carolinkenya

 Starting week 4, getting into a routine. Last week I tried goat and I liked it. This week I have mastered Spam in several ways. Prior to my leaving for Africa, I had mailed myself 2 packages filled with books and snacks. The first one arrived and I was so excited to see canned chicken breast and precooked bacon, as well as granola bars. There was some confusion as to my role here just some miscommunication between the hospital and cmmb. I am really limited as to what I can do clinically because of the language barrier and just the way they do things. The nurses are highly skilled just need to be brought into this century. The hospital has asked me to rewrite their policy and procedures for the maternity department. As much as I love delivering babies, and I will still have the opportunity to do that. Making policy change and staff education can improve maternity care, save money and save lives long after I leave.  I also started teaching at the college one afternoon a week. I...

 My laundry room.  My  clothes dryer

 I finished my first week here in Mutomo.  Delivered  4 babies.  I tried goat and I  liked it!!! It was in a stew, pleasant taste and texture. The chicken on the other hand was  inedible,  it was so tough that you  couldn't  chew it. It lived up to  the  name road runner.   My housemate left on Monday and  the  pediatric  residents  left on Friday  so I  am the only  volunteer  here and I  think the only white person in town so it is  hard to be inconspicuous!. My typical day  starts with climbing out of my mosquito net cocoon  over my bed and survey the amount of  dead bugs that my mosquito  night light took care during the night.  Then a very cold shower which certainly  wakes one up! There is no mirrors in the house so don't know what my hair looks like! I have a cup of tea  with an egg, do my morning  devotions.  If I  h...

 Had my first delivery in Kenya. Mary was a beautiful, strong woman,she has a little boy at home. She walked to the delivery room, climbed up on the table with 4 pushed  birthed Carol Ann! I never had a baby named  after me before. After a few minutes she climbed off the table went back to her bed and nursed the  baby. She went home today. These Kenyan women  are tough! Thy don't  ask for pain medication  because there isn't  any!  Had a breech  delivery  today.  Am getting  pretty  settled  into my house, the goats visited me for lunch today. My house mate left  on Monday.  Got a housekeeper to come clean up and  she will help with laundry.  I may kidnap her when it is  time to  leave. 

 

 Hi Y'all, I finally made it to Mutomo after 30 hours of international flights, 3 hour train ride and 1 hour car ride. The jet lag and travel fatigue is very real. Nairobi was a large bustling town filled with a diversity of people , lots of traffic and noise. I met with the CMMB staff there. They introduced me to some Kenyan food, it was a fried whole fish smothered in coconut sauce and a side of ungali which is made from smashed corn it is the consistency of thick mashed potatoes. When they sat the food in front of me there was no silver ware! when I asked for silverware they laughed at me. You eat with your hands they said. It was delicious but so messy trying to pick out the bones and you use the ungali to soak everything up because it really doesn't have much flavor on it's own.  Mutomo is a small town in Kitui county. The town is bigger than I expected but very poor. There  are some old cement block buildings, metal and wood shanties and some lean to type structures...