My first week

Hello everyone!

Remember when I said that the internet has been pretty strong? That was before we lost power for several hours over two days. Apparently that is just how it goes here which makes planning a challenge to say the least.

It is Friday night and I have been in Kisoga for almost one week. I have so much to learn, but already this has been an invaluable personal and professional experience. On Wednesday, I went with the team into the field again, but as we drove into the small, remote village where we were to collect consent forms for Omni Med's research trial, it became clear that almost everyone was attending a funeral, including the VHTs who were going to take us house to house to meet families. So that was that for the day. Christina, an American who is on staff here, explained that flexibility is key for anyone working in this environment. Most things do not go as planned.

So it was back to the field today! I accompanied Edward and one of the village VHTs as they went house to house over five hours-in the rain- speaking with families about the research and asking them to participate. Here is a picture of Edward and the VHT walking the path (Edward is looking back to make sure the muzungu (white person) is keeping up). I'm glad I brought this goofy hat; it really helped in the rain.

 Only one woman said no to participating in the study and this seemed to be mostly because the male family member was not at home to give consent. Everyone else was eager to participate and saw the value of gathering the data. One person said that he wanted the government to use this type of information to make policy rather than designing ineffective health programs that don't involve community input and collaboration (I'm paraphrasing...).

Here are a few more pictures of the team in action.

One final, and very happy note. My rock star sister (3 natural home births) had a son last night. I love him so much already and can't wait to kiss his perfect cheeks. I love you Moffitt-Clavijo family!!