First day of clinic...
The internet connection is painfully slow here at the cafe where I am blogging so please excuse any spelling or grammatical errors, I am also not able to post pictures at the present.
This was our first day of clinic and today we awoke to sunshine and a clear sky after a weekend of heavy rainstorms and cool temperatures. We drove for over and hour over rough, pot holed, dirt roads to Walela Camp. This is a new camp to me from last year, and it seemed dirtier, and less organized. We received word before we left the office this morning that 4 people had died there last week from starvation, and we were taking no food, only medicines. It seemed depressing to not be able to take some food, but it will be brought up at a meeting of all of the NGO's (non governmental organizations, i.e. Action Against Hunger) today.
As soon as we arrived in the camp everyone piled out of our two vans and began setting up tents, and the pharmacy. There was a group of people already lined up when we arrived, probably 150 people. As soon as everything was in place I started to see patients with my interpreter, David. It seemed like all of my patients in the first hour were little old ladies with aches and pains of every variety. Then I started to see younger patients, many with malaria, parasites, and rashes. I also saw at least one patient with active TB, a child and mother with chicken pox, and many pregnant women with no prenatal care. It was a full and tiring day and I think that David and I saw over 50 patients.
The flies were terrible, they were everywhere and I had to constantly brush them away from my face. The sun eventually hit the tent we were sitting in and it got very hot, it was hard to stay hydrated, and very hard to feel sorry for oneself, as the daily condition of the people I was seeing was so much worse. I knew that there would be an end to my day and I would drive away, take a cool shower, step into clean clothes and eat a full meal.
I understand that tomorrow we will be going to Acokora Camp, the one we walked through on Saturday. They have not received any medical help from anyone, and they are expecting us, so we predict there will be large masses awaiting our arrival. It will be an even longer and busier day with possibly sicker patients. I just hope we don't run out of medications.
So glad we can help alleviate some of the suffering by attending to some of their medical needs, but it would be so nice to have Lab, x-ray, MRI, surgery, dentistry, and so much more available.
I continue to find the Ugandan people beautiful and hard working, and I am thankful to be meeting many other foreigners here leaving behind comfort and predictability to make even a small difference in the lives of a very forgotten and abandoned people.
Praying for strength and wisdom, Brenda
The internet connection is painfully slow here at the cafe where I am blogging so please excuse any spelling or grammatical errors, I am also not able to post pictures at the present.
This was our first day of clinic and today we awoke to sunshine and a clear sky after a weekend of heavy rainstorms and cool temperatures. We drove for over and hour over rough, pot holed, dirt roads to Walela Camp. This is a new camp to me from last year, and it seemed dirtier, and less organized. We received word before we left the office this morning that 4 people had died there last week from starvation, and we were taking no food, only medicines. It seemed depressing to not be able to take some food, but it will be brought up at a meeting of all of the NGO's (non governmental organizations, i.e. Action Against Hunger) today.
As soon as we arrived in the camp everyone piled out of our two vans and began setting up tents, and the pharmacy. There was a group of people already lined up when we arrived, probably 150 people. As soon as everything was in place I started to see patients with my interpreter, David. It seemed like all of my patients in the first hour were little old ladies with aches and pains of every variety. Then I started to see younger patients, many with malaria, parasites, and rashes. I also saw at least one patient with active TB, a child and mother with chicken pox, and many pregnant women with no prenatal care. It was a full and tiring day and I think that David and I saw over 50 patients.
The flies were terrible, they were everywhere and I had to constantly brush them away from my face. The sun eventually hit the tent we were sitting in and it got very hot, it was hard to stay hydrated, and very hard to feel sorry for oneself, as the daily condition of the people I was seeing was so much worse. I knew that there would be an end to my day and I would drive away, take a cool shower, step into clean clothes and eat a full meal.
I understand that tomorrow we will be going to Acokora Camp, the one we walked through on Saturday. They have not received any medical help from anyone, and they are expecting us, so we predict there will be large masses awaiting our arrival. It will be an even longer and busier day with possibly sicker patients. I just hope we don't run out of medications.
So glad we can help alleviate some of the suffering by attending to some of their medical needs, but it would be so nice to have Lab, x-ray, MRI, surgery, dentistry, and so much more available.
I continue to find the Ugandan people beautiful and hard working, and I am thankful to be meeting many other foreigners here leaving behind comfort and predictability to make even a small difference in the lives of a very forgotten and abandoned people.
Praying for strength and wisdom, Brenda
posted by BrendaTravels | 8:41 AM
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