Weeks 2-3

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I’m sorry it’s been so long since my last entry. There simply don’t seem to be enough hours in the day to accomplish all that we would like.

The past week and a half has had many highs and lows. The hostel is started to feel like home, and our comfort level is increasing in the hospital. We’ve all had our days of homesickness and culture shock, but overall we seem to be adapting well.

Our second weekend we had the opportunity to assist at an NGO that was started by a colleague of Bev’s. It works primarily with the families of children with HIV, providing food, basic health care, and support. It was difficult to think about the fact that many of these children will not be alive by the time next years group arrives, as some are unable to get antiretrovirals. Despite the situation, they are a cheerful and energetic bunch. We’re planning on assisting again next month. I’ll post some pictures as soon as possible.

We have now finished our first 3-week rotation at Military 37, and Erin and I were sad to say goodbye to the staff, who have been wonderful. As a trauma unit, we were able to see some interesting cases (lots of motor vehicle accidents) as well as some things we’d never encountered back home. What a great learning experience! I’m looking forward to my next placement in Maternity, which will be quite the contrast from trauma ER.

This past weekend we had our seminar in Cape Coast, in order to take a tour of Elmina castle. This was one of the locations where slaves were kept prior to being shipped off the continent. We learned that of 60 million slaves, approximately 40 million did not survive. A very tragic story… Again, I will post pictures soon as words really don’t do it justice. After an overwhelming tour of the castle, we were all in need of a relaxing weekend, and decided to venture further west along the coast to a town called Busua. It is known as kind of a rastafarian backpackers town, and it did not disappoint. We spend the weekend reading in hammocks, swimming, and drinking Star, one of the local beers. On Saturday night we decided to treat ourselves with $7 fresh-caught lobster dinners and live jazz on a rooftop patio. Lovely…

I will elaborate on the past couple of weeks in future entries. In the meantime, I’d better start packing for my flight to Egypt tomorrow. I’m back in Accra on the 28th, and will be posting update from both Rob and myself. If you are interested, the Faculty of Nursing is running articles on our placement which we are writing every week. They can be accessed at www.nursing.ualberta.ca. Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

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Comments

[Gen]

What a great update! Thanks a bunch, Kate. Looks as though you've earned a stint in maternity. Car accidents??? Who would imagine? Just like here??? Take care; enjoy your holiday.