The day of our 3^rd clinic, we get up early, like every day, have breakfast, which usually consists of chapati (kind of like a fried tortilla), bread, boiled eggs, and mango and pineapple. After we eat, we load up in the van and head out. As I listen to the chit chat in the van, I look out the window and spot a primary school for the deaf. What! Did I really just see that? Hmmmm… I’ll have to check on that when we come back.

We are somewhat getting used to the roads by now. Bumpy, dirt, and a crazy driver, who loves to speed to the next bump/hole in the road – and then slam on the brakes to go “slowly” over it. But at least we know what to expect. Most of our clinics are an hour away from where we are staying, and they are always held on the grounds of the Orthodox Church. Today we were at the Secondary school, and the church is right there as well.

Our team has really gelled now, and we all have our roles for the clinic and also on our team. I was tasked before we left to make sure that we had food and water pretty much where ever we go. So far, I was doing an OK job with lunches, but I need to step up and make sure that the hotels have breakfast and dinner ready when we need it, as we don’t have a lot of extra time to wait. The days are long, so I also need to make sure that we have enough water and that people bring snacks, because let’s face it. Rice, Potatoes, and something on top is starting to get old.Even the soda is noticeably warm. We did have passion fruit today, which doesn’t taste anything like the passion fruit drinks we have here.

sitting around at lunch

the inside of a passion fruit. It got many more names the more we looked at it

We arrive at the school/church and there are many people waiting for us.

As we get set up, we designate a spot for triage, the providers (which has now grown to 4-5 instead of 3, as some of our nurses have stretched their comfort levels), a pharmacy and the dispensary. This is how all the clinics are designed but since each location is different, it is always interesting figuring out the flow of people for that day.

It was so inspiring and touching to see Dr. Mike work with his daughter, Mika (who is in pre-med school), showing her how to examine, and diagnose. I imagined working alongside of my grandfather doing the same thing. Then I remembered that I’m not in pre-med, but it was touching nonetheless.

One of our nurses, Janice, stepped up to become a provider. She was challenged, but grew into her new role beautifully and confidently. And another one of our nurses, a cardiac nurse, also stepped up to treat people too, when she wasn’t working the triage line. All of these people inspired me, as did our entire team, they all pushed themselves to learn more, and to challenge themselves in new ways.

The pharmacy was rolling, and since we had more providers, we were seeing more people than we had during the previous clinics; the dispensary was super busy that day. I had 2 translators who were amazing, and the rest of the pharmacy crew also dispensed. We were always running.

explaing how to take the medicine

Explanine how to take the medicine

There were 2 families that remain in my mind, both of which I could relate to. The first was a mother and her children. Her youngest was a premature baby. Born at 7 months. The baby was now 7 weeks, and other than being really small, looked pretty good to my untrained eye. I was awe stricken though. Because here we were in the middle of Africa, and a premature baby, by 2 months!, looked pretty good, and didn’t need immediate medical services, and had made it to 7 weeks!

premee baby getting triaged.

The 2^nd family came in with a young child who was having a febrile seizure. So, Rachel, our PICU nurse and Dr. Sue, worked with the child to bring his temp down. Then we treated him for malaria.

These 2 children touched me more than others, because our daughter Amanda was born prematurely and spent almost 4 weeks in the NICU, and here was this tiny little thing surviving without all of the medical intervention. When Amanda was 3 she also had a febrile seizure, and I remember the fear that consumed me. We had all the medical equipment at our disposal, and I was still on edge. It made me really feel for these people, and yet, they are so happy and content, and no of nothing else. Beautiful.

After lunch the line of people still waiting.

The day went on, and we were again, exhausted when we wrapped up. As we packed up, the children of the village came out and danced for us. It was so moving. Just what we needed to end a long day.

On our way home, I looked for that school, and didn’t see it. Had I really seen it, or had I been mistaken. At any rate, I mentioned it to Dr. Mike, who was going to talk to his wife about it, as she is a speech pathologist in California.

Day 2 of clinics. The rest of the team was starting to refine how they ran the clinics. Everyone was finding their niche, and I still wasn’t sure where or how I was going to fit in. Being in a new region, and not wanting to be in the way, I decide to go explore. The country side was beautiful and I had seen children attending school under a tree. How picturesque.

