06/21/2010: Been Here One Month!

This weekend my roommate, Kelly, and I went to the Volta Region to meet up with some people I met on my week long Mole National Park trip. We got there around 5 on Friday night and they were swimming at a pool at the local hotel so we met up with them and this place was beautiful. The entire region is flanked by mountains and hills, it is amazing and the hotel was right next to the Volta River. They also had this mini zoo with monkeys, crocodiles, birds and some rodent type animals. We had dinner at the neighboring restaurant and watched the soccer game. The next day Kelly and I went to Kpetoe to visit her friend that is in the Peace Corps, we arrived just after 2pm and Ghana was playing against Australia (they tied  ), but we watched the game in a kenta cloth factory. Later that day we walked to Togo (a country right next to Ghana), you can see from the picture above that I am in two places at once  It was a pretty relaxing weekend and a very nice ride back!

Today at work, it was super busy! I got there around 9am and right away I was watching a woman deliver her baby and an abortion happening in the same room at the same time, then Kelly and Nick when into the surgical room to see a c-section (I have already seen one and will get 100 more chances to see more). When they were in the surgical room, I saw 2 other women give birth and learned how to wash a newborn and set up the delivery room for a new delivery (there are pictures above showing the room). It was such an interesting day and time flew by!!!

06/15/2010

Well today was really interesting. I get to work about 9am and me, Nick, and Ari round with Dr. Asorri through the maternity ward. We stop at Ward One which has all the mothers that just delivered babies or had c-sections and are spending at 3 days there. Not much examining goes on here, he pretty much writes “date: no major complaints today, well, plan: discharge.” Then we go to Ward Two which has women that are in the labor process or something has gone wrong with their deliveries. Again not much examining goes on here, except he does check to see how far along the delivers are going (2 cm, 3cm, etc). Then we move to the other wing and that’s where the surgical room is, the delivery room, and the preparation room. Then Dr. Asorri goes down to the OPD (outpatient department) and returns later in the day.
Another doctor was there and Nick and I watched him do surgery on a woman that had an ectopic pregnancy and removed some “debris” from her other fallopian tube, he removed her entire left ovary (the one that had the ectopic fetus) and I’m not sure if that was totally necessary or that is how it is done in the US, but he did it. Also she was awake during the process, they only gave her a spinal injection to numb her from her mid abdomen and beyond. So he finished up with her and Nick and I went to find Ari who was with Dr. Asorri and he was performing what he called a “missed abortion.” This lady was “pregnant” for 6 months but not fetus had been produced. The egg was without a yolk he said, so he needed to remove the material from her uterus. Initially I thought she was crying out in pain, but they gave her 2ml shot of Ked amine which is a horse tranquilizer and used as a party drug and she was hallucinating! It was crazy, I had to go get the nurse to get a shot of Valium to calm her down, so they give them this upper and mix with a downer…sometimes they can’t even keep these women on the ward after the procedure because they are hallucinating so badly. It’s really crazy and it was hard not to laugh because this just seems to normal to everyone there. So after that, Nick and I went back to surgery to see a hernia being repaired (the surgical ward was too full, so more non-maternity surgeries were performed up there). Then my day was over and we will back tomorrow to see more deliveries and surgeries.

06/14/2010

This weekend was pretty relaxing, went to Cape Coast and toured around the city. Went had a pretty good experience getting out of the city, but Accra always has such big traffic problems we just spend 2 hours on a metro bus waiting to move. But we made it to the coast and got settled into the guesthouse and went out to dinner at a place called Castle Beach Restaurant. It was located right next to the Cape Coast Castle and the Atlantic Ocean, so we just listened to the waves crash against the beach and ate. The next morning I met up with some girls that were on our Mole trip and we walked the beach, watching all the Ghanaians fish which was pretty interesting. Then we toured the castle, which was a major exporting hub for slaves out of Africa to the Americas and Europe. It was really interesting tour and has a lot of history attached to it (there are pictures above). The rest of the time there we just went to shops and looked around for some art work, nothing too exciting which was okay because I am coming down with a cold.

