Butiki village is where the second clinic took place. The village is located approximately ten minutes out of Jinga. Jinga is highly esteemed in Uganda because it is the source of the Nile. Many Ugandans are proud of this fact and rightfully so. Jinga is a happening place located among a beautiful picturesque river. This river is damned and supplies the country with a portion of it’s much needed and unreliable electricity.
The clinic started well. Learning from the last clinic, the RN Sara and I were able to package a few drugs beforehand in order to make the job at the pharmacy station much more organized. This allowed for the people getting drugs to receive them much quicker than before. The setting: a field that had just been cleared the day before. Two hired (rented) tents made our work stations and added much shade to work under. The people quickly and orderly took the rented plastic chairs and lined up. Three clerks-Ferista, Dorothy and Sara saw the people one by one. Each assessed, diagnosed and prescribed. The next step: the lab or pharmacy. After getting treatment, the people were asked to see Pastor Daniel Sempa to be registered in the black book. The black book was the only method of keeping track how many people we saw. Pastor Daniel K and his wife took on the roles of photographer and translator and helping at the pharmacy station. Pastor William was the contact to the church in Butiki. He was there both days and was able to connect with the villages on both clinic days. He ministered and loved the people as they sat and waited to see a clinician.
In Butiki, the people were sicker than in Kirerema. Malaria, regular cold’s, peptic ulcer disease, fungus, worms, UTI’s were the main illnesses treated. Some people even came to the clinics proclaiming that they had syphilis. After questioning a few of these cases, the team realized that the people had learned about the STI and equated all their ailments to syphilis. This is a good example of the power of knowledge! If only the people were taught real helpful and basic healthcare, how would things change? Change only happens with willing attitudes. And often, people are generally stubborn. But change...change CAN and WILL happen.
Personnel from both a radio station and tv station came out to view the work. The radio lady interviewed Pastor Daniel K. And Pastor William. Their words was spread and heard in certain parts of Uganda about the work that was happening in the village. Kind of exciting yes? The TV man filmed the team as they worked. He also interviewed a few people including myself. The footage is to be used in a documentary sometime in the future. Only God knows if and what will be seen. All in all, like nothing I have ever experienced in Canada. Normally I’m only the viewer, but to be part of something seen as important is quite the different perspective. It’s exciting, exhilarating, intimidating and scary all at the same time.
As the day drew to a close, the sun had gone down and we were working in the dark. We pulled a 7-8 hour day, hoping to get rid of most of the drugs. The next day was shorter and we worked only about 4 hours. Over 300 people were seen at that site. Turning sick people away again, the team slowly began to see the needs in the villages. However who do they bring their concerns to? The person they see expect to have money: the white girl. This being a regular bias in African countries. Most believe having white skin equals having money. It’s a tough mentality to break as the Western world has allowed and encouraged this mentality. It’s easy to see where the mentality comes from especially when many NGO’s swoop in, provide a service, give out handout’s and then leave. Or containers of clothes, resources and needed items make their way to these nations. The people becoming reliant on these handouts and forget and unlearn how to take care of themselves. These statements are very general, however I have seen the effects of this time and time again. I was glad to see our medical team see and feel the needs in the villages but I will be ecstatic the day I see the people of Uganda solving their own problems. Seeing the need, for the moment, is a step in the right direction. Off to the next village.....
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