Brynn Barineau

Tag: doctor

  • My Recommendation for an OBGYN in Vitoria

    My Recommendation for an OBGYN in Vitoria

    My expat identity has taken a back seat in my last few posts to the teacher or pregnant woman part of me, but after reading some blog entries from other expats in Brazil I’ve been inspired to finally write a post that has been in the back of my mind for some time.

    Coconut Water is officially recommending Dr. Paulo Batistuta for anyone in Vitoria looking for an OBGYN.

    While I’ve endorsed several Brazilian food options including açaí and moqueca capixaba, this is Coconut Water’s first official endorsement of a healthcare professional in Brazil and I’m recommending Dr. Batistuta with the same fervor I do a big bowl of açaí.

    A fairly common complaint from expats here is that doctors in Brazil don’t really explain things to you.  They tell you to get a test and bring them the results.  Unless the results require being ordered to get another test or bypass surgery, that’s all you’ll hear about them.  Another complaint specific to women in the process of childbearing is that doctors here in Brazil prefer doing c-sections to pretty much anything else.  (I’d believe even more than sex given the rate at which they are performed here.)  Some private hospitals in Brazil have c-section rates as high as 90%.

    Dr. Batistuta (Dr. Paulo here in Brazil where they use first names) defies both of these stereotypes.

    Personal anecdote.  After an early ultrasound, I noticed there was one item that had an abnormal reading, specifically low blood flow in the left uterine artery. When we took the results to Dr. Batistuta, I asked about it and Dr. Batistuta picked up a pen and immediately began sketching a uterus and arteries.  He explained what the test measured and what the result meant.  He even sketched out exactly where the placenta was attached in my uterus.  You know, the more information the better.  He assured us that this wasn’t a problem given the normal results for everything else and we’d check it again at the next ultrasound.  He was right.  Everything was normal at the next ultrasound.

    Dr. Batistuta never rushes us out the door.  I’ll pull out a list of questions.  He’ll happily answer everyone, giving me cards, books, even DVDs that will provide further information.  While I’m in the bathroom changing I can hear him and my husband chatting away about upgrading their computers’ operating systems.  We were in his office for almost an hour during our last visit.

    As for c-sections, Dr. Batistuta is one of the leading voices in Brazil for natural childbirth.  If you speak Portuguese you can watch him being interviewed on youtube.  While he will state point blank he believes the best birth for the mother and baby is one with no unnecessary medical intervention, he has also told me that ultimately the doctors and staff are there to support me and what I want.  If I ask for drugs, they will give me drugs.

    I should mention cost.  One of the great things about Vitoria is that you can get great medical care (private) for half the cost of what you’d pay in Rio or Sao Paulo.  For an office visit, Dr. Batistuta charges BR$200 ($118).  We pay this out of pocket at the visit and send a receipt to our insurance company for reimbursement.  For the actual birth, Dr. Batistuta is charging BR$4.000 ($2,353). Again, we’ll pay and get reimbursed later.  (Once the whole birthing process is said and done, I’ll do a summary of all medical expenses for giving birth in Vitoria.)

    Finally, the language issue.  Our visits are conducted exclusively in Portuguese but when I have to use an English phrase Dr. Batistuta understands.  (I suspect he is modest about his level of English and understands way more English than he lets on.)  Fortunately, my husband attends every visit and supplements my intermediate Portuguese with his native tongue thus preventing any serious misunderstandings.  I can’t say for sure how it would go if you don’t speak any Portuguese. I think everyone could muddle through but it is important to know that Vitoria is a much smaller city than Rio, Sao Paulo or Belo Horizonte and English speaking professionals are in much shorter supply here.

    If you are an expat in Vitoria looking for an OBGYN, I strongly recommend Dr. Batistuta.  He talks to his patients as intellectual equals.  He supports natural birth and medical intervention only when necessary.  He understands some English and is very patient when listening to bad Portuguese.  You can find his profile and contact info with the CECON medical group.

  • My Dentist, My Sadist

    Today, I met the world’s friendliest dentist. Hmm, maybe I should rephrase given that dentists have not traditionally set the bar high when it comes to amicability. Today, I met a dentist who could not have been friendlier had she been inhaling her own laughing gas.

