R.Ray, AM/E&S,NV

-5-

September 22, 1975

In the dispensary I was disappointed to discover that there had been a doorway

cut into the living quarters through which pets, children, grownups would go
There had been a bed at one end of the dispensary that was
back and forth.
used as an examining area. That bed was no longer there and Jendrik said that

Apparently, it had been taken out to be used
it wasn't there whi 2 he arrived.
I did note that there was a refrigerator which I didn’t
by somebody else.
There
The inside of the dispensary was in disarray.
remember from before.
There were open storage boxes.
were children sleeping on a mat on the floor.
One of the little girls was playing with some of the medical supplies in
A syringe was standing by its needle in a bottle of what appeared
the box.

The medications and supplies were in shambles and there
to be adrenalin.
The cabinets couldn't be closed. It was pleasing
storage.
the
to
order
no
was

to see the refrigerator and good to think that now there was a place to store
There were three or four thousand tetracycline tabicts
perishable drugs.
These were new
one thousand tablets almost outdated.
about
and
still in date
and hadn't been apparent when I was there before. There were also two added
aluminum boxes with sterile suture and dressing materials in packages and
These were just lying loose in the box which
some sterile disposable syringes.
I was concerned at the lack of security
was open to the children's curosity.
control on every thing except the refrigerator which opened and closed with a

lock and key. On gétting the refrigerator opened I found no medication in it.
There was a box of onions rotting in the bottom. It was a small refrigerator
and was being used for cooling drinking water. I asked Jendrik to remove

everything from the refrigerator and we put in all of the medication and
It filled the major portantibiotics that were perishable or at least dated.
ion of the refrigerator.
I told Jendrik I would be back the next day and we would go over some of the

medications and organize his shelves so that the first things in were the first

things out.
I suggested that the medications be broken up into some arrangement of injectables, oral 13:dications, perishables.
It was suggested that
the ice box not be used for cooling drinking water. ‘There were some trays for
sterilizing things by liquids, but no sterilizing liquid.
One suggestion
would be a simple pressure cooker which could be used to sterilize instruments
quite nicely even if it were used outside.
-

I admonished him quite gently:

“well really you need to keep the medicine

here" and so on - but I didn't seem to be very well received.
I had told him
I would be back tomorrow to help him clean things up but he showed little
interest.
So as I went back to my spot, unhappily, on the ship I thought of

a number of suggestions for the dispensary.

I might list them here.

(1) There

should be regular observed hours for dispensary care:
(No fishing during
dispensary hours)
(2)
The aide at the dispensary should recognize his
responsibility to keep the place clean.
(3)
He should recognize the importance of an alphabetical or other orderly storage of drugs.
(4)
There should
be an adequate record of patient care.
Each patient should have at least
a6 x 8 individual card.
(5)
Syringes and needles should be kept ina
special place along with the range of injectable drugs that do not require
refrigeration.

cabinets.

(6)

All medication should be under lock and key in the

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