knew that I would be staying with Lisa Cone and her husband, Sean, but I did not know what an incredibly open, sharing family they would turn out to be. Lisa met me at the ferry terminal and drove me around Haines before we headed to her home. The tour of Haines took about 6 minutes as I saw the grocery store, the school, the library, the restaurant, the bar, and, of course, the SEARHC clinic. There are no stoplights in Haines, and only one street through the middle of town. The population is right around 1,000, just like Hoonah. Even though the populations are similar, Haines is a bit more developed than Hoonah because of the Haines Junction.
The junction is a road in and out of Haines and is the only way you can drive from Southeast Alaska to the interior of the state (Anchorage and Fairbanks). You can also drive into Canada towards the Yukon Territory and see areas such as Whitehorse. Haines is a beautiful town. It sits right on the Lynn Canal and it surrounded by huge mountains covered with snow. Haines gets about 30 feet of snow each year so there is much more snow on the mountains here than in Juneau. Haines is known for its large population of bald eagles that come during the early part of September to feed on the late spawning pink salmon.
We pulled up to the Cone’s home around 10:30. Her husband was out and she had some errands to run so she left me alone to get settled. As promised, I found their big screen TV and sat down to watch baseball and golf. The Cone’s are hosting an exchange student who in from Vienna, Austria. His name is Stefan and he is part of a program that brings foreign high school students to the United States to see what it’s like to live here. I’m not sure how the program decided that Haines, Alaska was an accurate portrayal of life in the United States, but that’s another story.
Stefan and I watched golf together. He loves to speak English because he is still learning and sorting out certain areas of speech so he just goes on and on about anything and everything. He is a really nice kid and will be fun to have around for the next few days. Eventually, Sean came back home and asked if Stefan and I wanted to go out crabbing on the Lynn Canal. Of course, the one time I get invited to go out fishing or crabbing over the past few weeks would coincide with the final round of the U.S. Open, but in the end going crabbing turned out to the better choice.
I borrowed Lisa’s Extra-Tuffs (knee high rubber boots that are as much of a fashion staple in Alaska as Nikes or Reeboks are in the continental United States) and headed off to the canal. We took the boat out towards Battery Point and then dropped the crabbing buckets into the water. I guess in my mind crabbing sounded a little more involved that dropping a metal rectangle into the ocean but, nonetheless, it was fun to spend a few hours out on the water. There were whales, sea lions, and bald eagles all along the coastline and there were also lots of beaches and residences along the water. We took the boat as far as Mud Bay and then turned around and headed back to the crab pots.
Unfortunately, we only caught a misguided flounder and a female crab (you don’t keep the females so that they can reproduce and make more crabs) so we decided to do the next best thing – go to the grocery store and buy our crabs. There is a huge debate going on between the locals and the commercial fishing companies about who can place crab pots where. The locals are upset that the commercial fishing companies are placing their crab pots in the easily accessible places even though they have the means to reach coves and inlets that the locals cannot. Before we headed back to shore we dropped the pots in a different location so that they could sit in the water overnight and hopefully bring us some better luck.
Stefan and I grabbed a quick sandwich and then went up to the school soccer fields to play soccer with some of his friends from the high school. The weather was really nice and, since it was the day before the summer solstice, we had plenty of sunlight well past 10 PM. After soccer I walked back to the Cone’s house and took a quick shower. I was downstairs surfing the internet when Zach, Lisa and Sean’s 6 year old son, decided that it was time to play.
He was intrigued by the widgets on my MacBook and was particularly fond of the English to Spanish translator. He laughed for a good 10 minutes after we translated the word “butt”. He told me that he was at an advanced reading level for his grade so I decided to test him out. I always read the sports page from the Post Dispatch online so I sat back and relaxed while he read me articles by Bernie Miklasz and Bryan Burwell. After he finished reading me the paper, I collapsed into bed. It was a long, but fun, day.
Tomorrow I will be in the Haines clinic doing patient interviews and phone interviews. There are only another couple of work days until I have to wrap up my surveying and begin on my education materials so these next few days I’ll be working long, hard hours. Tomorrow is also the solstice, which is an unofficial holiday in the state. The sun is supposed to rise at 3:15 AM so I better remember to close the blinds…
Finally... Happy Father's Day!
Today I boarded the 8 AM Fairweather vessel to Haines. I knew that I would be staying with Lisa Cone and her husband, Sean, but I did not know what an incredibly open, sharing family they would turn out to be. Lisa met me at the ferry terminal and drove me around Haines before we headed to her home. The tour of Haines took about 6 minutes as I saw the grocery store, the school, the library, the restaurant, the bar, and, of course, the SEARHC clinic. There are no stoplights in Haines, and only one street through the middle of town. The population is right around 1,000, just like Hoonah. Even though the populations are similar, Haines is a bit more developed than Hoonah because of the Haines Junction.
The junction is a road in and out of Haines and is the only way you can drive from Southeast Alaska to the interior of the state (Anchorage and Fairbanks). You can also drive into Canada towards the Yukon Territory and see areas such as Whitehorse. Haines is a beautiful town. It sits right on the Lynn Canal and it surrounded by huge mountains covered with snow. Haines gets about 30 feet of snow each year so there is much more snow on the mountains here than in Juneau. Haines is known for its large population of bald eagles that come during the early part of September to feed on the late spawning pink salmon.
We pulled up to the Cone’s home around 10:30. Her husband was out and she had some errands to run so she left me alone to get settled. As promised, I found their big screen TV and sat down to watch baseball and golf. The Cone’s are hosting an exchange student who in from Vienna, Austria. His name is Stefan and he is part of a program that brings foreign high school students to the United States to see what it’s like to live here. I’m not sure how the program decided that Haines, Alaska was an accurate portrayal of life in the United States, but that’s another story.
