African Dreams

It’s been a week. Only the usual power failures and internet challenges; no illness and no water loss. Certain things are just part of the daily routine and I accept the inconveniences and adapt. Meanwhile, back at home there are blizzards and power failures too, what’s the difference? It’s just hotter here! I continue to teach CPR to the nursing students which is mostly going well. This week’s moral dilemma involved having a distinct feeling that some of the students had cheated on the exam I gave them. After discussing it with another “tutor “ (which is how we are referred to, not teachers or professors), it was decided that I should write another exam and retest them. This was rather awkward, as the other tutor outright asked them if they cheated, which of course they denied. I tried to handle it by saying that it was important to learn the skills, and that getting 100% did not guarantee that they were capable of saving anyone’s life. In the end, I may not be their friends, but hope...

I taught 2 CPR classes to the nursing students, which was less intimidating than to the hospital staff. But even so, the magnitude of discrepancies between what US students have and what developing world students have is enormous. US students have books, reliable internet and unlimited computer access. In CPR classes, there is one manikin per 2 students, AEDs in public places and an Emergency Medical System to respond quickly. Here, there was one malfunctioning adult manikin per 12 students, no CPR books, no EMS, no AEDs, lousy internet connectivity. We teach hand hygiene and blood borne pathogen protection and though nurses know the recommendations, sinks with running water, PPE and adequate plumbing facilities are few and far between. My biking friend Becca would refer to what we have in the US as a tailwind. In Africa there are only strong headwinds.  And yet, Kenyans are adaptable, resilient and accepting of what’s available, in spite of the hardships. This is what keeps me opt...

Ah, Nairobi. A bunch of CMMB staff and volunteers took the train here Friday, arriving way too late to make it to my meeting with the director of the Gender Violence Recovery Centre (GVRC). In spite of the timing of our arrival, the group decided to stop for lunch, making me 45 minutes late. No matter—no one, including the Director of the Centre, seemed too concerned. This is what is known as “African time”. Latin Americans have a similar clock. It’s only people who live in cold climates who seem to care about schedules. Anyway, I’m was back in the same apartment as 3 weeks ago, only I had a nicer place, equipped with a nice dining room and a big bathroom with a tub! I soaked my achey hip a couple of nights in a row, which was very therapeutic. The meeting I missed Friday was rescheduled for Saturday and it was quite productive. There are a number of services for sexual assault victims offered by the GVRC that are very similar to those in the United States, but of course resources and ...

The honeymoon is starting to fray around the edges this week due to a water shortage we’re experiencing in the volunteer housing. The larger tanks that flow into the sinks and toilets have run out because of the lack of rain. I’m not sure how long we’ll have to wait for a water truck to come and refill them. Otherwise, it rains again in April; that’s a long way off! In the meantime, there’s a smaller rainwater tank just outside the house. That means we have to fill buckets to wash the dishes, flush the toilet etc. We still have a drinking water dispenser but of course we don’t waste that on washing. Ryan was kind enough to carry a water jug from town to our house and we can’t abuse that favor. Bathing is quite another story! I’ve been bathing like a nursing home resident in a plastic chair on the porch at night with all the lights turned off. Interesting experience. Another interesting experience was a bunch of us braving a “restaurant” where they supposedly had good chicken. It was li...

The students have been lovely. Soft spoken, quiet and respectful. I don’t think they are used to my style. I try to get them involved in skills practice and case studies. I reward one per day with a prize. Once, when I was headed downtown, one followed me and directed me to all the best vendors and carried my backpack all the way home. I thanked her with some hot Sprite—because that’s how they sell it. She accepted politely. Well, as on every trip, illness makes its way to me. Yesterday, in the midst of having to move from one volunteer house to another, I suddenly became violently ill. It was not a pretty sight. But as fast as it came, like a bullet shooting through my body, it was over, and I was able to teach my next class a few hours later. I am now obsessively aware of how well I boil the water, wash the vegetables and clean the kitchen surfaces, as I don’t want to make my roommate sick.   This weekend I’m drinking a ton of fluids and eating a bunch of salt and trying to take ...

This is the morning routine. I wake up and crawl out of the mosquito netting cocoon, check my shoes to make sure there are no giant cockroaches sleeping in them (there once was), make some breakfast and then boil water to wash the dishes. Pour out any standing water, because this is malaria mosquito habitat. Then close all the screen-less windows to keep all the critters out and clip all the curtains shut with paper clips. At night while cooking dinner, the sun goes down and the mosquitoes start humming, so I put on my mosquito netting “spacesuit” until bedtime. We open the windows and curtains again after sunset. I spray the curtains with bug spray, take a refreshing shower and jump back into the cocoon for some reading before turning out the lights. And hope to fall asleep before the humming on the other side of the net begins again… Bugs and heat and funky kitchens notwithstanding, all is well and I continue to feel useful and busy and up to the challenge. I taught my first 2 nursin...