So it’s World Cup time and all of Africa has soccer fever! We watched the USA vs. England game on this stilled outdoor sitting area, with the game projected onto this white wall. I sat there with other Americans, Ghanaians, and Europeans, listening to the ocean waves crash against the beach and watch USA and England play. It was probably the first time that I planned out a day to revolve around a soccer game, but it was really cool to be a part of a culture that loves this sport. And the next time I listened to the Ghana vs. Serbia game on the radio in a Tro on the way back home and the game is broadcasted in a different language but I definitely could tell when people scored and when Ghana scored their goal, our Tro stopped and everyone in the town came running out in the streets, it was so crazy!! Hours blaring, people screaming, everybody was going crazy and they hadn’t even won the game yet. I got home just in time to see the rest of the game and my entire family was crowded around the TV watching it. They have such amazing pride for their time and for the first time I wished America was more into soccer. So I’m so excited for the next soccer game to come on :)

Other then that, just back to work, I’m in the maternity ward and I observed a girl getting an abortion, and on Friday of last week, saw a couple of C-sections. So it’s pretty busy up there and I get to see a lot of how this ward works, so I’m excited. We had running water at our house for about 5 minutes yesterday and I took a shower, but right after I put conditioner in I saw my water pressure drop drastically so I started filling up a bucket of water just incase the water did go and lucky I did because it definitely stopped so back to bucket showers.

Day Ten 6/2/2010

Today I was back in the OPD, and since I am leaving for a week long trip I thought instead of shadowing any doctors I would work at the nurse’s station all day, so I took a lot of BP’s, temperatures and patient histories. We are getting a new roommate from Japan so I am moving out of my room and moving into the other room with Kelly (Nievah’s is leaving to go to Accra), so hopefully when I get back from my trip I can meet him.
I am leaving tomorrow to go to Mole National Park with 5 other people and we are leaving Mamfe around 4am so we can catch our 9am bus. So packing tonight, and moving my stuff and hopefully my laundry will air dry fast because I need to pack that stuff for my week long adventure!!!

Back—6/9/2010
I just got back from my week long adventure around Ghana! We started at 3am, catching a Tro to Koforidua, where we caught another Tro to Kumasi, then we got into a STC charter bus to Tamale where we spent the night, to get up at 4am to get another Tro Mole National Park. But once at Mole, it is was worth all the driving! Mole is Ghana’s largest wildlife sanctuary, and it is largely flat savanna with a hotel combined on the land. There are more than 90 mammal species and at least 344 bird species. But the biggest attraction they have is the more then 800 elephants that claim Mole as home.
So back to the trip, we got to Tamale and this Australian man named Stewart (he was on the STC bus with us) decided to join up with our group of 6. We got a hotel there and it was decent for 11 cedis a night ($7-8), but it rained really hard that night and my room’s ceiling leaked all over the bed so I didn’t get the best night sleep! But we got up at 4am to get bus tickets from metro station, but the conductor showed up late and refused to sell tickets to us, so we had to baragin in the Tro drivers and they were asking $300 for the ride, but we finally settled with one from $128. We also picked up two Canadian girls named Victoria and Carolyn at the metro station. Most of the drive was ok, but the last 2 hours were hell, the road (especially during the rainy season) is filled with huge pot holes in the road and make for a really bumping ride, but we made it and it was just an amazing place. The pictures above show some of the place, the 6 girls got 2 rooms (3 each) and the 4 boys got a room together, we went for a walk into the park with our guide, but we didn’t see any elephants. Lots of African deer, baboons, birds etc, it was really great. The park is huge and isn’t gated off so these animals are free to come and go, but most stay here because it’s a good place to raise young.
We got up early the next day for our really trek into the park. We got to ride in an open backed vehicle and in about 2 minutes of the ride into the park, 3 huge male elephants walked across the road  So we (just the girls) went on a tracking adventure into African wild to find the elephants. There are just a few of the pictures I took, but they are just the most amazing creatures alive! It was truly amazing to be standing so close to these giants, so it was definitely worth the 12 hour total drive it took. This place is a really cool place to go, the hotel was very reasonable, the food was good, the rooms were nice, there is a pool, and wild boar and baboons are climbing all over the hotel premise (we woke up every morning to baboons on our porch). So after two days at Mole we got up at 4am again to catch the metro bus to Bolgatanga/Paga area (which is at the very top of the western region of Ghana).
The northern part of Ghana has such a different atmosphere from the south, they are much more chill and the area is covered with farm land and adobe style huts. I really liked it up there, the people do try and sell you things, but they aren’t as persistent as the sellers in the south, and it’s really nice sometimes to just be able to walk the streets of a town and not being hassled into buying things. Paga features a crocodile reserve, so we took a 4 hour Tro ride (it was suppose to be 2 hours) up to Paga for the day to see crocodiles, and see the Pio’s Palace. The crocodile place was really cool because they get the crocodiles to come out of the water with live chickens and then they let ups hold their tails and sit on them to take pictures!!! It was so creepy being so close to a crocodile and actually touching it was so amazing, we had to pay for the cameras so a boy on the trip with us has a really nice camera so once he uploads them, I will get some up here. Went back to Bolgatanga for the night and got up around 8am to catch the STC bus down to Accra.
We got into Accra at 1am this morning and since no Tros are operating at this time we spent the night at the bus station, to finally get on a Tro at 8ish. So I am back home and even through this trip was super fun and really amazing, it’s good to be home. I will go back to work tomorrow and I think to Cape Coast this weekend.

