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100, 250, 500, and even over 600 – these are the kilometers that people who go on a walking pilgrimage to Jasna Gora can walk. This is a big challenge for an organism that is not always prepared for such a great effort. The consequences are wounds, injuries and emergencies, which are not lacking during the trip to Częstochowa. The first aid doctors tell about what hurts Polish pilgrims the most today.
- The part of the body that is most intensively used during the walk hurts pilgrims most often, i.e. the legs
- The problem is not only the popular “soreness”, but also corns, blisters and asphalt, called the pilgrim’s disease
- The medical needs increase the heat. – (…) they promote dehydration of the body, fainting appear, which prevents further march and excludes pilgrims from the pilgrimage for at least a few hours, sometimes even for a day. There are also cases that the pilgrim has to return home – says medical rescuer Joanna Loch-Zawrotniak
- A walking pilgrimage is also a considerable effort for people with chronic diseases. – Such a “burdened” pilgrim is always under observation – confirms the medicine. Krzysztof Stączek, orthopedist
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The medic is also a pilgrim
Joanna Loch-Zawrotniak is the deputy chief commandant in the Malta Medical Service Association, which has been serving for many years during walking pilgrimages. She herself has a dozen or so travels behind her, seven as “medical”, that is, a person providing medical support to the faithful going to places of religious worship.
It started with an injury. She was a teenager, she went on a pilgrimage with her friends, during one of the stages she was overloaded. It was the first time that she saw up close what the medical service on the road was about. They liked it so much that she enrolled in a first-aid course, and later on to study in the field of emergency medical services.
Her day during the pilgrimage begins just like with every pilgrim. There is a wake up, then breakfast, baggage packing – and on the road. Initially, she was on foot patrol. It is a group of people trained in providing first aid. They go with the pilgrims as usual, usually at the end of the group. They pray, sing and take an active part. But they have a handy first aid kit with them and are in constant contact with the ambulance team or a transport car in which forces and medical resources are stored. There are people with medical education who look after those who require more specialized medical assistance.
One of them is Krzysztof Stączek, orthopedist, chief physician of the First Community of the 42nd Krakow Walking Pilgrimage to Jasna Góra, member of the Association “Service of Saint Lazarus – LAZARUS”.
When I talk to him, he’s on the road. The Krakow group is heading to Częstochowa, August 15 is one of the biggest Marian holidays of the year – the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. You can hear gusts of wind and the characteristic, rapid breathing, appearing when we talk for a long time during an intense or long walk.
– This year, fortunately, none of the pilgrims were in a life-threatening situation, but in previous years there were cases of people with exacerbation of circulatory failure, shortness of breath, abdominal surgery, heat stroke and ischemic brain disease. There are cases of fractures, but not life-threatening, although they require imaging diagnostics, immobilization, and rethinking the issue of intervention in a hospital setting – he says, adding that The role of the ministering medics is then to provide medical support for the pilgrim and transport him to the hospital, where he will be able to undergo specialized diagnostics and treatment.
The legs carry, but also hurt
Most common interventions? Both the paramedic and the doctor, without hesitation, say that they concern the legs. The number one problem is corns and blisters.
– Unfortunately, they burst and often become an open wound that is constantly irritated during the march. Therefore, the wound is difficult to heal and the pain is difficult to relieve with painkillers. The most important thing is to keep the wound clean and properly supplied, says Joanna Loch-Zawrotniak.
Wound cleansing and disinfecting agents, such as Octenilin Octenidine Gel with fungicidal, bactericidal and virucidal properties, are available from Medonet Market.
Speaking of legs and wounds, then it is impossible not to mention the asphalt. This is the common name for an allergic reaction that appears on the legs (mainly but not limited to the calves) as a painful, burning redness. It is called the pilgrim’s disease.
– It is a combination of sunburn and an allergic reaction to the dust from the path on which the pilgrim is walking. Legs sweat, hot surfaces and a painful rash. It is important to wash the reddened areas frequently. You cannot apply any creams during the day, even those with a UV filter, to prevent more dust from sticking and increasing allergy. A good solution for pilgrims with a tendency to asphalt formation is to wear long trousers that cover the legs and reduce the impact of dust and sun – suggests the paramedic.
Fitness? Not everyone has time to make it
The second group of leg problems during foot pilgrimages are muscle and joint overload. This ailment is characteristic of the first days of the hike, which are treated as a warm-up.
– A walking pilgrimage is a considerable physical effort, for which not everyone is used and prepared – says Joanna Loch-Zawrotniak.