There was a primary school and a secondary school building, but on the grounds they were also building church.

There weren’t any kids to play with, as they were all in school, and I didn’t want to disturb them today.

Half way through the morning, I found myself helping out in the pharmacy.

 I had discovered that by dispensing the medicine, the pharmacy team could work a little faster. I had also started working really well with my translator, and by lunch had found my groove.  We saw so many more people today than yesterday, even before lunch. Some of the children were really sick.

Rachel (our PICU nurse) worked for 2 hours to bring a fever down for a little baby.

Dr. Mike met with one mother and son. The mother clearly announced that her son was deaf and dumb. End of story. But, she had to have been somewhat concerned about him, because she still brought him in to be seen. Dr. Mike was the best person to evaluate him. He looked at the little boy, and it was clear that he wasn’t dumb. Very bright actually. But in his short 4 hears of life, he had had very little communication with anyone (including his own family), as no one knows how to sign, and in rural villages he isn’t going to be able to learn.

The ladies of the village made us lunch again (which they start early in the morning, and cook over an open fire). Again, we had boiled potatoes, rice, and something on top. The soda was a nice touch, and the pineapple and mango were delicious!

Haha.. a quick shot to see how dirty everyone’s shoes are. o far, not so bad!

After lunch, we were VERY busy! We saw the highest risk patients: Mothers with young children, and the elderly. We probably doubled our patient count after lunch.

And by the end of the day, everyone was exhausted. Every time we thought we were finished for the day, someone would let in another 10-20 people in to be seen. I think we packed up the pharmacy 4 times.

After leaving the village, we drove back to the hotel, ate dinner, packed up meds for the next day, and crashed.

We had a whole day to acclimatize to Uganda. Now it is time to do what we came to do. We are holding our first health clinic today in an area called Jinja. We will actually have 4 clinics in this region. We leave super early… as it takes many hours to get there. We will be on the road! We all load into the van, except 1 person in the ambulance, and 2 or 3 into the truck (which is carrying our luggage). This van is made to transport 14 people. Not comfortably, but I guess we all fit.

The drivers, I swear, race to see who can get to the next huge bump/hole first, as they slam on the gas, only to slam on the breaks 50 feet later. This makes for a very smooth ride. So, we finally make it to our first clinic. There are many people already waiting for us, and there is also a school with TONS of children. So, I help unpack and set up, but still not sure of my role on the team (medically speaking), I’m off to explore.

I find myself surrounded with children.

I take their picture and show it to them. They LOVE it!!! They laugh and giggle, and some are really shy until you show them and then they want more and more. I usher them back to classes (yes, I did disturb school!), and find my way to a group of people waiting under a tree.

These are the people who are waiting for medical care. With the help of the local priest (who acts as my translator) I pray with them. This is the first time that I have publically prayed with people I don’t know. It was very awkward at first, but became easier with time. Some of the people really enjoyed it and gave me hugs afterwards. With this, I was encouraged to do more. So I found more people and prayed with them. It was truly touching to see how everyone responded to a simple prayer, and how grateful they were.

The priest’s wife made us all lunch. We had rice, boiled potatoes, and some sort of sauce for the top. It was tasty, and we all had some. They also provided soda, which as a nice break from all of the bottled water we had been drinking. After lunch, I found myself taking tons of pictures, and really inspired by our team. Everyone was working so hard, and taking such good care of all of my new friends.

Dr. Mike in action

Waiting for their medications

In fact, before lunch, there was a man with a very tender abdomen. Dr. Mike thought it is some sort of liver cancer or other type of cancer, and the man needed an ultrasound or CT scan to determine what it was. Alex, my wonderful husband, sprung into action, and took the man to the local clinic. I was so proud of him. He didn’t even think twice about leaving and taking care of someone he had just met.

While Alex was gone, the kids were released from school. So, not wanting to get in the way of the doctors, I went out to play with the kids. Now all the kids are taught in English, so they mostly understand. However, they are very shy, and not too sure of the “Muzungu” who is taking their pictures.  But after a minute or 2, I am surrounded! And loving it! I teach them all how to whistle…. So for the next 2-3 hours, all I hear is “whistle” and then either they or myself whistle.