Day Nine 6/1/2010

Today I went to the maternity ward to visit my roommate Niaveh, and I was only planning on staying for about 5 minutes, but plans changed once I got there. She was back in the delivery room, looking after this newborn girl. She was 3 weeks past her due date, so already we could tell there were some developmental problems. Her pupils were dilated, she didn’t follow our finger with her eyes, and when we got close to her eye she never blinked. She had been born in the early morning hours and we get to work around 9 and she was just left all alone in the delivery room with no monitors hooked up to her to watch her and her breathing nose tube was made for a child not a newborn so it didn’t even fit. Niaveh came to work and not one person in the maternity ward seemed to care that she couldn’t breathe or that there was something definitely wrong with her. So we stayed there all day, watching her struggle for air with each breath she took and when the doctor finally came to make rounds, this little girl was the very last person he saw. So Niaveh and I made her comfortable, fit the breathing tube in her nose and walked away for about 10 minutes to see another procedure, when we returned she had turned almost white/blue, didn’t have a heartbeat that we could feel and the only sounds she made were when we pushed on her abdomen region the little air left in her lungs would escape. It was terrifying, and no one came to help us, we were in charge of making sure she was ok. It was painful to watch as the nurses and midwives just walked past us and they did nothing for her. I mean it is clear she is going to die and maybe we were just prolonging what was going to happen anyway, but I was not about to walk away from her during my shift and let her choke to death on her own spit. So here Niaveh and I are doing CPR on this baby with equipment that is not functioning at all, and the doctor finally comes back and we are like, “what do we do?” He tells us that she will need to be on a ventilator (which wasn’t going to happen) so nothing really, and we were asking if we should be helping her breath with the oxygen bag and he just responded with “well if you want too.” No, what do you want us to do! It’s clear that us volunteers working in the hospital setting need to make life or death decisions for ourselves, so Niaveh and I got her back. But we knew what was going to happen once we left, no one checked on her when we were there and once we left, she would die. We watched her take her last breaths of air and it was heartbreaking to see this little life end so fast, but maybe even more disturbing was the way the staff there views life and who is “worthy” of saving or not. I realize that they don’t have the equipment or even the proper medical staff to do things, but maybe if whoever told the mother to “come back when she felt labor pains,” knew better the little girl might not of been more almost a month late.
After that day, my roommates and I decided that a got hike was in order, so we hoped a Tro to a nearby town and climbed Bodi Falls. WOAH, was some parts pretty intense and just straight rock to climb up. We were all sucking air and pretty tried when we reached the top to a place called Umbrella Rock, which is you look at the pictures above, it’s a fitting name. It took about 40 minutes to get to the top and then we hiked to a little further in to see the 3-headed palm tree. Then we started our climb back down to see Bodi Waterfall, once we got to the bottom, we had to climb down 250 steps, but it was worth it. In the pictures you can see it is a twin waterfall and the bigger one is the female and the other the male. It was about 6pm so we decided to head home! It was good to get that hike in to release some of that energy after being in that maternity ward, but I’m heading there in a week so I better be prepared to see that more often.

