The days begin early as usual with church bell clangs and
roosters’ relentless calls. Who needs an
alarm?? Today after a quick cup of
Africafe, sitting outside the guest house overlooking the valley I headed out
for a brisk walk down the now familiar dirt road, through the hospital’s white
iron gates, past the man sitting outside
his shop waving , red brick houses, past the primary school and the many
children in blue and white uniforms wearing
their cranberry colored sweaters calling after me “Good morning” , and on
into the farm fields of corn, beans, tomatoes and squash reaching far to the foot
of the rocky hills surrounding the valley around Ilula. A
walk most of us take at some point of the day early at sunrise or later in the
afternoon when the sun is setting. The
smell of freshly plowed earth and rain from the night before is extra
peaceful.
After breakfast, we met with staff of Ilula Hospital every
morning to lift up a prayer with those that wish to and to receive a report
update on important events and statistics over the last 24 hours. Today Dr
Sovelo, Doctor in charge, asked the staff to share their ideas about a certain interesting
case that had been presented. Maybe it
is the teacher in me, but I really appreciate the opportunity it offers staff
to express their thoughts, ask questions, and offer alternative solutions. After the meeting which takes about 45
minutes, staff all retreat to their work areas and get started with their
day. Today, I joined one of the nurses
in the general ward, one I had met and rounded with on Monday, on our first
day. She was happy to work with me this
morning…and so we began! We worked side
by side…for hours, me mostly trying to figure out the flow of the morning, her
role in relation to the other 2 nurses, processes of med admin, such as how
physician orders were written, interpreted and carried out, their role in
patient care, family involvement, and how to best work within such a different
and resource poor setting. As Dr Randy stated on our bus ride here, most
medical people experience medical culture shock and I certainly am one of
those. He said that people who travel
usually embrace the change, enjoy the differences and experiences of different
cultures but when it comes to medical care, medical people want things to be
the same as they are used to. I came
away today swallowing a big gulp of that feeling. I look forward to more working together in
the spirit of collaboration, learning from each other, and lots of reflection
After lunch we all too a delightful bus trip to Iringa,
where we were introduced to the open market, Neema Craft, Masai market and the
Lutheran Center. I was very impressed by
the volume and variety of fruits and vegetables, and the piles of dried fish in
the market and the incredible mission and success of Neema Craft center. What an amazing opportunity offered to
disabled individuals to learn handicraft skills and to perhaps someday even
start their own businesses. The
handicrafts include weaving textiles on
looms, sewing, beading, jewelry making, wood carving to name only a few. The work is beautiful.
One of several days so far…
with gratitude,
Mary Renquist
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