Orientation

I am slowly adjusting to life in here in Uganda. I think one of the big differences and cause for me feeling out of place, of which there are obviously many, is the pace at which life is lived here. On the first day I was here the manager of the guest house pointed out a small book that was written to explain some of the differences between the culture in Uganda and western culture. The author noted how many westerners are frustrated with local attitudes towards the time of appointments or a set schedule. Uganda culture comes from a strong agricultural background were the time of day is broken into early morning, mid morning, late morning, etc. If a meeting is supposed to take place at 9AM it is not unusual for people to show up 1-2 hours late. I'm usually pretty casual when it comes to a schedule and so 5-10 minutes here or there doesn't bother me but this sort of laxity takes some getting used to. This first week I'm orienting to the different departments by spending a day in each. However, it has been frustrating following the doc in each department because things happen when the happen and sometimes not at all. Yesterday I wanted to round on patients with the pediatric doc and so I went to the pads ward in the morning and was told there was a meeting and the pediatrician would be around until the afternoon. When I came back in the afternoon he still had not been seen and I was told maybe rounds would happen later. I checked back near 4pm and the nurse told me rounds would probably not happen. This is frustrating because of the time issue but also surprising because I'm used to patients being seen everyday. Here, a patient may go 2-3 days without being checked on by the physician. The system seems to work and everyone gets along but this makes learning where and when to be to do rounds a bit of a guessing game. Some events are not missed by staff and those are morning prayer at 8am and tea time at 10:30 to 11:00am. I have enjoyed getting to know the hospital and it's different departments. Today I finally had a chance to round with the pediatrician in pads ward. The ward is a large open dormitory with a nursing station at one end. There are maybe 25-30 beds where the kids and usually their mother will sleep. Family, usually mom, stay if the child stays. There is no meal served by a hospital kitchen but there is a kitchen where moms can cook there meals for themselves and their child. Next to the hospital is a playground with swing where less sick kids will play. I was surprised to see what kind of illnesses are prevalent here. Easily 3/4 of the children had malaria, 1/4-1/2 had malnutrition, and the rest had pneumonia, typhoid, HIV, or any combination. One very sick girl, maybe 5 years old, had HIV, malaria, and TB. The pictures below are of the pediatric ward, the playground, and the kitchen.

I took some time this afternoon to wonder away from the hospital to see some of the surrounding neighborhood. This was necessitated by my need to find some toothpaste which I found at a small store across the street from the hospital. I was slightly disappointed to find the toothpaste came in herb flavor. Everywhere I wondered people starred at me and the kids all waved and yelled "HELLO." I went down the main street where they had a small market and felt like every eye was on me. It honestly didn't bother me too much but it occurred to me this must be how celebrities felt. They aren't completely unaccustomed to seeing foreigners since there is a national park and gorilla reserve near by that many tourists visit.

This evening as I sat reading on the porch of the guest house I was joined by a troupe of monkeys making their way through the tree tops picking fruit and flowers to eat. A couple of them were brave enough to walk around on the lawn and came very close to where I was sitting. I certainly feel blessed by God for the opportunity to be here and see these sorts of things.