February 4, 2014
by allisonfoley001
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The four hour long drive to Kijabe was mostly filled with nap breaks and awed looks of the landscape that flew past the bus windows. We arrived around lunch time and were introduced to our Kijabe partners before taking a tour of the hospital. Being that this was our third hospital visit, it was interesting to note the differences between all the hospitals we had toured thus far. Following the tour, we headed down to take a peak at the Great Rift Valley.If you ever have a chance to travel to Kenya, you cannot miss the sight Great Rift Valley near Kijabe. Spectacular views of what seems to be infinite greens, beautifully landscaped farms, a mountainous skyline that extends of into the horizon- and the set of The Lion King. After the walk, dinner and medication packing awaited us back at the hotel, to finish off the night before clinic three.
Clinic three was located in Nyanduma, at a small dispensary on top of a mountain with an amazing view of farmland. To put it simply, it was a gorgeous and inspirational way to begin the day. At the time of our arrival, many patients were already waiting around outside of the dispensary. While we began to set up, the Kenyan students welcomed those waiting and delivered a health message surrounding cardivascular and metabolic diseases.Following the message, the first patients began to be registered and from there on out it was a steady flow of patients until near sunset. We saw pateints of both Kikuyu and Swahili-speaking descent. Luckily most of out Kijabe partners spoke both languages, so translations were not a problem. We saw over 250 patients of all ages suffering from a wide range of problems- from the expected diabetes and heart disease to cuts, bruises, burns and respiratory ailments.It is technically the winter season here (though no where near the blizzardy streets of New England we all know and love- sometimes), so we saw multiple patients with coughs and suffering from the common cold. Often our advice was the same as it would be back home- rest, lots of fluids and hot packs if able.
The director of the clinic had arranged a lunch for us with white tea at 11:00 and lunch around 2:00. It was a delicious combination of rice and lentils to fuel us to finish the afternoon strong. After finishing up for the day, we were all tired and after a quick photoshoot we started the long and very bumpy trek down the mountain. After saying goodbye to our Kijabe partners back at the hotel, the Boston team jumped back on the bus to continue our journey to our next stop, Nakuru. Here we were treated to a relaxing day filled with an array of animals as we drove through Lake Nakuru National Park for a day of safari. After an enjoyable brunch at the hotel in Nakuru, we loaded onto the bus for the trip back to the guest house in Nairobi to begin our second week here in Kenya and clinic number four. We look forward to the adventures that await us in week number two!
