Preparing to leave
Maize plantings
About halfway through my volunteer month at St. Gabriel's, I became more aware of the economic degeneration that currently envelops Malawi. I was experiencing lengthy power blackouts, observing the effects of government's failure to pay for social services and critical medicines, witnessing fuel shortages (lines of 150 cars snaking along the roadways leading to petrol stations), reading of the less than profitable export of tobacco and the 50% increase in the cost of maize, and hearing about governmental corruption, corruption and corruption!
A typical headline in "The Daily Times" - Malawi's Premier Daily - "Malawi is Sinking".
The mood is dark and I feel badly for the wonderful, hard working health care workers I've met.
While in Lilongwe, I read that South African Airways has had difficulty fueling planes and there is concern that travellers might face major delays. I also learn that the hospital is slowing down over Christmas; the anti-retroviral and mobile health clinics will close for a week, and elective surgeries are cancelled.
Other hospital volunteers are making the decision to head home earlier so that they are not affected by fuel shortages.
I also decide to leave a few days earlier for the same reasons. If all goes well, I will arrive back in Toronto on Christmas Eve - an enormous surprise for my family, other than my husband Ron who is informed of the change of plans.
Once I have securred my new flight itinerary, I relax and continue to engage in all hospital activities.
One of the benefits from living in a communal volunteer's house has been to meet interesting people from around the world - Fiji, New Zealand, Austria, U.S., and The Netherlands (Father Willem who lives next door). No T.V. or radio means lots of time spent reading up on tropical diseases, preparing communal meals, and discussing the state of Malawi, cultural differences, the hospital, the world, and aid. Many spirited discussions (sometimes by candlelight), shorten our evenings.
It's safe to walk around the hospital compound and the spread out village, and one Sunday afternoon I arrange to visit a teacher at the local primary school - Namitete Model Primary School. The nurses have told me that they would not send their children to the overcrowded local school, but instead send their children to board with relatives in Lilongwe because school there is so much better. I visit the school in order to drop off a load of pencils and pens, reading glasses, and re-usable menstrual pads for senior girls. I notice at once that the supply room is bereft of supplies. The headmistress then asks if the teachers can use the pads too. They are poorly paid, she says - often not for months - and have trouble surviving. They are so grateful for everthing I've brought and it seems so little. It is yet another reminder for me of the challenges faced by Malawians on a daily basis. It's just one challenge after another.
The day before I leave, there is devastating news at morning report. Not only has the hospital nearly run out of a widely used anti-biotic, but there is NO morphine, in all of Malawi (an effect of the Global Fund's withdrawal of aid for Malawi). The faces of the palliative care doctor and nurse are downcast when I visit their FCC (Family Care Centre) later that day. They run a wonderful 20 bed "end of life" unit. They have both been specially trained in pain management. Their only resort now is to use codeine in place of morphine and know it will not be effective. They both look so dejected. Once again, I feel so badly for staff and patients. The sense of helplessness is pervasive. It's such an unbelievable situation for a Tier One hospital to be in. We talk for awhile and I express my concern for everyone, and my hope for a better future; that's all I can do.
When I inform the staff that I am leaving on the 23rd, many ask if I will return. There is a sense that I am being tested (did you like/approve of us/St. Gabriel's?) and there is disappointment on many faces to see me go. My answer to everyone is the same, "I would like to".
I have tried to be super friendly, complimentary re skill levels, and keen to assist in whatever way I can. I have given each female nurse an inexpensive colourful shawl from Toronto's Chinatown, and a Malawian flag keychain for the males as a "gift from a visiting Canadian nurse". It is a gift of mutual respect and encouragement - nurse to nurse. These nurses reveal a high level of knowledge and bear an enormous amount of responsibility. Due to workload constraints, they are often not respected or utilized as clinical partners.
I am interested in returning to Malawi, but to work on a specific project - "Improving Clinical Communication". I do know though that I will be assessing Malawi's political stability before making any future plans.
I have one more goal that has taken some time to organize. The evening prior to my departure, I meet with Father Willem, dedicated R.C. priest and social justice activist. I have found out that he is assisting a group of young women in a nearby village who have learned to knit and are selling some of their work locally. I am leaving some money with him (donated by Sue and Tamara) for the purchase of a sewing machine, yarn and fabrics, so the group can expand their business. I understand that women need opportunities to develop skills, and explore independent means of earning money. This is one small way of providing that opportunity for Malawian village women (power of one!). Father Willem and I will stay in touch regarding the progress of this endeavor.
Sound Bite: "So, how was your trip to Malawi?"