Things About Ghana:

So it has been more then a week since I have arrived and this place is really amazing, the people here are so friendly and nice, but at the same time completely different from anything I have ever experienced in my life. I knew going into this volunteer abroad and working in a health care setting it was of course going to be different from what I am use to in the USA, but to actually see how different it is, it can be overwhelming at times.

•The hospitals are dirty. The OPD is one large waiting room that sick patients wait, so first they are seen by the nurse, their vitals are taken and then they go wait in another long line to see the doctor. The nurse’s station is really just a cubical with a table and some instruments that are used to take their weight, BP, and temperature. As far as I could see the thermometer isn’t disinfected very well or at all at times. I had sure that when I was at the station I asked for some disinfecting alcohol and cotton swaps and wiped it off between patients, but I don’t think that happens every much when I am not there.

•The roof to the OPD is elevated from the rest of the building to let airflow through, but when it rains (which it did once) it comes pouring into the building. So the nurses and I went to the Injection Room and did vitals, but the patients had to stay out in the large waiting room, just getting wet.

•When they finally get to go in and see the doctor, the doctor says about 2 words, doesn’t really do an examination and sends them to the dispensary for medication. I realize that they have a lot of patients to see and most of them aren’t really that sick, but I am unsure how they are diagnosing UTI’s, malaria, and a wide range of other sicknesses without a single lab being done. That just would never happen back in the states and I guess that is exactly why I wanted to come to a developing country, because it is so different and I seriously feel very lucky. I also don’t want to say the doctors are being lazy, but out of the 4, one in particular seems to hate his job. He listens to the radio, says about 2 words to each patient, and sends them on their way. They all answer phone calls during their rounds and they often stop talking to the patient to ask me questions about me and President Obama. They work ethic here is just so different it’s hard to get use to it.

•Enough about the hospital, I have mentioned before how we get to some places around Ghana. There are line taxis and Tros, we usually take Tros to get to destinations that are far away because they are pretty cheap and hold a lot of people, but they are death machines  Some don’t have working headlights, so at night it was so scary getting home, they can break down, they are big so they can tip easily especially when the driver is trying to pass, and they are kind of uncomfortable. But it’s the cheapest way to get around Ghana if you don’t have a car, so we take them. I haven’t had a bad experience yet, but I have heard some stories already. Line taxis are good for going short distances, but you have to ask about prices before you get in, because taxi drivers can really rip you off (especially if you are white), so it’s always a challenge to bargain, but it usually works out.

•People are always trying to sell you things on the side of the road….ALWAYS! You never get away from it, but after about 2 days you really do get use to it. Just say “no thank you” and they move on, but they are often handy on long Tro rides because the sellers are usually on busy streets so if you need water or food, they will come up to your window.

•The Ghanaian word for white person is “Obroni” and everyone calls us that. Little kids LOVE screaming “obroni” at us when we walk down the street and they follow us, wanting us to take pictures and stuff. \I might come back to the states with a complex because no one will be screaming “white girl” or “white sister” at me or want to take pictures with me  But it’s a strange world here because I would never walk down the streets in the states screaming, “hi Asian” so it’s weird that it is so common here.

Day Eight: 5/31/10

Today when I went into the Consulting Room with the doctors, one of them asked me if I wanted to be in charge of “consulting” which is clearly the doctor’s job, and I made it perfectly clear that I was not in medical school and had absolutely no training in this, but he didn’t seem to think it was a problem so I played doctor today and it was AMAZING  He of course stood behind me and told me what to write and stuff, but it was cool actually doing what a doctor does because I don’t get to role play in the states. I also wrote some labs and prescriptions, I felt very important, plus when I walked out of the room, patients kept calling me “doctor.” It was a fun day!!!

