Introduction

Purpose:

To inform family, friends, and others interested in global health, about how health is being promoted on the ground.

General Information:

Tomorrow I leave for Kisoro, Uganda. It will take two days to fly there, with a total flight time of 28 hours and 44 minutes and total miles 11698. I will be volunteering as a nurse, for Doctors for Global Health (www.dghonline.org) from January 15-April 30, 2010. Let the adventure begin!

About Doctors for Global Health:

DGH Mission Statement

To improve health and foster other human rights with those most in need by accompanying communities while educating and inspiring others to action.

I found out about the not-for-profit organization, Doctors for Global Health (DGH) through years of internet research. My initial draw to DGH was not only their flexibility with volunteer length and time, but since they are volunteer run, they do not charge their volunteers for overhead administrative costs. This is very unique among volunteer organizations. The commitment that DGH has to social justice and health promotion continues to inspire me as a begin my journey with them.

About Uganda, Kisoro, and Kisoro Hospital:

seth-smith.org.uk

Uganda

Uganda is most widely known for mountain gorillas and their recent traumatic history under the dictatorship of Milton Obote and Idi Amin from the mid 1960's to mid 1980's. The movie The Last King of Scotland, depicts the terror felt in Uganda at that time. It is encouraging that there has been relative stability since President Yoweri Museveni was elected in 1986.

Uganda is a landlocked country in what is known as the Great Lakes Region of East Africa. The population is almost 30 million, 80% of which live in rural areas. The official language is English, although indigenous languages are mostly spoken in rural areas. The country is 85% Christian and 11% Islam, with African traditional religions represented as well. According to the World Health Organization the average healthy life-expectancy is 42 for women and 44 for men.

Kisoro District:

Kisoro is on the southwestern tip of Uganda. Kisoro is surrounded by the stunning Mufumbiro Mountains. The average elevation is 6500 feet above sea level. The Districts population is 266,200. Bwindi Inpenetrable Forest National Park is also in the District, and it is one of the few places that you can see mountain gorillas in the wild. The two major tribes represented in Kisoro are Bafumbira and Kifumbira, each with their own dialect. The economy is primarily based on subsistence farming of foods such as maize, irish potatoes, cabbage, onions, tomatoes, and beans.

Kisoro Hospital:

Doctors for Global Health has been in a partnership with Kisoro Hospital for four years, assisting with programs relating to childhood nutrition, women's health, chronic disease management and follow up, and community work with village health workers to name a few.

The hospital has 150 beds with a male and female ward. At this time there are two doctors, one in charge of Patients and the other doing administrative work. Pharmaceuticals are delivered every three months and usually run out after one month. If the supplies are not available at the hospital, families are responsible for their purchase and often cannot afford them. Conservation of supplies is of utmost importance.

Closing:

Thank-you for taking the time to read about my experiences. I look forward to sharing more with you soon!