Amazing that I did it, and truly a steep learning curve. Learning about tribal influences, tropical disease and death as a constant, the resilience of Malawians, the limitations of care, the effects of plain old good medicine, and the kindness of so many. Just amazing!
A typical headline in "The Daily Times" - Malawi's Premier Daily - "Malawi is Sinking".
The mood is dark and I feel badly for the wonderful, hard working health care workers I've met.
While in Lilongwe, I read that South African Airways has had difficulty fueling planes and there is concern that travellers might face major delays. I also learn that the hospital is slowing down over Christmas; the anti-retroviral and mobile health clinics will close for a week, and elective surgeries are cancelled.
Other hospital volunteers are making the decision to head home earlier so that they are not affected by fuel shortages.
I also decide to leave a few days earlier for the same reasons. If all goes well, I will arrive back in Toronto on Christmas Eve - an enormous surprise for my family, other than my husband Ron who is informed of the change of plans.
Once I have securred my new flight itinerary, I relax and continue to engage in all hospital activities.
One of the benefits from living in a communal volunteer's house has been to meet interesting people from around the world - Fiji, New Zealand, Austria, U.S., and The Netherlands (Father Willem who lives next door). No T.V. or radio means lots of time spent reading up on tropical diseases, preparing communal meals, and discussing the state of Malawi, cultural differences, the hospital, the world, and aid. Many spirited discussions (sometimes by candlelight), shorten our evenings.
It's safe to walk around the hospital compound and the spread out village, and one Sunday afternoon I arrange to visit a teacher at the local primary school - Namitete Model Primary School. The nurses have told me that they would not send their children to the overcrowded local school, but instead send their children to board with relatives in Lilongwe because school there is so much better. I visit the school in order to drop off a load of pencils and pens, reading glasses, and re-usable menstrual pads for senior girls. I notice at once that the supply room is bereft of supplies. The headmistress then asks if the teachers can use the pads too. They are poorly paid, she says - often not for months - and have trouble surviving. They are so grateful for everthing I've brought and it seems so little. It is yet another reminder for me of the challenges faced by Malawians on a daily basis. It's just one challenge after another.
The day before I leave, there is devastating news at morning report. Not only has the hospital nearly run out of a widely used anti-biotic, but there is NO morphine, in all of Malawi (an effect of the Global Fund's withdrawal of aid for Malawi). The faces of the palliative care doctor and nurse are downcast when I visit their FCC (Family Care Centre) later that day. They run a wonderful 20 bed "end of life" unit. They have both been specially trained in pain management. Their only resort now is to use codeine in place of morphine and know it will not be effective. They both look so dejected. Once again, I feel so badly for staff and patients. The sense of helplessness is pervasive. It's such an unbelievable situation for a Tier One hospital to be in. We talk for awhile and I express my concern for everyone, and my hope for a better future; that's all I can do.
When I inform the staff that I am leaving on the 23rd, many ask if I will return. There is a sense that I am being tested (did you like/approve of us/St. Gabriel's?) and there is disappointment on many faces to see me go. My answer to everyone is the same, "I would like to".
I have tried to be super friendly, complimentary re skill levels, and keen to assist in whatever way I can. I have given each female nurse an inexpensive colourful shawl from Toronto's Chinatown, and a Malawian flag keychain for the males as a "gift from a visiting Canadian nurse". It is a gift of mutual respect and encouragement - nurse to nurse. These nurses reveal a high level of knowledge and bear an enormous amount of responsibility. Due to workload constraints, they are often not respected or utilized as clinical partners.
I am interested in returning to Malawi, but to work on a specific project - "Improving Clinical Communication". I do know though that I will be assessing Malawi's political stability before making any future plans.
I have one more goal that has taken some time to organize. The evening prior to my departure, I meet with Father Willem, dedicated R.C. priest and social justice activist. I have found out that he is assisting a group of young women in a nearby village who have learned to knit and are selling some of their work locally. I am leaving some money with him (donated by Sue and Tamara) for the purchase of a sewing machine, yarn and fabrics, so the group can expand their business. I understand that women need opportunities to develop skills, and explore independent means of earning money. This is one small way of providing that opportunity for Malawian village women (power of one!). Father Willem and I will stay in touch regarding the progress of this endeavor.
Sound Bite: "So, how was your trip to Malawi?"
Amazing that I did it, and truly a steep learning curve. Learning about tribal influences, tropical disease and death as a constant, the resilience of Malawians, the limitations of care, the effects of plain old good medicine, and the kindness of so many. Just amazing!