Stefan and I watched golf together. He loves to speak English because he is still learning and sorting out certain areas of speech so he just goes on and on about anything and everything. He is a really nice kid and will be fun to have around for the next few days. Eventually, Sean came back home and asked if Stefan and I wanted to go out crabbing on the Lynn Canal. Of course, the one time I get invited to go out fishing or crabbing over the past few weeks would coincide with the final round of the U.S. Open, but in the end going crabbing turned out to the better choice.
I borrowed Lisa’s Extra-Tuffs (knee high rubber boots that are as much of a fashion staple in Alaska as Nikes or Reeboks are in the continental United States) and headed off to the canal. We took the boat out towards Battery Point and then dropped the crabbing buckets into the water. I guess in my mind crabbing sounded a little more involved that dropping a metal rectangle into the ocean but, nonetheless, it was fun to spend a few hours out on the water. There were whales, sea lions, and bald eagles all along the coastline and there were also lots of beaches and residences along the water. We took the boat as far as Mud Bay and then turned around and headed back to the crab pots.
Unfortunately, we only caught a misguided flounder and a female crab (you don’t keep the females so that they can reproduce and make more crabs) so we decided to do the next best thing – go to the grocery store and buy our crabs. There is a huge debate going on between the locals and the commercial fishing companies about who can place crab pots where. The locals are upset that the commercial fishing companies are placing their crab pots in the easily accessible places even though they have the means to reach coves and inlets that the locals cannot. Before we headed back to shore we dropped the pots in a different location so that they could sit in the water overnight and hopefully bring us some better luck.
Stefan and I grabbed a quick sandwich and then went up to the school soccer fields to play soccer with some of his friends from the high school. The weather was really nice and, since it was the day before the summer solstice, we had plenty of sunlight well past 10 PM. After soccer I walked back to the Cone’s house and took a quick shower. I was downstairs surfing the internet when Zach, Lisa and Sean’s 6 year old son, decided that it was time to play.
He was intrigued by the widgets on my MacBook and was particularly fond of the English to Spanish translator. He laughed for a good 10 minutes after we translated the word “butt”. He told me that he was at an advanced reading level for his grade so I decided to test him out. I always read the sports page from the Post Dispatch online so I sat back and relaxed while he read me articles by Bernie Miklasz and Bryan Burwell. After he finished reading me the paper, I collapsed into bed. It was a long, but fun, day.
Tomorrow I will be in the Haines clinic doing patient interviews and phone interviews. There are only another couple of work days until I have to wrap up my surveying and begin on my education materials so these next few days I’ll be working long, hard hours. Tomorrow is also the solstice, which is an unofficial holiday in the state. The sun is supposed to rise at 3:15 AM so I better remember to close the blinds…
Finally... Happy Father's Day!
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Day 34 - Bunko
There is a running club in Juneau called the Southeast Road Runners and they put on races all the time throughout Juneau. It costs $5 to enter each race, and that $5 buys you an official time, a bottle of water, and some nice running company on Saturday or Sunday morning. I was supposed to run in the Ben Blackgoat Memorial Race this morning on the Perseverance Trail but I missed the early bus downtown. I was pretty mad at myself because I had been looking forward to the race all week and was excited to race on the trails. Unfortunately, I missed out on all of the excitement and ended up having to create my own version of the race.
I decided to meet Dr. Nasicmento and Dr. Dee for breakfast at a little diner called the Valley Restaurant. It is run by Philippine women who speak about six words of English – coffee, bacon, pancakes, eggs, orange juice, and toast. Despite the language barrier for verbal words, they can still cook a damn good breakfast. The food there is really good and cheap and the women never let your cup of coffee get below half full. Instead of taking the bus or getting picked up, I ran from my dorm to the restaurant. I ended up going over 8 miles and feeling a little better about missing out on the race earlier in the morning.
I spent some time outside watching the US Open and the Cardinals in the afternoon. Since my TV connection off of the computer isn’t always clear and consistent, I have gotten really into listening to the Cardinals on the big 550, KTRS. There is nothing better than a sunny afternoon and an exciting home run call from Mike Shannon or John Rooney that leads to a Cardinals victory.
The Wilkinsons had an office party at their house tonight. Everyone brought food and drinks and we grilled and ate out on the Wilkinson’s large deck. We watched the bald eagles soar overhead and saw the seals playing in the channel. Not a bad way to spend an evening in and of itself, but the food and the scenery were merely a warm-up for the intense Bunko game that came after.
Bunko simply consists of rolling three dice to try and get a certain number, but I have never seen anything so intense in my life. There were married women fighting young residents on the floor for a pair of dice that had fallen off the table, there was so much screaming and yelling that I’m surprised the neighbors didn’t come over and complain, and there was enough trash talking to make an NFL middle linebacker blush. Who knew that three dice could raise such a commotion? I’m not sure if the intense competition was a result of the drinks people brought over or the true desire to win but, either way, it was an awesome way to spend a Saturday night.
I just finished packing for Haines since I am heading there in the morning. I’m getting back on the fast ferry for a two hour ride through the channel. It’s supposed to be nice again tomorrow so I’ll get some more great scenery off the back of the boat.
I’m staying with Lisa Cone, a hygienist from Haines, and her husband for the next few days. They are coming to pick me up from the ferry terminal and taking me to their home where I will promptly plant myself on the couch to watch the final round of the US Open and some afternoon baseball.
Off to bed dreading another 6:15 AM alarm…
I decided to meet Dr. Nasicmento and Dr. Dee for breakfast at a little diner called the Valley Restaurant. It is run by Philippine women who speak about six words of English – coffee, bacon, pancakes, eggs, orange juice, and toast. Despite the language barrier for verbal words, they can still cook a damn good breakfast. The food there is really good and cheap and the women never let your cup of coffee get below half full. Instead of taking the bus or getting picked up, I ran from my dorm to the restaurant. I ended up going over 8 miles and feeling a little better about missing out on the race earlier in the morning.