– These are considerable distances, almost 30 km at each stage, and the march takes place mostly on a hard asphalt surface, which is also not conducive to our muscles and joints. A large proportion of people work and during the year there is no time for greater physical activity, fitness preparation for the march, hence the problems at the stage of the pilgrimage – adds the drug. Krzysztof Stączek.
A warming gel for muscle and joint pain in a comfortable roll will work for your legs tired with a long walk. When you buy it at Medonet Market, you will receive a surprise along with your order.
The orthopedist also draws attention to an issue that often exacerbates the problem. These are “technical” errors.
– They are more the domain of first-time pilgrims. Older, more experienced pilgrims already have their proven footwear, worn out shoes that have walked hundreds of kilometers. Before the pilgrimage, the less experienced often buy new footwear and equipment that has not been tested before and this can, unfortunately, be disastrous. – judges.
The medical needs are aggravated by the heat
The amount of work of medics serving during hiking increases in direct proportion to the air temperature. The greater the heat, the greater the risk of sunburn and dehydration, and the greater the risk of fainting, and even sun or heat strokes.
– Of course, we always recommend that you cover your head, use UV filters and protect yourself from overheating and sunburn. Unfortunately, it is difficult to completely shelter from the sun during hot pilgrimage days. Sun exposure is long and strong. The heat is conducive to dehydration of the body, fainting appears, which prevents further march and excludes the pilgrim from the pilgrimage for at least a few hours, sometimes even for a day. There are also cases when a pilgrim has to return home – says the paramedic.
This is often preceded by a visit to the HED, i.e. a hospital emergency department. Sometimes already on the road, often already at the destination.
– Of course, the most interventions are during the holiday season, when the most people come to us – confirms Adrian Sztander, paramedic from the Provincial Specialist Hospital. Of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Częstochowa.
How much? – It all depends on the day and the number of pilgrims, the number of groups, but also on the weather and preparation for the march. Sometimes it’s 10, sometimes 25 percent. pilgrims coming to the city during the year – he estimates.
From the route to SOR
The HED is usually visited by those who have not taken care of adequate hydration of the body and people after injuries, both in the lower and upper limbs. – It happens that these people suffer from head injuries during fainting. They are supplied by us, imaging diagnostics and blood tests are performed, and the doctors on duty make a decision whether the patient can be discharged or should be left for observation – says the paramedic.
Age? – Very different. There are children and the elderly, as well as prime-time pilgrims. Children in HED usually end up with dehydration and overheating of the body. Elderly people with various ailments, often resulting from insufficient preparation for the pilgrimage, e.g. they do not take enough medications. If they do not take them while walking and do not drink water or electrolytes regularly, it may result in health problems, such as heat stroke, atrial fibrillation or heart rhythm disturbances, says Adam Sztander.
The rest of the text below the video.
More serious medical interventions also happen, but this is already a lottery. – The disease simply does not choose, it can happen in the same way at home, at work, as well as during a pilgrimage or mass religious celebration – believes the rescuer.
You have to measure your intentions
Some pilgrims overestimate the possibilities of their own organism. Exhaustion of the body and dehydration are one thing, but when chronic diseases are added to it, it gets really dangerous. – Such a heart disease does not allow us to go further, because the efficiency of the body is too low in combination with effort and weather – explains Joanna Loch-Zawrotniak. And adds:
– People go with various diseases, although there are no such records of chronic diseases: hypertension, diabetes. I remember an adolescent with asthma. There was no attack, but she came to us early and said that if something happened, we should know what could be causing it. Such messages are a great help for us.
– There are also pilgrims with post-traumatic history, chronic overload changes behind them, after surgery in the area of the musculoskeletal system. Every day, when they work and move little, they do not feel their consequences, but when it comes to a greater load, they speak up. But most often, more specialized help is needed by pilgrims who have a long history of illness. Such a “laden” pilgrim is always under observation – adds the drug. Krzysztof Stączek.
From 2020, the medical service providing help to pilgrims going to Częstochowa in the summer has much less work. It is because of a pandemic that has significantly depleted pilgrim groups. – There are fewer interventions because there are fewer people – confirms the doctor.
COVID-19? There are no top-down guidelines for pilgrims. They follow the same sanitary and epidemiological rules as all of them. They go for a long time, they go together, but – as they declare – they take care of hygiene, disinfect their hands, try to protect themselves. They pray a lot. For the end of the pandemic, but also for healing from diseases and various ailments – relatives, friends, your own. Also those they experience during their journey – the painful and painful ones too.
– Some pilgrims realize that it would be better if they stopped the pilgrimage at this stage, but they decide to go because they have their own intentions and they entrust this form of exhaustion or suffering for this intention – says the medicine. Krzysztof Stączek.