Sally in Uganda
Sally split her time volunteering in the public hospital and an orphanage in Iganga, Uganda.
Arrival
We arrived in Kampala late at night and Michael, our ELI coordinator, was waiting for us. My bags were lost unfortunately but from the start Ugandans were very friendly and willing to do all they could to help. Michael had rented a matatu (private van that acts as a taxi) and took us on the way to our Igangan adventure! Since it was night it was hard to see everything but I could tell that people were out late in the towns and villages that the highway ran through. There was such a mix of modern and traditional from concrete square buildings with advertisements painted on them to mud huts with straw roofs.
Family
The next day we woke up to roosters crowing and the sounds of the small town Iganga starting its day. When we left our room we sat in the main room of the house on couches where the family served us fried eggs in sugar, banana pancakes, and black tea with a lot of sugar. All of the surrounding neighbors were very interested in us and would come and talk on the porch. It was difficult to tell who was in our family and who was a neighbor. Although we were staying at Michael’s home he lived in a house nearby with his wife Farida and their three girls, and we stayed in his other house with his sister-in-law, mother-in-law, and many nieces and nephews. According to the Ugandan culture husbands are not allowed to be in close proximity to the female relatives of their wife or wives. This tradition is beginning to die however and there were several times when Michael would join us all and sit close to the female relatives.
Entertainment
The Ugandan people (at least our family) love to sing, dance, and play scrabble. Every evening we would sit either on the front or back porch on woven mats and take turns singing songs. The songs that the American volunteers ended-up singing would Backstreet Boys or Disney while our Ugandan little sisters would say poems and songs that they had memorized in school. One song in particular that they did very well was about AIDS/HIV and how it was killing the people. In the school system of Uganda the children learn mainly through memorization. The teacher will write something on the board or say something aloud and the students will repeat it until it is memorized. This happens all the way from nursery to secondary.
In Class
We learned first-hand how different the learning style was when we were asked to teach a class once a week at the secondary school. I was supposed to teach English grammar but instead we ended-up talking about the differences between American and Ugandan culture. Many Ugandans really want to come to America thinking that life would be so much better so we had many discussions centered around how each culture has positives and negatives and how to take pride in where they live and how to create change for the better.
Hospital Volunteer
I volunteered in the Iganga District Hospital and also in several orphanages. The hospital got very slow in the afternoon because people that traveled to come would need to leave to get their villages. A typical scene outside of the hospital is of trees with people setting up camp under them for the wait to see a doctor. Although healthcare in Uganda is free for the most part it is not free for time, appointments are only made for a day. A patient’s sheet might say, “To Come Again near 31/07/08.” Healthcare is free, but the patient is responsible for supplying many of the supplies (gloves, plastic sheeting, hot water, etc) and until they purchase the items a doctor may or may not see them.
Ear Clinic
I volunteered primarily for Ear Nose Throat and it was crazy to watch the things that would be found in people’s ear canals. In one day we syringed out a live butterfly, beans, rocks, and of course impacted wax. The climate and lack of knowledge on how to take care of one’s ears has led to a lot of ear infections; children in general tend to get more ear infections than adults but I have never seen as many as I did in Uganda. A typical day for me would involve traveling to several orphans who needed their ear infections taken care both in the morning and in the evening. Many people but especially children had acquired hearing loss resulting from ear infections left untreated or the medicines that they have taken or been given through an injection (many of the malaria injections have a side-effect of causing hearing loss). The rehabilitative services in Uganda are rare and hard to find. If a child acquires deafness he/she most likely will not learn other ways to communicate (such as sign). There are a few schools for deaf children, and the schools are typically are private which requires payment for each term. Any rehabilitative services are difficult to find and if one does find them they typically are not well equipped. For example, the physical therapy center in Iganga had an exercise bike that no longer worked.
Cell Phone
Even though I was volunteering mainly within Ear Nose Throat different nurses or doctors would come get me to show me their department. When this happened I more watched than helped but other volunteers that had a better idea of how to help were able to. I watched several C-sections, vaginal births, and other surgeries. One area that I was able to help in was the injection room. If the ENT was getting slow I could poke my head out to look across the room and see if there was line for the injection room, which there typically was. Many people would be waiting to get Malaria injections. There was a big push for people to vaccinate their children at early ages to prevent other illnesses and some people came for this but others were skeptical. In the physical therapy room I saw a two year old boy who had received an injection on the nerve to his leg and he was unable to walk or crawl for six months.
Orphanages
There were two orphanages where I spent the majority of time: Self Reliance and Maranatha. Self Reliance had around twenty-five children that actually lived there and then a whole bunch of neighborhood children that would come to eat their meals. We (myself, and the two volunteers I came with: Andrea and Leah) were introduced to Maranatha when Andrea was given the responsibility to purchase food for the orphanage from the donated funds past volunteers had given. It was the saddest place that we had ever seen and while we were there a Ugandan government official came to shut-down the place due to the poor conditions even by Uganda standards.
New Children's Home
We decided to go ahead and do something for the children. With the help of past and current volunteers, Ugandans, and friends and family at home in America we were able to create a new children's home. Andrea has stayed behind for at least a year to make sure that everything is done properly and that the children are taken care of. Ultimately the home will be a self-sustaining place where the children will be motivated to further their education and learn valuable skills to take back to their communities, and most importantly will be loved on. We are currently raising money to purchase land to farm on and build on.
Maranatha Orphanage
Maranatha had over 150 children living in a few rooms without bedding, flooring, sanitary latrines, or a clean place to play. There was not enough food for all the children and so each child would take turns for which meal they were able to eat for that day. I treated several of the children for bed bug bites, ear infections, infections in their eyes from flies laying eggs under their eyelids from the unsanitary latrines, etc. Despite what these children were going through or the Ugandan people in general they have huge smiles and open arms!
Family Planning
An orphan in Uganda may have a parent or family member alive but they are still considered orphans because their guardians are unable to provide for them. If one parent dies or leaves the other parent will drop the child off in the center of town to fend for themselves or to be cared for at an orphanage. Another movement that Uganda is trying to create is for family planning. There are billboards all over the country of two men one with food on his plate and the other without saying if only he had used family planning he would have more money to buy food.
Getaways
On the weekends the volunteers would get together and travel to different places together. A group of us climbed Mt Elgon together which was a crazy four day adventure (if you do this make sure to bring warm clothes), bungee jumped into the Nile, and rafted the Nile as well. Jinja is a town nearby where the source of the Nile is and has a lot to do on the weekends.