Day Seven: 5/30/2010

Time to leave our little paradise and head on home, but before we left we took a boat tour of the river and the other land around, and got a tour of a run factory. Which really in a couple of separated places on a farm, but it really cool to see how they made rum (see pictures below), and then at the end of the tour we all took a shot of this rum  It was really good, spicy and strong but definitely different from any other rum that I have had before, so my roommate and I got a big bottle of it for 10 cedi (about $7), you can see the picture below of us holding the bottle. After our boat tour we caught another Tro back to Medina so we could get another Tro back home.

Day Six: 5/29/2010

I wake up about 4:30am everyone morning in Ghana, so I decided to get up and go watch the sunrise and get a look at everything in the daylight. Here are some pictures from the place, it was amazing!! It is like a tropical paradise and in terms of American dollars really cheap, people would pay thousands of dollars to have this kind of experience and I maybe paid $50. This “resort” is located between the ocean and the Volta River (there is a place at the end of the beach where the river meets the ocean), but the ocean and some pretty wicked waves and a really dangerous undertow so Projects Abroad really advised against swimming in the ocean, but the river side is really calm and the water is so warm and amazing. I went with a group of 11, so we took advantage of our day off and went swimming and played water polo with some older South Koreans that showed up for the day, had lunch, laid in hammocks, took naps, ate dinner, etc. It was just so relaxing there, we were really the only group of people staying there so we pretty much had the entire “resort” to ourselves. I will let the pictures describe how absolutely amazing this place is 

Day Five: 5/28/2010

Just another day at the OPD, but I left early because some friends and I are traveling to a beach called Adafo.

We all took a Tro to Accra Tro Station where we transferred to another Tro to get to the beach, it took about another 2 hours to get there so it was pretty dark when we got to the place, but there was a full moon out so it lit the way. And let me say this place is PARADISE!!! We had to walk about 20 minutes through this village to get to the “resort” but it was so beautiful. Once we got there we were greeted by the ocean waves crashing against the beach and beautiful white sandy beach that was really wide and so long. I can’t even really describe how beautiful it was and it was night time, but with the full moon out with was breath taking. We got to the place and had some dinner and found out grass huts and went to bed.

Day Four 5/27/2010:

Every Thursday at the OPD, is a HIV/AIDS clinic so anyone that needs to get a routine check-up, more medication, counseling etc usually come on this day. So anyone that is diagnosed with HIV/AIDS gets a patient folder that looks similar to the regular ones but it is bigger and they get this big green booklet in it (that book is used to keep track of their disease). I was in-charge of opening up lab orders and marking in the booklet, and it was a really weird experience to open up my first lab order and see the words, POSITIVE, red, all caps ink. It changes their life forever and there were about 40 patients coming to get a check-up another 5-10 that were just getting diagnosed. It was really overwhelming at times.

For the patients that were getting routine check-ups, the doctor would ask them a series of questions and look for other signs and one questions that asked “are you sexually active? Yes or no,” if they say yes, we move on to sub-questions that asked “are you letting your partner know you are infected? Yes or no,” and about 15 said yes to being sexually active and no to letting their partner know because they are too embarrassed. I was so mad and frustrated, I mean I’m sure it’s the same problem in the rest of the world, but in a Africa were so maybe individuals are infected it is almost impossible to stop. I was glad I got to be a part of this clinic, but the stigma associated with this disease really prevents people from being open with their sexual partners and it really made me look at my own life and realize how truly lucky I am.

Day Three 5/26/2010:

It was a national holiday in Ghana, so I didn’t have to work so one of my roommates and some other volunteers went to a near by town called Aburi to a wood market. It was about 20 stands that lined a road and had a lot of different wood carvings. Masks and figurines of all sizes, I brought 3 things, but I really wish I could have gotten more. But I have to fly home with already over weight baggage, plus I really want a huge mask or figurine which definitely won’t fit  We spent about 3 hours there and then went to have lunch in the town next to it. In Ghana, you have to get use to other people getting their food way ahead of you. One of my friends waited over an hour after us to finally get his food! After that, stopped at a fruit market (just some stands on the road) and got some oranges (that are green  ), pineapple (which is amazing), and some bananas (also amazing), the we headed back home.