I spent some time outside watching the US Open and the Cardinals in the afternoon. Since my TV connection off of the computer isn’t always clear and consistent, I have gotten really into listening to the Cardinals on the big 550, KTRS. There is nothing better than a sunny afternoon and an exciting home run call from Mike Shannon or John Rooney that leads to a Cardinals victory.
The Wilkinsons had an office party at their house tonight. Everyone brought food and drinks and we grilled and ate out on the Wilkinson’s large deck. We watched the bald eagles soar overhead and saw the seals playing in the channel. Not a bad way to spend an evening in and of itself, but the food and the scenery were merely a warm-up for the intense Bunko game that came after.
Bunko simply consists of rolling three dice to try and get a certain number, but I have never seen anything so intense in my life. There were married women fighting young residents on the floor for a pair of dice that had fallen off the table, there was so much screaming and yelling that I’m surprised the neighbors didn’t come over and complain, and there was enough trash talking to make an NFL middle linebacker blush. Who knew that three dice could raise such a commotion? I’m not sure if the intense competition was a result of the drinks people brought over or the true desire to win but, either way, it was an awesome way to spend a Saturday night.
I just finished packing for Haines since I am heading there in the morning. I’m getting back on the fast ferry for a two hour ride through the channel. It’s supposed to be nice again tomorrow so I’ll get some more great scenery off the back of the boat.
I’m staying with Lisa Cone, a hygienist from Haines, and her husband for the next few days. They are coming to pick me up from the ferry terminal and taking me to their home where I will promptly plant myself on the couch to watch the final round of the US Open and some afternoon baseball.
Off to bed dreading another 6:15 AM alarm…
Friday, June 18, 2010
Day 33 - Friday
I woke up at 6 AM today to watch Team USA in the World Cup. I went up to the lodge with Will to watch on the big screen TV. We were up there with 15 other people, all crammed onto small couches and cheering on USA. It turned out to be a pretty exciting game.
I headed to work in the late morning and began making my phone calls. My telephone survey is really progressing along quite nicely. I am starting to build my numbers and it still amazes me to hear the perspectives of many of these Native Alaskans. Dr. Hort told me that she brought some of the suggestions I made about patient contact information to the office manager's meeting and they are going to look into making some changes. Glad to see my work is paying off!
I went out to dinner at the Twisted Fish with some people from the office. I had Halibut tacos which were pretty good. I have never been much of a seafood fan, but I guess I've never had it this fresh. There was a free concert on the harbor so we stopped and listened for a bit. We went and got some ice cream and then headed back to the Mendenhall Valley. I crashed early since I had gotten up so early to watch the soccer game.
Everything is going pretty well still. I am hoping for some nice weather this weekend so that I can get out and run and continue to explore.
All for now...
I headed to work in the late morning and began making my phone calls. My telephone survey is really progressing along quite nicely. I am starting to build my numbers and it still amazes me to hear the perspectives of many of these Native Alaskans. Dr. Hort told me that she brought some of the suggestions I made about patient contact information to the office manager's meeting and they are going to look into making some changes. Glad to see my work is paying off!
I went out to dinner at the Twisted Fish with some people from the office. I had Halibut tacos which were pretty good. I have never been much of a seafood fan, but I guess I've never had it this fresh. There was a free concert on the harbor so we stopped and listened for a bit. We went and got some ice cream and then headed back to the Mendenhall Valley. I crashed early since I had gotten up so early to watch the soccer game.
Everything is going pretty well still. I am hoping for some nice weather this weekend so that I can get out and run and continue to explore.
All for now...
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Day 32 - Doh!
I met my fourth roommate today. I think I can do any accurate job of portraying how well we will get along based on the following story. I was sitting eating dinner watching Game 7 of the NBA Finals between the Lakers and the Celtics. Even in Alaska, where they have no professional sports, there were people on the bus betting whether Kobe Bryant or Paul Pierce would have a better stat line. So that kind of sets the tone for how big of a game it was.
Ian, the new roommate, sits down next to me and asks who is playing. I said, "Lakers and Celtics. Game 7. NBA Finals." Nothing. Not even a trace of recognition. I guess I shouldn't be quick to judge, but anybody that knows me knows that the quickest way to get me started is talking sports. There could be some long awkward breakfasts and dinners upcoming if Ian doesn't learn about the importance of the double switch or the sacrifice fly pretty quickly. Besides his lack of sports acumen, he seems like a pretty nice guy. He goes to Western Kentucky University and wants to be a meteorologist. He is working as an intern for the National Weather Service as part of a program that guarantees jobs to those who work a certain number of hours in the same city. Essentially, it is the equivalent to Vanderbilt's early acceptance program to their medical school. As long as he works this summer and next, he is guaranteed a job after he graduates.
Other than the roommate excitement, today was pretty similar to last Thursday. I spent the day in the OB clinic interviewing and surveying patients for my education material. I also spent some time compiling the long list of phone numbers from patients who missed appointments who I'm going to have to call all day tomorrow.
Also, after about a week of hiding, the sun reappeared today. I took advantage and went on my first really good run in a long time. There is a race on Saturday morning that I am thinking about running in if I can find a ride to the starting line. I think that summer classes have begun at UAS because there is a lot more activity on campus than before. I see more kids hanging out in the lodge and around the other dorm buildings. I met a girl from Kansas City today who is a full-time UAS student. And I think it's a hassle to get from Nashville to St. Louis for Thanksgiving...
Tomorrow I am waking up early with another one of my roommates to watch Team USA in the World Cup. I know nothing about soccer, but for some reason the World Cup feels like something you shouldn't miss (even if you have to wake up at 6 AM!).
One more day until the weekend.