  It was fun for the first 30 minutes or so…. But, I don’t think I’ll teach anyone how to whistle for a long time! So, instead I moved on to teaching them the sign of the cross. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. They all got it very quickly, and did it several times, before they wanted to whistle. Again.

At the end of the day, I think we all felt really good about our first clinic. Our team saw and treated close to 400 people. I was in awe!

That night we needed to find a hotel to stay at. The first was gross. The 2^nd was OK, but no running water that night. They promised it would be on by the next day. Hmmm…. Let’s see what else there is. We found a beautiful place, but they didn’t have enough rooms. So, we go back to the 2^nd place. We unpack, and then head out to dinner. Being Wednesday and not eating meat on Wednesday, Fr. Nicholas ordered fish for all of us. When our dinner came, we certainly had fish. I had the front half, and others had the back half. My food was looking at me, and I swear it said something to me.

We all felt bad that we didn’t eat – any of it! I realized that I was supposed to be in charge of all the food, not just lunches, so I have to make sure that doesn’t happen again.

After falling asleep at around 2 or 3am, we are awoken by church bells at 6am. Vespers. We roll out of  bed, through on some clothes and brush our teeth, and walk up the hill to church. This is the first time I can see where we are in the daylight. The compound is beautiful. There is a school, hospital, and church, all on the grounds. The earth is red, and all the pathways are dirt, so they are red too. It is striking next to the white buildings. Alex and I run around, take some pictures, clear our tired eyes, and head into church.

Ringing the bell for church

To walk into a church in Uganda, and to see the same Church that I attend in America was moving. It feels like home. That sameness, yet so far away, which is the beauty of Orthodoxy. The deacons come out and start chanting, and it is beautiful. They are speaking Luganda, but I know what they are singing, as it is the same in America. Again, I feel like I’m at home, without the kids running around, making noise, asking for bread. Oh, how I miss them.

After church, we head back to our room to get ready for the day, and to freshen up. WOW!!!! They said cold showers but, oh man! It was very cold!

We met the team for breakfast (hard boiled eggs, toast with peanut butter, and fruit). The BEST pineapple in the world! Freshly picked, cut and perfect!!!!

Alex, Nick, and Dr. Sue are going to the pharmacy today to pick up our meds for the trip, and I am taking the rest of the team into the city to exchange money, buy our excursion tickets (for the end of the trip), and to get a cell phone for the group. No problem right? Well, we are in Africa! The money exchange goes well, and the ticket buying goes OK. But when we get to the market to buy a cell phone, Dr. Mike, his daughter Mika, and the driver set out to buy the cell phone. The rest of us will wait in the car, because, really how long will this take. No sense in all of us getting out – all 6 of us! 2 hours go by, and there is no sign of them. Fr. Nicholas calls the driver, they have the phone, but now they have to register it (you know, so the government can make sure they aren’t terrorists!) Another hour goes by, and it is getting hot in the van. Personalities, true personalities, are starting to emerge. Zoey, must drink gallons of water a day to stay alive, which means that she also needs to find a restroom. Janice is hungry, and is willing to try anything. The Deebs sisters, are so sweet and offer to take Zoey and Janice out to find something to drink and eat. Rachel and I stay in the van with Fr.

The girls all come back, and eventually so does Dr. Mike and Mika, and we can go back to the rest of the group, who is waiting for us, because they needed the exchanged money, to buy more meds. Oops! Sorry for the delay. Alex, Dr Sue and I head back to the pharmacy at 7:30pm to find more meds.

I have to explain a little about Kampala. It is a big city. Many people. Many people in cars/trucks/vans, and boda-bodas (motorcycles). They all drive on the left, unless they need to drive on the right, for any reason. They honk and flash their lights to oncoming traffic to let them know that they need to wait, or move to the other side of the road. And they all drive fast. Really fast. It is truly a miracle every day that cars and people make it to their destination – alive!

All of our sense have been assaulted. The smells, sights, and sounds, and the fear of being hit by a vehicle (or many!), are all new. Thankfully, most people speak english so it makes it a little easier to get around.

I can already tell that the days are going to be long, but hopefully once we start the clinics things will settle down. Right?