Update # 6

February 27th, 2008 Posted in INMED | No Comments »

Hello everyone!
I hope you all are well.  Thank you so much for your replies.  I love them all!
I’m leaving for the states tomorrow morning and will be back in my cozy apartment in Columbus, Ohio by 3pm Friday.  I’m ready to be home, but can’t believe a month has gone by already.  It’s flown.
We visited Livingstone last weekend, a city in souther central Zambia.  It was gorgeous!  Victoria Falls is perhaps the most impressive natural wonder I’ve ever seen.  It’s the rainy season here so the amount of water flowing over the gorge was so awesome.  The mist from the falls created a constant torrential downpour of rain.  You had to rent raincoats if you didn’t want to get soaking wet, but truly they didn’t help that much.  We also took a sunset cruise down the Zambezi River.  It was beautiful.  We saw lots of hippos and crocs from the boat as we sipped cocktails and soaked in the evening sun. We met some really fun people from Johannesburg and Australia.  We went on a safaria and saw giraffes and zebras and monkeys and rhinos and impalas.  I also went white water rafting on Sunday.  It was so cool.  The Zambezi is so huge.  I’ve only seen waves that big in the ocean.
We found a wheelchair for the bedridden, elderly lady we wanted to get one for.  We took her outside yesterday for the first time in over a year.  She was so happy.  It was a great thing to witness.
We worked in the clinics today and are busy packing to go back home tonight.  I will definitely miss the sunny weather and friendly people here, but am looking forward to the conviences and comforts of life back in the US.
I start my peds ER rotation on Monday.  So there’s no rest for me!
Can’t wait to see you all.
Take care,
Kim

Update #5

February 20th, 2008 Posted in INMED | No Comments »

Hi!
I hope you all are well.  Everything here is going just fine.  We have worked in a rural hospital here for most of the week.  Things are sooooo different.  We went to surgery on Monday.  They don’t paralyze the patients during surgery so their feet and legs continue to move during the operation even though they are unconscious.  It’s totally freaky.  I was first assist though for two surgeries.  It was pretty amazing to be that involved.  The doctors here do everything.  They’re like supermen.  They treat pediatric patients, adult patients, and do surgery.  There are no specialists here it seems and the doctors work really hard.
I’m still learning a ton and only wish I could help more.
We leave for Livingstone early tomorrow morning.  So the next time I write I’ll have safari stories!
Shalenipo! (Goodbye in Lamba.)
Kim

Update #4

February 13th, 2008 Posted in INMED | No Comments »

Hello all.
How are things back in the states?  Good I hope.
Things are going well here.  I’ve been busy working in the clinics and learning all about HIV and TB - 2 of the big diseases here. We also have been visiting some of the local villagers.  One village woman in particular can no longer walk due to her arthritis, and she is stuck inside in her bed all day.  We are working on getting her a wheelchair or making her one by the time we leave.  I couldn’t imagine not being able to go outside.  It will be so incredibly rewarding if we could do this for her.  There is so much need here and so few resources.  It’s tragic.  The people are amazing despite all of this.  They are so friendly and welcoming.
Just the other day we had a traditional Zambian meal for lunch.  It consisted of Nsheema (patties made out of ground up cow corn), chicken, beef, and relish (which is usually cabbage of some sort or beans).  They eat with their hands and roll the nsheema up in a ball with their palm and then use the nsheema ball to pick up the meat/relish.  It was a very interesting and messy lunch to say the least, and it actually tasted really good too.
We are planning a trip to Livingstone which is in the southern central part of the country.  We’ll visit Victoria Falls (one of the seven wonders of the world!) and go on a game drive safari and sunset cruise down the Zambezi.  The bus ride down to Livingstone is 11hours. (Ouch!)  I plan on taking lots of dramamine and hopefully sleeping most of the way.  We go through Lusaka, the capital of Zambia, on the way which will be nice to see as well.
Well, that’s all for now.
Miss you all,
Kim

Update #3

February 11th, 2008 Posted in INMED | No Comments »

Dearest family and friends.
I hope you all are doing well.
Africa is amazing!  Everday is an adventure.
We have been keeping busy visiting hospitals and clinics.  Hospitals are very different here than in the US you might guess.  Wards are one big room with 20-30 people.  Procedures tend to be done with minimal anesthesia, and food/medicine is not provided by the hospital.  Families of the patient’s need to buy it outside the hospital and bring it in.  Most patients here suffer from HIV.  About 22% of the population has it.  Other common diseases are tuberculosis, leprosy, malaria, and malnutrition.  It’s very frustrating practicing medicine in such a poor country.  There are so many treatments available to these people that they and the country just can’t afford.
We’ve been really lucky with the weather.  It hasn’t rained the past 4 days.  This is almost unheard of during the rainy season.  I have a sunburn.  My first during the month of February I think.  We are only one latitude line away from the equator here so the sun is really intense.  A little too intense for my redheaded skin.  :)
Well, that’s all for now.
Miss you all.
Kim

Post #2

February 7th, 2008 Posted in INMED | No Comments »

Hello all.
Thanks for all the friendly replies.  It’s really nice to hear from you all back in the states.  I can’t believe there’s 12 inches of snow in Chicago/the midwest.  Are you all surviving?  Most days it’s 60 to 80 degrees in Zambia.  I’m in Luanshya which is in northern centeral Zambia in the Copperbelt.  There are two main tribes of people here - the Lamba and the Bimba.  “Muli shani” is how you say “hi” in Bimba in case you were all wondering.  ;) I’m living on a mission compound in a nice house with running water and electricity most of the time.  They do this thing called “load shedding” here where half the country is without electricity for the night so the other half can have it and vice versa.  Last night was our night for no electricity.  It was sort of like camping! ;) Local villages surround our compound.  Villages are composed of one family unit.  The Bimba tribe is a maternal tribe so when son’s marry they move to the wife’s village.  The land here is mostly flat and very green.  It is their rainy season January through March.  February being their most rainy month.  I can pick’em, can’t I? Today, is really nice and sunny though.  But yesterday was a monsoon and all the roads were like rivers and the parking lots like lakes.  It was quite interesting actually. We are visiting local hospitals in the city of Ndola - the 3rd largest city in Zambia - today.  Here there is no in-hospital care.  If you need food or bedside care your family has to do it.  Any medicines you need your family buys and brings to you as well.  Very different from the US.
Well, that’s all for now.
Hope to see you all when I return and hope you’re doing well.
Kim
PS. I can’t send pics over the web while I’m here because they don’t have enough bandwidth to accomodate that.  I’ll have a picture party when I get back. :)

Arrived!

February 7th, 2008 Posted in INMED | No Comments »

Hello my dearest friends and family.
I’m in Africa!  We made it to the mission yesterday afternoon after a very long trip.  The two other med students who are with me and I traveled for a total of 35 hours.   I have never been so tired in my life!  Not even post-call.  We haven’t started working in the clinic yet.  They gave us the first day off to help us get over our jet lag.  We are seven hours ahead here.  So when you all are going to bed at night we are getting up.  Everyone at the mission is very nice.  There are 3 other med students here from Kansas City.  The only wildlife I’ve seen so far are baby lizards.  No elephant or giraffe spottings yet.
I am taking a lot of pictures and can’t wait to see you all when I return.
Will write again soon.
Kim

Hello world!

January 14th, 2008 Posted in INMED | 1 Comment »

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