My first days as Camp Nurse at Sen Lin Hu

My name is Hua Ai and I am the Hu Shi at Sen Lin Hu. Nihao.
There are currently 73 Villagers, about 20 Counselors, and about 10 other staff (kitchen, office, maintenance) here at the Chinese Village. Many of the counselors are from China and speak very little or no English. The Villagers are from about 8 years old to 18 and are here for 2 or 4 weeks. I am the only RN on staff; I have an assistant who has been trained in First Aid etc and is very fluent in Chinese who helps me when he can.  He is also a head counselor and “go to” guy for many things.
I felt very overwhelmed when I first arrived… new nurse, new place, new people, new foods, new culture, new language.  A lot of newness in one big dose. My clinic was not organized and so I spent Sunday, my day off, cleaning, organizing, and checking expiration dates.  After this, I felt much better about my job and responsibilities.
This is the nurse’s clinic. It has my office, waiting area, bathroom and shower, my sleeping quarters, and a sick room for Villagers/Staff who need to spend the night because of illness. So far I have not had any overnight guests!
The Concordia Language Villages teaches by immersion – it truly feels like I am in China! All the meals are Chinese (and not American Chinese, I might add) – rice has been served at 98% of the meals.  The meals are generally very healthy – lots of fruits and veggies… no bread and butter… I miss the bread and butter. English is really only suppose to be spoken with the Nurse, and the kids are rewarded each day they accomplish this.
So far I have had quite a few skinned knees and elbows, bug bites, tummy aches, and sore throats. Hopefully this trend will continue! I have also helped rescue a bird from a cabin, find the home of a lost dog scared by the fireworks, and helped feed a baby bird (who later died).

Each day is different as the Hu Shi at Sen Lin Hu!

To see more of Sen Lin Hu, please visit: http://senlinhu.villagepages.org/