Chad - Round 3

The last time I went to Chad, in January this year (not even a year ago!) I thought it would be my last time. The day I left, I remember watching the city of Moundou going by the window of the bus, and feeling sad that I would probably never see it again. It was weird, because part of me felt like Chad was home. It had won a little piece of my heart.

Well, it turns out that *I am* going back!! Dr. Scott is no longer there, he moved to a different hospital in Sierra Leone. But the Bere Hospital has some great doctors, whom I met for a weekend, and they were happy to have me come and volunteer with them. So I bought tickets!

This is a bigger hospital at a very rural area. Some people travel for days to get there and receive medical care. The work they're doing there, against all odds and against all reason, is incredible. I can't wait to become a part of the team, to help anyway I can, and to learn as much as possible.

To make my trip possible, I have started a crowdfunding page. For those of you who want to and are able to help financially, every dollar counts and it will be greatly appreciated. Otherwise, every prayer,word of encouragement and positive thought is also very valued and much needed!

Watch the blog for more stories from med school and from the upcoming trip. Oh, yeah! And here's the link for my page, feel free to share it and help spread the word!!

https://www.gofundme.com/medical-volunteer-trip-to-africa-2v983vnw

Living arrangements

A lot of people have asked me how the living conditions in Tchad are, so I thought I'd make a post with some pictures to give you guys a better idea.

The first time I came to Tchad, I didn't know what to expect when it came to my living arrangements. The hospital and the living quarters are located in the same walled complex, and separated from each other by a brick wall. The house is pretty modern, with everything you would expect in a normal house, normal bathroom with shower (cold water but you don't really need it to be hot) and flushing toilet. The only exception is wifi which doesn't exist. Electricity is provided by a generator and internet from mobile phones. I got a little bedroom with a lockable door, a nice bed with mosquito net and a dresser. I was beyond happy, as I had expected a lot worse.

This year, when Bekki wrote me to say they were excited for me to arrive and my room was ready, I had expected the same room. What isn't my surprise when Bekki takes me to my own little apartment!! When I was here last, it had been a shipping container used for storage. They converted it into a full apartment, with full kitchen and bathroom! And it was just for me!!

Here are some pictures:

That's the door on the wall that separates the hospital from the residencial area

That's the outside of the house I live in

My very own kitchen!! 

Bedroom

Bathroom

Garden at sunset 

So there you have it. I really had not expected to have all the comforts we expect in other countries. Coming to Tchad is hard in many ways, but the living conditions are not one of them. Of course, this is not how the general population lives... but I'll have to write another post about that. :) 

Tchad- round two

I am sitting on a bus, crossing Tchad from the capital, N'Djamena, to Moundou in the south. I'm really excited, and can't wait to get there and see Dr. Scott and Bekki (his wife) again.

The first time I was here, it was the unknown. Arriving in the middle of the ebola epidemic, there was fear it would come to Tchad (it didn't). And like this time, I was arriving at 11pm in N'Djamena and leaving at 6am on a bus to Moundou. It was certainly an adventure and I won't deny, there was a little bit of fear mixed in with excitement. I knew that trip would change me. I was afraid I wasn't up for the challenge.

I hadn't even started med school yet, and my only training was what I had learned in a nursing's assistant course and the basics of giving shots, drawing blood and putting in IVs, that I learned during my internships in hospitals in Germany.

Now, after a year of med school, my practical knowledge hasn't changed much, except for all the things I learned my first time in Tchad. This is such an incredible opportunity, I am very lucky and blessed to be able to do it. I hope to learn a lot more, maybe even suture and catch a baby or two! (The hospital where I will spend most of my time does not have maternity/gynecology, but I will spend 2 weeks at a different hospital, where they have it!)

It's funny how the unknown has become familiar, and I can feel like I am going back home, in the heart of Africa.

I'll leave you with a picture of the sunrise. It's bad quality, but it will give you a small idea of the beauty I am lucky enough to see. Enjoy!

A year ago...

A year ago, I was in Paris, getting ready to go to Chad for the first time. I was excited and scared at the same time. I didn't know what to expect, but I was certain the experience would change my life forever. It did. 

It's impossible to convey the range of emotions I experienced in those 2 months. Joy, anger, happiness, helplessness, sadness, awe, excitement, gratefulness. I learned a lot on those two months, not only about medicine, but about life, about myself, my limits, my capabilities. 

I left saying I would go back. I know some people didn't believe me, but I always keep my word: today I bought my tickets. I am going back to Chad for 2 months, January and February 2016. 

I can't wait!! 

If you're the praying kind, please pray for me on this journey through medical school, and for Dr. Scott and Bekki, who are there on the frontlines, giving their all to serve others. 

The truth about Chad...

I have been hearing and reading blog posts about medical workers in Chad since 2006, when I met the doctor who had been leading the hospital I'm at until recently. He is now in Monrovia, Liberia-- the center of the ebola outbreak. But that's another story. 

My point is this: I was sort of prepared for how things were over here. Or so I thought... But really, nothing can convey the reality in an accurate way. 

Chad is without a doubt the most infuriating country I've ever been to (and we're at about 40 countries by now). They don't grasp the concept of honesty (we had to fire two nurses in one week because they were *stealing from the patients!!!*). They have no critical thinking, and do everything in the *one* way they were taught, without stopping to think that some things should be adapted to some situations. 

They are ashamed of the foley bags, so they hide them under the covers, and no matter how many times you tell them it needs to be lower than their bladders, it doesn't seem to matter. (I finally solved that problem with the brilliant idea of using pillow cases as pouches to tie to the bed and hide the foleys in!) 

However, here is the actual truth: I am loving it. It is infuriating, and it's really hard, and it's tragic sometimes, and not a day goes by without me wanting to cry at some point or another (I don't though.) 

But I get to scrub in on surgeries every day, and see the insides of people. I get to talk to patients and their families, explain procedures, battle infection and see progress, every day. I get to make a difference, even if it's in a small way, in the life and well-being of my patients. For example, remember my amputee lady? Her name is Irene. She was basically the only patient who always looked at me like I was evil, because I always do her dressing changes, which means I literally insert my entire index finger into her wound and wash it out with bleach, causing her inmeasurable pain. Her wound is healing nicely though, and I got rid of all the infection!! :) :) :) 

Well, yesterday afternoon, I came by and told her we were going to get her up and walking. AND SHE SMILED! I almost broke down... So sure enough, I get a walker and she stands up... in pain, a little light-headed, but she's vertical for the first time in 3 weeks!!! 

This is Irene, taking her first steps after losing her leg. I told her to look up and smile, and she actually did! 

We followed her with the wheel chair just in case she got tired, but yesterday she walked about 100 feet, and today she did 165 feet! 

I feel like I'm going around in circles, but what I wanted to say is this: don't think I'm a martyr, or that I'm amazing, or anything like that. I'm not. I have simply waited my whole life for this and being here, despite all the hardships, is actually a dream come true. I am here as much for myself as I am for them... 

...although I might rethink that next week, when ALL the westerners including Dr. Scott leave (there are 8 of us) and I stay here holding down the fort with only one Chadian doctor for help, guidance and company... I guess we'll see.