Ian, the new roommate, sits down next to me and asks who is playing. I said, "Lakers and Celtics. Game 7. NBA Finals." Nothing. Not even a trace of recognition. I guess I shouldn't be quick to judge, but anybody that knows me knows that the quickest way to get me started is talking sports. There could be some long awkward breakfasts and dinners upcoming if Ian doesn't learn about the importance of the double switch or the sacrifice fly pretty quickly. Besides his lack of sports acumen, he seems like a pretty nice guy. He goes to Western Kentucky University and wants to be a meteorologist. He is working as an intern for the National Weather Service as part of a program that guarantees jobs to those who work a certain number of hours in the same city. Essentially, it is the equivalent to Vanderbilt's early acceptance program to their medical school. As long as he works this summer and next, he is guaranteed a job after he graduates.
Other than the roommate excitement, today was pretty similar to last Thursday. I spent the day in the OB clinic interviewing and surveying patients for my education material. I also spent some time compiling the long list of phone numbers from patients who missed appointments who I'm going to have to call all day tomorrow.
Also, after about a week of hiding, the sun reappeared today. I took advantage and went on my first really good run in a long time. There is a race on Saturday morning that I am thinking about running in if I can find a ride to the starting line. I think that summer classes have begun at UAS because there is a lot more activity on campus than before. I see more kids hanging out in the lodge and around the other dorm buildings. I met a girl from Kansas City today who is a full-time UAS student. And I think it's a hassle to get from Nashville to St. Louis for Thanksgiving...
Tomorrow I am waking up early with another one of my roommates to watch Team USA in the World Cup. I know nothing about soccer, but for some reason the World Cup feels like something you shouldn't miss (even if you have to wake up at 6 AM!).
One more day until the weekend.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Day 31 - Sitka, AK Day 3/Moving back to UAS
Today was my last day in Sitka - well, at least for a couple of weeks. I woke up early and took advantage of the free breakfast from the diet office. Unfortunately, the weather was cold and rainy today so I had to scrap my sightseeing plan and instead went into the dental clinic for about an hour. I spent some more time in the clinic and lab observing the prosthodontists crank out dentures for thankful patients.
I took the Sitka bus to the ferry terminal. The bus isn't really a bus though, it's more like a tiny little shuttle van. At while there is a set route, bus drivers are friendly and willing to take you anywhere you want to go. For $2 you can ride for as long as you would like. I miscalculated how far it was to the ferry terminal and ended up arriving very early. This turned out to be even more of a problem as the ferry coming from Juneau was late. Not a good combination.
I did meet another Americorps volunteer who is in Juneau working on HIV prevention. She works in the hostel in Juneau and in return the hostel is housing her for free. All she has to do is spend a couple of nights at the front desk. It was nice to have someone to talk to on the ferry. We met a group from Europe who were backpacking all throughout Alaska. They had these huge 30 pound packs, tons of pictures, and lots of stories. It helped the time pass quickly on the ferry.
Dr. Hort and her daughter were waiting for me when I got off of the ferry in Juneau and took me over to the Ray's house to pick up my stuff. When I walked in the door Mrs. Ray dropped everything and gave me a huge hug. Apparently the last time they had gone out of town the house-sitter had left a bit of a mess. I had run the dishwasher, vacuumed the floor, and washed my linens before leaving to Sitka so it was a nice surprise for her to come home to a nice, clean house. As my friends and roommate can attest to, I am pretty good at keeping things neat and clean. I said my final goodbye to Sky and then headed back to the dorm.
On the way back to the dorm Dr. Hort's six year old daughter was explaining to me how she was scared of how fast the pitching machine pitched the softball and that she was afraid to stand in the batter's box. I told her about the time I faced a pitcher who threw in the mid 90's and suddenly her pitching machine didn't seem so bad. She laughed at me when I told her that I play softball because in her mind softball is just for girls.
When I walked back into my apartment there were two guys hanging around the kitchen table. It appears as if my days of having the dorm room to myself are over. As it turns out, the guys I will be living with are really nice. The are both doing an internship with U.S. Forest Services and will be here through the middle of September. One, Dan, is a student at Humboldt State University in California, and the other, Will, had graduated from the University of Minnesota. They are both around my age and really into fishing, hiking, and biking (I guess you have to be to do an internship with the Forest Services) so I'm thinking we'll get along pretty well. We have a fourth roommate coming tomorrow. He is from Knoxville, TN so it'll be nice to have a fellow country music fan in the house.
It's been a long day and I have to get up early tomorrow to get to the OB clinic by 8 to continue my interviewing. Off to bed...
**New pictures of the ferry added**
I took the Sitka bus to the ferry terminal. The bus isn't really a bus though, it's more like a tiny little shuttle van. At while there is a set route, bus drivers are friendly and willing to take you anywhere you want to go. For $2 you can ride for as long as you would like. I miscalculated how far it was to the ferry terminal and ended up arriving very early. This turned out to be even more of a problem as the ferry coming from Juneau was late. Not a good combination.
I did meet another Americorps volunteer who is in Juneau working on HIV prevention. She works in the hostel in Juneau and in return the hostel is housing her for free. All she has to do is spend a couple of nights at the front desk. It was nice to have someone to talk to on the ferry. We met a group from Europe who were backpacking all throughout Alaska. They had these huge 30 pound packs, tons of pictures, and lots of stories. It helped the time pass quickly on the ferry.
Dr. Hort and her daughter were waiting for me when I got off of the ferry in Juneau and took me over to the Ray's house to pick up my stuff. When I walked in the door Mrs. Ray dropped everything and gave me a huge hug. Apparently the last time they had gone out of town the house-sitter had left a bit of a mess. I had run the dishwasher, vacuumed the floor, and washed my linens before leaving to Sitka so it was a nice surprise for her to come home to a nice, clean house. As my friends and roommate can attest to, I am pretty good at keeping things neat and clean. I said my final goodbye to Sky and then headed back to the dorm.
On the way back to the dorm Dr. Hort's six year old daughter was explaining to me how she was scared of how fast the pitching machine pitched the softball and that she was afraid to stand in the batter's box. I told her about the time I faced a pitcher who threw in the mid 90's and suddenly her pitching machine didn't seem so bad. She laughed at me when I told her that I play softball because in her mind softball is just for girls.
