Our clinic

This week has been my baptism in malaria.  It is surprising that it has taken over a year to strike me as malaria is the most common illness here, akin to the common cold in Britain, but considerably more serious.  It is a much bigger killer than Ebola.  The week before, a twenty year old relative of our matron died of it, which gives a flavour that it is not just the old or sick who are in danger.

Before I arrived last year I was told that the home was trying to start a really good clinic for our children and also for the outside community.  This has been a major struggle because of lack of funding.  When I came there was one nurse operating from a small room, with some drugs and the facilities to put people on a drip, but very little beyond that.  Sometimes she had to send children to the hospital, which is also very poor.  The practical advantage of the clinic at that time was mainly to avoid having to free up a member of staff to stay with the child in hospital.  The reality of third world hospitals is lack of nursing provision.  If a family member does not accompany the patient, there will be nobody to provide food, bathing or nursing care.  You can die of neglect in hospital.

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During the last few months the home has managed to expand its clinic staffing to include a laboratory technician and an additional nurse.  As word has spread, there has been an increase in members of the local community using the clinic.  Prices are kept artificially low to encourage people to take the service seriously, but not to drive people away.

The other great improvement, is in regular monitoring of our children’s health.  They all now have individual medical record books.  I have been told that their overall health is already improving.

Our lab technician is working hard to look for ways to get reliable electricity, buy a fridge and stock the many medications and vaccines which require refrigeration.  If this can be achieved, we will have the only clinic in the town which can do this.  Currently people have to make a four hour road trip into Uganda along very poor roads to a good, but still third world, hospital.

It was lovely to be able to remain in my own bed.  As my malaria was not responding to treatment at first, they were even able to set up a drip in my room and give me stronger treatment.  Travelling while so ill would have been unbearable.

Roll on the day we achieve electricity and a fridge for the clinic.