Kenyan Collage

I left, with many tears, memories and new friends to enrich my life. Without the support of my dear friends and family at home, I could never have done this. I’m referring to your contribution to my morale, as well as your financial support. So here’s to you, the real heroes, the back stage crew—Asante! But if anyone wants to know what else they can do to help Africa, I would honestly say, without hesitation: live simply….



Morning Traffic 


Patients do Their Own Laundry at the Hospital 


                                  CMMB Staff
                      Hospital & Nursing Student Send Off


           My Friend Duncan, the Budding Photographer 

Leigh Carries My Suitcase

                                      Local Fauna


                            Mutomo Pedicure 






Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Tailwinds

Image
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...
Read more

Water

Image
Water is a scarce resource in Africa. A billion people worldwide lack safe, clean drinking water.  It’s probably the main reason for poor health. Without it, crops don’t grow so people are malnourished. Contaminated drinking water causes diarrheal illnesses which are responsible for 12% of mortality in children under 5. Poor sanitation due to limited ability to wash causes spread of communicable disease. Over 2 billion people don’t have access to latrines. No running water in hospitals prevents proper sterilization of instruments used in procedures (causing nosocomial infections). And on and on… So when I complain of cold showers (which often clog up and barely flow) or toilets which don’t flush or water entirely running out, I’m complaining about something billions of people on the planet deal with  their whole lives. We buy drinking water from town in a big 18 liter jug, which we have to get someone to lug up to our house. Or we refill small water bottles at the CMMB office ...
Read more

Mombasa!

Image
If Mombasa sounds like Mumbai, it’s no surprise because there is strong Indian influence in this steamy coastal town. Leigh and I decided to splurge on another weekend trip to Mombasa, but were disappointed that our fellow volunteer in S. Sudan couldn’t join us due to illness. I’d already paid for a nonrefunable hotel so we decided to go anyway. It’s been well worth the expense! The Indian Ocean is as warm as bath water, and it’s no wonder. The temperature here spiked to about 105 F when we got off the train. We caught a tuk-tuk (much like a motorized rickshaw), which gave us a much appreciated breeze as we rode through the busy city. Mombasa has many Arabs, as well as Indians living here, as was obvious by the architecture and languages spoken. Our hotel has all the amenities and is on the beach. Many locals come to play soccer on the beach or swim in the warm ocean swells. All the young men wanted to befriend Leigh of course, and though there were other “mzungus” (white people) aroun...
Read more