When I walked back into my apartment there were two guys hanging around the kitchen table. It appears as if my days of having the dorm room to myself are over. As it turns out, the guys I will be living with are really nice. The are both doing an internship with U.S. Forest Services and will be here through the middle of September. One, Dan, is a student at Humboldt State University in California, and the other, Will, had graduated from the University of Minnesota. They are both around my age and really into fishing, hiking, and biking (I guess you have to be to do an internship with the Forest Services) so I'm thinking we'll get along pretty well. We have a fourth roommate coming tomorrow. He is from Knoxville, TN so it'll be nice to have a fellow country music fan in the house.
It's been a long day and I have to get up early tomorrow to get to the OB clinic by 8 to continue my interviewing. Off to bed...
**New pictures of the ferry added**
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Day 30 - Sitka, AK Day 2
After yesterday’s travels and the stressful housing predicament I decided to sleep in late today. I woke up and went for a run around the hospital complex. The diet office has free coffee and tea all morning so I took advantage of that to go along with my free breakfast. I showered and watched a little bit of the World Cup and then headed to the hospital to meet with the OB nurse.
The OB nurse in Sitka is named Valerie and she was incredibly nice and accommodating. She showed me around the clinic and agreed to send patients my way after they checked in at the nurse’s station. I was a bit disappointed to learn that today was going to be a slow day in the OB clinic with only 8-10 patients. On a normal Tuesday there are anywhere from 20-25 patients seen, so I got a bit unlucky in this regard. I spoke with Valerie and she agreed to distribute the survey to patients next week when the schedule is back to normal. This will be extremely helpful as it will allow me to increase the number of people who get to add their input. This was very nice of Valerie and I am extremely appreciative that she has agreed to do this. I’ll pick up the completed surveys when I return to Sitka in two weeks.
After meeting with Valerie I headed back down to the diet office to get my lunch. The food actually isn’t terrible and I feel like an elementary school student again – walking around with my carton of orange juice and cookie covered in saran wrap. Each meal has vegetables, fruit, an entrée, and dessert. Plus, I get unlimited juice, coffee, milk, and tea. There is a TV in the doctor’s lounge on the third floor of the hospital so I went up there and watched TV while I ate.
Following lunch I went down to the OB clinic and set up my table with brochures and my giveaways. Since there were so few patients today I got a chance to do a lot of reading on my Kindle. Even though it was a slow day, the information that I got from the patients is always meaningful. The age range of women seen in the OB clinic is very large in Sitka as well. I saw a girl younger than me all the way up to a women in her 40’s about to deliver her ninth baby. Large families for the Tlingit natives are normal as most begin having children in their teens and continue on through marriage. There is also not a large emphasis on any form of birth control and the idea of abortion is looked upon in a very negative light throughout the state. Plus, when it gets dark, cold, and rainy at 2 PM in the winter months, what else are you going to do?
I met with Martha Pearson and Litia Garrison in the afternoon for what turned out to be an extremely productive and helpful meeting. We discussed ways in which their organization, Wisewomen, has distributed patient education materials in the past few years. Essentially my project with OB patients is reaching the same demographic as Wisewomen so what they have found to be successful or unsuccessful should hold true for me as well. We talked about the need for strong local presence in our materials and how it is particularly important to not be at all condescending towards the Native Alaskans. It was also interesting to hear how their incentive based mailings only produced marginal results. Even with the incentive of a $25 gift certificate only about 30% of the patients responded to the Wisewomen surveys. They also showed me a series of postcard mailings that they are implementing in a few months that they hope will be more successful. The meeting gave me many great ideas for how to reach our patients in new, creative ways. I’m excited to share my new ideas with Dr. Hort to see what she thinks.
I went to grab dinner at the diet office. I have become friendly with the man who hands out the trays so he likes to throw extra dessert on my tray. I decided not to take the bike back into town today because it’s a bit cold and windy. I have never really been much of a bike rider, but riding a bike over a bridge could be the scariest thing I’ve ever done. As a result, I am going to take advantage of the internet and digital cable and just relax. It’s been a fun few days in Sitka and I’m excited to come back here in a few weeks. I now know my way around the town so I will be sure to explore the trail systems and fun, tourist areas next time I’m in town. If it’s nice tomorrow I would like to head to the Alaska Raptor Center where they rehabilitate birds and then set them off into the wild. There is also a bear fortress where you can see brown bears in a natural, but controlled, setting. If the weather is cold and rainy again I will head back to the dental clinic to check out some more bulk denture making.
That’s all for today…
The OB nurse in Sitka is named Valerie and she was incredibly nice and accommodating. She showed me around the clinic and agreed to send patients my way after they checked in at the nurse’s station. I was a bit disappointed to learn that today was going to be a slow day in the OB clinic with only 8-10 patients. On a normal Tuesday there are anywhere from 20-25 patients seen, so I got a bit unlucky in this regard. I spoke with Valerie and she agreed to distribute the survey to patients next week when the schedule is back to normal. This will be extremely helpful as it will allow me to increase the number of people who get to add their input. This was very nice of Valerie and I am extremely appreciative that she has agreed to do this. I’ll pick up the completed surveys when I return to Sitka in two weeks.
After meeting with Valerie I headed back down to the diet office to get my lunch. The food actually isn’t terrible and I feel like an elementary school student again – walking around with my carton of orange juice and cookie covered in saran wrap. Each meal has vegetables, fruit, an entrée, and dessert. Plus, I get unlimited juice, coffee, milk, and tea. There is a TV in the doctor’s lounge on the third floor of the hospital so I went up there and watched TV while I ate.