    It was my first trip to the dentist in Brazil. It was my first trip to the dentist in a decade. Maybe not quite that long. It’s hard to remember.

    Anyway, the last dentist I liked had video games and Disney movies playing in her waiting. Since the age of ten, every dentist I’ve had has been competent but distant and all business, in the way I imagine disembowlers must have been.

    My dentist today greeted me with a huge smile and flattering yet oddly enthusiastic declaration of how pretty I am. I think complimenting might be office policy to hook new patients and if so, I was sold. The smiling and over-the-top-compliments were such a welcome change for a dentist’s office; I thanked her and introduced myself to Doctor Gabriella.

    Brazilians use first names right away, even in professional contexts. It gives every encounter a personal feel. In Brazil, I don’t have bankers, dentists and doctors. I have a large network of personal acquaintances with a diverse skill set.

    Gabriella and I chatted about all the obvious first meeting facts: where are you from, how long have you lived here, which country do you like better. (There is no way to answer that last question honestly without offending someone. I just go with “Wow, that’s hard. They’re so many good things about both.”) Right before we got started I mumbled something about how long it had been since my last trip and then I waited for the shaming to begin.

    I’d always assumed that dentists are taught that shame is the only way to make people floss regularly. A patient must be told whatever she is doing, it is not done frequently or well enough and ultimately not sufficient to keep her teeth from falling out of her head. And toothless people go to hell.

    It was quite a shock then when Doctor Gabriella gently plied my lips and cheek away from my teeth and assured me they were very clean. When she spotted a cavity she called it a “little thing” that we can fix quickly. No lectures. A cavity and no lecture. I wonder if this woman knows what a disgrace she is to her profession.

    When we were done she walked me to reception area, asked me to come back for a cleaning and cavity filled, then she gave me a big hug and kiss on the cheek. A Brazilian that hugs. A dentist that is genuinely pleasant. I was completely thrown. I didn’t know how to react. I did know I liked it. So I’m going back for more next Tuesday at 9am.

  • Combatting Hypertension and Puritans

    Rio has a way of bringing out the Puritan in me.  I see a fourteen year-old girl in a thong and I’m thrown into what can only be described as a tizzy.  I turned into a flustered grandmother when handed a government sponsored condom upon arrival at the Carnaval parade.  My husband says not to be too hard on myself.  He says I’m just a product of my culture.

    I’d like to protest but he’s right.  Americans are so uptight about sex.  Brazilians seems to be more open about sex and the fact that people actually have it.  This open attitude is certainly embraced by the ministry of health as demonstrated by their carnaval themed condoms and a report they issued last week.

    A new study shows the rate of hypertension in Brazil has risen from 21.5% in 2006 to 24.4% of the population in 2009.  Hypertension is a problem the US and Brazil share but Brazil seems to be taking a slightly different approach to combatting the problem.

    As part of fighting hypertension, the health minister recommends, “besides eating five portions of fruits a day, you could try to have sex five times a day.”

    Take a minute and try to imagine an American cabinet member or any government official saying those words to the press.  If your head hasn’t exploded from trying to visualize something so inconceivable, move on to imagining the voices of the FOX news pundits.  And finally, picture the headline a week later announcing the resignation of this official.

    Here in Brazil, the newspaper article acknowledged the minister was joking and further quoted him seriously recommending, “dance, sex, a change in diet” and physical activity as ways to combat high blood pressure.  Then the article went on to discuss the report in greater detail.

    A government official recommends sex five times a day and the reporter focuses on hypertension statistics?  What is wrong with these people?

    As far as I know, the health minister still has his job and no reports have come in of children irrevocably damaged from hearing their government acknowledge that there are physical benefits from a healthy sex life.

    But before anyone starts applying for residency visas, a word of caution.  While Brazilians have fewer hang ups about sex, the country is far from being a bastion of liberal values.  If any daughters result from these hypertension treatments, good luck convincing their fathers to let them play soccer.  Soccer turns girls into lesbians.

    Now, if you’ll excuse me.  I’ve had french fries a few times this week and my husband is out of town.  I’ll just have to go to the gym.