Leah's first post!

Hey Everyone,

I realize I have been in Africa for a week now and this is my first post. I apologize for that. I have been incredibly busy here. Zac and I share our evening and weekend experiences but our day experiences are quite different. As you know Zac is in the teaching program, and I am in the medical program. Obviously the medical system here is a bit shocking compared to the US system I have been quite surprised by the conditions. Each morning I work in one of the five clinics in Livingstone. For a patient to be seen by a doctor (which are only found in the hospitals) they must be referred by a clinical officer. Clinical officer is a position that was created by the Zambian government in order to keep medical personal in their clinics. Therefore, no clinics have doctors, and the clinical officers have only a little more training then a nurse. It costs about 1 USD to be seen by a clinical officer. If a person has the money they can skip the clinic and go straight to the hospital for 3 USD. I should note that almost no one can afford to bypass the clinic.

When I first arrive at the clinic I take the vitals (temp, weight, blood pressure) of all the patients who wish to be seen by the clinical officer. We are also responsible for weighing infants and tracking their monthly weight progress. At the first clinic that I worked at, only two out of the three clinical officers showed up and they were over two hours late. The treatment of patients is also hard to get used to. In this society it is looked down upon to show weakness or express physical pain. During child labor mothers must remain silent. If they moan of yell they are yelled at or even hit. Patients sit and wait for hours without ever complaining. I have had a child with severe burns on his leg and a man with his finger almost severed sit and wait patiently for me to take their temps. When children cry they are disciplined, and the mothers apologize. Doctors, nurses, and clinical officers are very cold and usual abuse their positions. They often talk on cell phones and leave randomly during patient interviews. This is all extremely frustrating.

Half way through the mornings I usually go sit in with the clinical officers to gain experience. This part of my day has come with its own challenges. Clinical officers often ask me for medical advice like, “Do you think this is chicken pox?” and, “Do you think that hand is fractured?” They will also ask me my opinion on what drugs to prescribe. Since being here I have diagnosed syphilis, preformed a lung exam on a tuberculosis patient, diagnosed gonorrhea, taken patient histories, confirmed a pregnancy, and reviewed the bones of the human body with a nurse that did not know them. To say that the medical system is broken is an understatement, but I am happy to be here and there is progress being made. One of the five clinics is in relatively good shape and hopefully others will improve with time.

In the afternoon I work in community projects such as adult literacy classes and elderly homes. I find that the people of Zambia usually appreciate your work, but they more so appreciate our attitudes. We are the only people who smile in the clinics; we are the only people who ask how they are and compliment them. Volunteers come here with a caring attitude, and that is something that the young and old, and ill and injured really need here.

More to come,

Leah