Following lunch I went down to the OB clinic and set up my table with brochures and my giveaways. Since there were so few patients today I got a chance to do a lot of reading on my Kindle. Even though it was a slow day, the information that I got from the patients is always meaningful. The age range of women seen in the OB clinic is very large in Sitka as well. I saw a girl younger than me all the way up to a women in her 40’s about to deliver her ninth baby. Large families for the Tlingit natives are normal as most begin having children in their teens and continue on through marriage. There is also not a large emphasis on any form of birth control and the idea of abortion is looked upon in a very negative light throughout the state. Plus, when it gets dark, cold, and rainy at 2 PM in the winter months, what else are you going to do?
I met with Martha Pearson and Litia Garrison in the afternoon for what turned out to be an extremely productive and helpful meeting. We discussed ways in which their organization, Wisewomen, has distributed patient education materials in the past few years. Essentially my project with OB patients is reaching the same demographic as Wisewomen so what they have found to be successful or unsuccessful should hold true for me as well. We talked about the need for strong local presence in our materials and how it is particularly important to not be at all condescending towards the Native Alaskans. It was also interesting to hear how their incentive based mailings only produced marginal results. Even with the incentive of a $25 gift certificate only about 30% of the patients responded to the Wisewomen surveys. They also showed me a series of postcard mailings that they are implementing in a few months that they hope will be more successful. The meeting gave me many great ideas for how to reach our patients in new, creative ways. I’m excited to share my new ideas with Dr. Hort to see what she thinks.
I went to grab dinner at the diet office. I have become friendly with the man who hands out the trays so he likes to throw extra dessert on my tray. I decided not to take the bike back into town today because it’s a bit cold and windy. I have never really been much of a bike rider, but riding a bike over a bridge could be the scariest thing I’ve ever done. As a result, I am going to take advantage of the internet and digital cable and just relax. It’s been a fun few days in Sitka and I’m excited to come back here in a few weeks. I now know my way around the town so I will be sure to explore the trail systems and fun, tourist areas next time I’m in town. If it’s nice tomorrow I would like to head to the Alaska Raptor Center where they rehabilitate birds and then set them off into the wild. There is also a bear fortress where you can see brown bears in a natural, but controlled, setting. If the weather is cold and rainy again I will head back to the dental clinic to check out some more bulk denture making.
That’s all for today…
Monday, June 14, 2010
Reflection at the halfway point
I am currently on a ferry halfway between Juneau and Sitka so I figured that it was an appropriate time to reflect on the halfway point of my summer project experience. So far, so good. I have been having such an enriching experience – not just through the stated goals of my summer project, but also through the social and cultural experience of Alaska. I have hiked 2,500 feet in elevation change to an alpine ridge where I saw bald eagles and blooming Shooting Stars. I have wandered 2.9 out of 3 miles to John Muir Cabin before turning around and sprinting back to the trailhead, terrified of brown bears every step of the way. I have seen traditional Tlingit dances and parades. I have seen “big” cities and small villages. Each experience has taught me something about the state of Alaska.
Alaska is such a unique and interesting place. The land mass of the state would cover 20% of the lower 48, however, the population of the state is so small. Every city in Alaska is like a small bubble – a tiny populated, developed area surrounded by thousands of square miles of vast forest. Even in cities like Juneau and Anchorage there is nothing beyond the city limits.
The people in Alaska all have interesting stories. There are the traditional people, the Tlingit, who spend their lives attempting to balance the Eagle and the Raven and continue storied family legacies that preserve their ancient culture and tradition. There are also many who have come to Alaska to find out something about themselves or to escape the fast pace of a big city. Either way, everyone that you meet offers a unique monologue on life and what it has brought them.
In regards to my summer project, I have learned some pretty incredible things. When I spoke to people before May 16th I told them, “Why Alaska? I’m going to Alaska because dentistry is done differently there and should offer me a unique perspective on the profession.” Differently? Until recently I’m not sure I even know what that meant, however, some recent experiences have helped to clarify.
Maybe it was the woman I spoke to who walked 60 miles through dense, bear-filled forest with her 75 year old mother and 8 year old son just to catch a ferry to come to Juneau to schedule a dental appointment. The woman was the only one of the three that came to Juneau for some dental work. The other two? They wanted to see what Wal-Mart and Costco were.
It could have been my experience in Hoonah, AK where SEARHC dentists visit the clinic once every two months. I did some math after my trip to Hoonah. There are ten appointment slots for four consecutive days for a total of 40 appointments. There are 800 dental patients in the village. If a dentist visits once every two months, that averages out to 20 dental appointments every month. By this math, it would take the dentists 40 months to see each patient once! 40 months. That’s enough time for a cavity to turn into a root canal and a root canal to turn into a nasty oral infection.
Or maybe it was just in Juneau, where I have continually spoken with patients who have simply told me they forgot their dental appointments or just didn’t feel like coming in that day. These people are offered an incredible service by the Indian Health Services – a service that provides them free dental and medical care for as long as they need it – yet they have found a way to abuse the system while others clamor for an opportunity to schedule a routine hygiene appointment because they feel the dentists are too young or the residents are simply there to experiment.
Different isn’t in the way a dentist preps a crown or crafts together a bridge – it’s in the people that make up the patient base. It’s in the mindset of patients who still don’t understand the basics of brushing and flossing. And it’s in the devotion of public health dentists who pass up a chance to join country clubs and drive BMWs to extract rotten teeth and fill cavities from the mouths of skeptical Native Alaskans. If nothing else the trip has offered a great opportunity for me to re-evaluate (not saying I’m quite ready to sacrifice the country club just yet!) the importance of dentistry and its impact on a population. Beyond that, I’ve been offered a chance to do more than just think – I’ve been offered a chance to make a real difference.
My telephone survey has helped identify whether or not patients are overcome with dental anxiety and fear and given the SEARHC dental staff a litany of reasons why their patients aren’t coming to their appointments 25% of the time. In addition, it has also helped to fix a broken scheduling system by identifying some disconnects in patient contact information. Hopefully, dentists will be given more access to Eaglesoft which will help provide the front desk with a more reliable way to confirm appointments and reach patients. There’s only so much you can learn over a telephone, though.
