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NASHUA, NEW HAMPSHIRE, July 21, 2004: Three swamis, all visiting from India, were blessing the homes of Hindu residents in Nashua when the minivan they were traveling in collided with another car. “We thought there was a trauma,” said Kim Leets, nurse and clinical director of oncology services at the hospital, who helped organize the emergency room care for the swamis. “It wasn’t until the ambulances all descended upon the emergency room that we learned there was more than one,” Leets said. Under normal operations, all of the injured men would not have arrived at the same hospital, but because the driver could act as an interpreter, the ambulance crew made the decision to keep everybody together. The doctor and surgeon working with the men were both male, but a large majority of the nurses were female, and only one of the nurses in the intensive care unit was male. As swamis, the men had taken a strict religious vow not to have any contact, including speech, with women. (HPI adds: The religious organization of the swamis was not included in the article, also the date of the accident was not clearly stated.) “I had dealt with a lot of multicultural situations, but nothing like this,” said Mary Beth Testagrossa, director of emergency care. “When do you get a multiple trauma, with swamis?”



Within an hour of the crash, more than 60 Hindu devotees arrived at the hospital, filling the emergency ward, waiting room and chapel to pray for the swamis, one of whom died shortly. Gurus also arrived at the emergency ward to attend to the swamis, sending the Hindu women scattering. The women explained to the nurses that in accordance with their religion they could not be seen by the gurus, Leets said. Testagrossa informed the driver that the hospital would do what it could to provide male caregivers, but because of a shortage of males, care from the female staff was going to be necessary. The swamis understood, he said, and were grateful they were being cared for. Throughout the next few days, hospital staff worked to combine modern hospital care with the cultural needs of the swamis. Hindu women stayed at the hospital to prepare the swamis’ vegetarian food and privacy for hours of prayer was needed on a daily basis.



The situation provided a test for many of the hospital staff members who have been actively studying cultures for about a year, according to Glory Wabe, nurse and chairwoman of the hospital’s cultural diversity committee. Wabe, nurse manager at the hospital’s rehabilitation center, said she got the idea to form the committee after observing various cultural issues among the diverse staff on that floor. The cultural diversity committee has about 18 members, and since its formation in September, the group has sponsored regular monthly meetings at the rehabilitation center to discuss specific cultures. Birth and death rituals for the cultures are often discussed, as is the expressiveness of each culture and how it relates to their medical care.

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