We took a Tro-Tro to get back, they are this huge vans that have all this seating that are very cheap to take to places far away, but they are the scariest things I have ever been in. They definitely don’t care what side of the road they drive on, they use their horns to let other drivers know they are near or passing instead of a blinker, they drive fast and they probably could fit 10 comfortably plus the driver and the mate, but they will cram as many as 14-16 in them. But they are cheap so we go  Once we got to our junction, we got out and were greeted by a huge down pour of rain, so my roommate and I had to run under a shops porch for about 15 minutes and wait until it passed. Then just went to the internet café, walked around, went to a football game (soccer), came home and went to bed.

Day Two 5/25/2010:

I am working in the Out Patient Department (OPD) for now and I will switch to maternity, then surgery. The OPD is very crazy and busy, they have about 150 people coming in and most times only 2 doctors on staff. So for my first day I was basically just thrown into the pit and started working. I am doing want all the nurses are doing, so I work in the cubical type space (3 pieces of dirty white work), with a card table and 3 chairs, along with my blood pressure equipment, thermometer, cotton balls and a pen. So for about 5 hours I just did vitals and it was overwhelming to say the least. I haven’t actually done BP measurements in about 3 years and it is so loud in there and there are people all around you that is so hard to hear the beats of the heart, plus according to all the nurses I write like an American. So instead of saying “difficulty breathing” I put “trouble breathing.” So it was crazy and I feel totally unqualified to do this job since I didn’t actually do my undergrad study in nursing. It’s weird how I am totally unqualified to do this job in America, but very qualified to do this job here.

Along with being a nurse, I was taken aback by the sanitary conditions that are practiced there. As you can see in some of my pictures, the hospital is far from sterile and clean. I had one thermometer to use for all my patients and I only had dry cotton balls to clean them off with. I don’t know why I was so surprised, but I was and I was grossed out by the lack of just clean equipment. I know they are doing their best, but it just sooooo different from any of the hospitals in the states. Which is exactly why I came, after just one hour in this place I realize how damn lucky we are. So my day came to close and I really just wanted to cry because I was so stressed out and overwhelmed and I don’t like being bad at things (I am getting better at taking BP), but the nurse I am working with is just so sweet, so it definitely makes things better.

I came home, ate dinner and went to bed at 8:30pm.

Day One 5/24/2010:

It was quite an experience getting to Ghana, but I finally made it. I had the worst flight of my life and I can assure you that I will never fly with Delta Airlines internationally again. But that is all behind me because I am finally HERE!!

I had to the sleep at the Projects Abroad headquarters because I arrived so late (around midnight). So I was greeted by some very muggy weather and I hadn’t showered in 2 days, so once I arrived I quickly took my first African shower. Even through the water was more cold then warm and the pressure was almost zero it felt amazing!! I was so hot and tired that anything at that point felt amazing. After that I went to bed and quickly found out that my phone’s alarm clock doesn’t work anymore (I suspended my contract with AT&T while I am gone). So I kinda woke up late for my meeting with my taxi driver (he was driving me an hour north to Mampong), but he was very kind and didn’t care. So I left Accra and headed north and in the first 5 seconds of being in that car I realized that there is NO code for driving, no real rules, and everyone just does what they want. It was a little scary, but I am alive and here.

I meant my host family and their 3 young children, there are also 2 other girls staying here (other volunteers) which is nice because we work at the same hospital (which is across the street from where we live). I start work tomorrow, so I am excited to see what I will be doing.

Today is the Day!!!!!!

Waiting in JFK right now waiting for my flight to Africa :)

Less Then 2 Weeks Away

In 12 days I will be in the JFK airport waiting for my connecting flight to Accra :)

Housing

My Host Family:

Mr. Frank Obuobi is a Computer analyst who works at the Centre for Scientific Research into Plant Medicine at Mampong. He also owns formating internet cafe in Mampong.