The waiting room survey has been equally effective. It has helped to identify that SEARHC’s approach to dental education information in the past wasn’t quite as strong as it could have been. It’s helped prove that, yes, these patients do generally care for their well-being and oral health – we just aren’t reaching them in the right way. Hopefully once the dust settles and the data is analyzed Dr. Hort and I will come up with something powerful and meaningful that will reach a new generation of patients and help break down the walls of skepticism and prejudice.
Even more than just the general knowledge of the state or the chance to make a difference, the trip has extended an opportunity to start over after two tough years - both personally and academically. I have always loved video games because you can always stop and hit the reset button. You get an endless amount of chances to do whatever it is you want – you simply cannot fail. In life, you can’t hit the reset button after getting a poor grade on a test you know you should have spent more time studying for or after reacting poorly to bad news. But for the first time in two years I feel lucky. At times over the past two years I have felt like I have been stuck in quicksand. Not only was I stuck but, the harder I tried to escape, the farther I got pulled down into a mess of personal and public anguish. This trip has taught me to appreciate the little things again and to create a stronger balance between working and playing. Not everyone gets a chance to live a video game life but, right now, I’m getting a chance to hit the reset button.
I’m not sure what the next four weeks will bring but I am excited for the possibilities. As my friendships with my co-workers continue to develop and I delve deeper into my patient interviews and surveys I’m hoping that I can leave a lasting mark on those around me and impact them as greatly as they’ve impacted me.
I’m off the to the back of the boat because for some reason I am really enjoying the cold, whipping wind and the spruce trees that line the sides of the ferry.
Alaska is such a unique and interesting place. The land mass of the state would cover 20% of the lower 48, however, the population of the state is so small. Every city in Alaska is like a small bubble – a tiny populated, developed area surrounded by thousands of square miles of vast forest. Even in cities like Juneau and Anchorage there is nothing beyond the city limits.
The people in Alaska all have interesting stories. There are the traditional people, the Tlingit, who spend their lives attempting to balance the Eagle and the Raven and continue storied family legacies that preserve their ancient culture and tradition. There are also many who have come to Alaska to find out something about themselves or to escape the fast pace of a big city. Either way, everyone that you meet offers a unique monologue on life and what it has brought them.
In regards to my summer project, I have learned some pretty incredible things. When I spoke to people before May 16th I told them, “Why Alaska? I’m going to Alaska because dentistry is done differently there and should offer me a unique perspective on the profession.” Differently? Until recently I’m not sure I even know what that meant, however, some recent experiences have helped to clarify.
Maybe it was the woman I spoke to who walked 60 miles through dense, bear-filled forest with her 75 year old mother and 8 year old son just to catch a ferry to come to Juneau to schedule a dental appointment. The woman was the only one of the three that came to Juneau for some dental work. The other two? They wanted to see what Wal-Mart and Costco were.
It could have been my experience in Hoonah, AK where SEARHC dentists visit the clinic once every two months. I did some math after my trip to Hoonah. There are ten appointment slots for four consecutive days for a total of 40 appointments. There are 800 dental patients in the village. If a dentist visits once every two months, that averages out to 20 dental appointments every month. By this math, it would take the dentists 40 months to see each patient once! 40 months. That’s enough time for a cavity to turn into a root canal and a root canal to turn into a nasty oral infection.
Or maybe it was just in Juneau, where I have continually spoken with patients who have simply told me they forgot their dental appointments or just didn’t feel like coming in that day. These people are offered an incredible service by the Indian Health Services – a service that provides them free dental and medical care for as long as they need it – yet they have found a way to abuse the system while others clamor for an opportunity to schedule a routine hygiene appointment because they feel the dentists are too young or the residents are simply there to experiment.
Different isn’t in the way a dentist preps a crown or crafts together a bridge – it’s in the people that make up the patient base. It’s in the mindset of patients who still don’t understand the basics of brushing and flossing. And it’s in the devotion of public health dentists who pass up a chance to join country clubs and drive BMWs to extract rotten teeth and fill cavities from the mouths of skeptical Native Alaskans. If nothing else the trip has offered a great opportunity for me to re-evaluate (not saying I’m quite ready to sacrifice the country club just yet!) the importance of dentistry and its impact on a population. Beyond that, I’ve been offered a chance to do more than just think – I’ve been offered a chance to make a real difference.
My telephone survey has helped identify whether or not patients are overcome with dental anxiety and fear and given the SEARHC dental staff a litany of reasons why their patients aren’t coming to their appointments 25% of the time. In addition, it has also helped to fix a broken scheduling system by identifying some disconnects in patient contact information. Hopefully, dentists will be given more access to Eaglesoft which will help provide the front desk with a more reliable way to confirm appointments and reach patients. There’s only so much you can learn over a telephone, though.
The waiting room survey has been equally effective. It has helped to identify that SEARHC’s approach to dental education information in the past wasn’t quite as strong as it could have been. It’s helped prove that, yes, these patients do generally care for their well-being and oral health – we just aren’t reaching them in the right way. Hopefully once the dust settles and the data is analyzed Dr. Hort and I will come up with something powerful and meaningful that will reach a new generation of patients and help break down the walls of skepticism and prejudice.
Even more than just the general knowledge of the state or the chance to make a difference, the trip has extended an opportunity to start over after two tough years - both personally and academically. I have always loved video games because you can always stop and hit the reset button. You get an endless amount of chances to do whatever it is you want – you simply cannot fail. In life, you can’t hit the reset button after getting a poor grade on a test you know you should have spent more time studying for or after reacting poorly to bad news. But for the first time in two years I feel lucky. At times over the past two years I have felt like I have been stuck in quicksand. Not only was I stuck but, the harder I tried to escape, the farther I got pulled down into a mess of personal and public anguish. This trip has taught me to appreciate the little things again and to create a stronger balance between working and playing. Not everyone gets a chance to live a video game life but, right now, I’m getting a chance to hit the reset button.
I’m not sure what the next four weeks will bring but I am excited for the possibilities. As my friendships with my co-workers continue to develop and I delve deeper into my patient interviews and surveys I’m hoping that I can leave a lasting mark on those around me and impact them as greatly as they’ve impacted me.
I’m off the to the back of the boat because for some reason I am really enjoying the cold, whipping wind and the spruce trees that line the sides of the ferry.
Day 29 - Sitka, AK Day 1
Early morning this morning as I had an 8 AM ferry ride to Sitka. Today was my lasy day house-sitting. I am going to miss the dog when I come home after work, but I am not going to miss the dog begging to walk at 6 AM. I drove to SEARHC to pick up my toothbrushes and toothpaste giveaways and pick up my bike from Dr. Hort.
I loaded onto the Fairweather vessel right before 8 AM. The Fairweather is a “fast ferry”. It goes directly from port to port at 35 knots so it takes less than half the time a normal ferry would take to get to Sitka. It doesn’t have any cabins because it is strictly for quick transportation. I grabbed breakfast and a seat near the window. I got lucky today as the weather was nice so I was able to spend some time out of the back deck. The view was great the entire time. We passed snow capped mountains and spruce trees along the shoreline. At times, whales swam alongside the ferry which was pretty neat. I spent most of the ride reading and writing. I am getting really into this book called The Bullpen Gospels. It’s about a career minor league pitcher and what it’s like to play in the minor leagues. If you are a baseball fan I would definitely look into it. The ferry ride took about 4 and a half hours until we arrived in Sitka.
I grabbed my bike from the bottom of the boat and hailed a taxi to Mount Edgecumbe Hospital. I was supposed to stay at the short-term housing facility, but when I arrived nobody had any record of my reservation. Talk about disconcerting. I stood stunned for a few minutes but eventually became friendly with the receptionist and got a hold of Karen Fredrickson, the housing director. She felt so bad about forgetting about my reservation that she set me up in a different housing unit right next to the hospital. The facility I am staying in now is a bit older than the short-term housing facility, but it has a T.V., cable, and internet so I was sold. Not to mention, Karen and SEARHC have agreed to take responsibility for all room charges. So that means two free nights in this room and free breakfast, lunch, and dinner from the hospital cafeteria. Even better, the Cardinals are playing the Mariners this week (Seattle is Juneau’s adopted sports city) so the Cardinals are on local cable all week.
After settling into the room I went to the dental clinic to meet some of the dentists and residents there. This week is a great week to be in Sitka because it is Prosthodontist Week. Every year the Sitka clinic brings in a prosthodontist, Dr. Tayler, and his residents from the University of Connecticut Dental School. They spend a week in the clinic making as many dentures as possible. They do everything in the clinic – from initial impressions to the final lab touch-ups. Sitka dental patients get dentures for a very minimal cost and the UConn prosthodontist residents get good practice making dentures and crowns. I spent the afternoon shadowing and watching the residents do lab work. They had quite the assembly line going in the lab with everybody working on varying stages of the dentures. Dr. Tayler is the head of the Prosthodontist Residency at UConn so he’s a good contact to have for the future.
Dinner is at 6 at the hospital and then I am going to take my bike into town to explore a bit. Tomorrow is a big day as I will be interviewing OB patients all day long. Off to dinner…
**New pictures in the album**
I loaded onto the Fairweather vessel right before 8 AM. The Fairweather is a “fast ferry”. It goes directly from port to port at 35 knots so it takes less than half the time a normal ferry would take to get to Sitka. It doesn’t have any cabins because it is strictly for quick transportation. I grabbed breakfast and a seat near the window. I got lucky today as the weather was nice so I was able to spend some time out of the back deck. The view was great the entire time. We passed snow capped mountains and spruce trees along the shoreline. At times, whales swam alongside the ferry which was pretty neat. I spent most of the ride reading and writing. I am getting really into this book called The Bullpen Gospels. It’s about a career minor league pitcher and what it’s like to play in the minor leagues. If you are a baseball fan I would definitely look into it. The ferry ride took about 4 and a half hours until we arrived in Sitka.
I grabbed my bike from the bottom of the boat and hailed a taxi to Mount Edgecumbe Hospital. I was supposed to stay at the short-term housing facility, but when I arrived nobody had any record of my reservation. Talk about disconcerting. I stood stunned for a few minutes but eventually became friendly with the receptionist and got a hold of Karen Fredrickson, the housing director. She felt so bad about forgetting about my reservation that she set me up in a different housing unit right next to the hospital. The facility I am staying in now is a bit older than the short-term housing facility, but it has a T.V., cable, and internet so I was sold. Not to mention, Karen and SEARHC have agreed to take responsibility for all room charges. So that means two free nights in this room and free breakfast, lunch, and dinner from the hospital cafeteria. Even better, the Cardinals are playing the Mariners this week (Seattle is Juneau’s adopted sports city) so the Cardinals are on local cable all week.
After settling into the room I went to the dental clinic to meet some of the dentists and residents there. This week is a great week to be in Sitka because it is Prosthodontist Week. Every year the Sitka clinic brings in a prosthodontist, Dr. Tayler, and his residents from the University of Connecticut Dental School. They spend a week in the clinic making as many dentures as possible. They do everything in the clinic – from initial impressions to the final lab touch-ups. Sitka dental patients get dentures for a very minimal cost and the UConn prosthodontist residents get good practice making dentures and crowns. I spent the afternoon shadowing and watching the residents do lab work. They had quite the assembly line going in the lab with everybody working on varying stages of the dentures. Dr. Tayler is the head of the Prosthodontist Residency at UConn so he’s a good contact to have for the future.
Dinner is at 6 at the hospital and then I am going to take my bike into town to explore a bit. Tomorrow is a big day as I will be interviewing OB patients all day long. Off to dinner…
**New pictures in the album**
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