Other people who live in the house are Mrs. Akosua Ofei Obuobi his wife (house wife), Maame Esi Baffoe their daughter (2006), Kobby Ofei Obuobi their son (May 2005), Nana Yaa (2008) and Ruth Nfum (1995) who is a house help.

Akosua another househelp comes to the house to help but does not stay in the house.

Location:

The house is situated in Abotekyi (Mampong) about 5 minutes walk from Tetteh Quarshie Hospital in Mampong.

The house is also directly opposite Dr. Winful's residence.

The Akuapem Hills is at an elevation of 400m, and hence have a slightly cooler climate than most of Southern Ghana. Mampong has a post office, a market and a few bars and restaurants. There is much to see and do in the surrounding area including good hiking, mountain biking and visiting waterfalls and bead markets.

About My Room:

Frank hosts a maximum of four volunteers and your shared room will have two beds, fan, light and space for clothes. Volunteers have a private bathroom so the family do not share in theirs and basic cleanliness is satisfactory.

General Information:

Frank is keen for you to explore the region and is happy for you to go out in the evenings with other volunteers but not to return too late, so you do not disturb the family. They really appreciate it if you are home by 9:30pm.

Internet service is in this accomodation therefore volunteers with laptops will be able to browse.

Placement Details :)

Working:

Tetteh Quarshie Memorial Hospital,
P.O. Box 26,
Mampong-Akuapem
Greater Accra Region
Ghana

My Supervisor:

Dr. Owusu Acheampong

Job Title:

Medical Superintendent

Overview:

Tetteh Quarshie Hospital opened in 1961. It is the main hospital in the Akuapem area and therefore a reasonably busy one. The hospital is setting up a library that is dependent on donations. Any medical books would be an appreciated contribution. The children’s ward always gratefully receives any toys and early learning equipment.

Typical Day:

Volunteers have the opportunity to work in numerous departments at the hospital. The most popular are: paediatrics, physiotherapy, the male and female medical wards, and the public health unit. Please make sure you bring a white medical jacket with you as they are extremely useful.

Project Structure:

You can join a doctor on ward rounds, who will be willing to answer questions about the varying cases, some of which may be shocking and extreme. You may attend out-patient clinics, visit clinical conferences, watch surgery if you are qualified, and if you are part way through your medical training, get involved in clinical research – possibly even giving your own presentation or assisting with a medical officer. Depending on your interests, confidence and ability you may yourself also carry out observations, tests, check BP and injections. Hours of work are flexible. Volunteers can work morning shift, afternoon or even night shifts.

Stress, Stress, Stress

Well after a lot of stressful nights and days, it really does look like I am going to Africa in 20 days!!

But let's backup and tell you guys why I was so stressed out:

I got a SallieMae loan to help cover the costs of this trip and I was suppose to get my money on April 18th (which was a Sunday), so I gave them 2-3 business days to get my money to my school. When I found out that the money hadn't reached my school yet I called SallieMae and they said they forgot to release the money, but they would do it that day (Wednesday) just allow 2-3 business days. Allow I was upset over this, it was okay I could wait until Friday. So Friday comes and the money still hadn't gotten to my school, so I called again and I got the same story "sorry, we forgot to release the money, I will get a 24 hr work release and get the money to you on Monday." So here comes Monday and guess what, NO MONEY! So I call again, and they once again forgot. At this point I am more then frustrated with SallieMae and the run around they are giving me, more then a week late with my money and no one can explain it. So I go to my financial aid office and talk to my financial adviser, and he calls SallieMae. It turns out there was an internal problem within SallieMae and they just weren't handling the problem and they didn't know when I would be getting my money. Needless to say, my dreams of going to Africa were slipping, and I was in the process of finals and moving so this was the very last thing I wanted to deal with. But after a lot of phone calling, crying, freaking out and some very wonderful, wonderful people at my school it is all figured out :) My school is just advancing me my money and when my loan finally comes in they will just keep it. I am so blessed to have such great staff at my university and they couldn't have been more helpful...I truly appreciate everything they did for me.

SOOOOO....I'M LEAVING ON A JET PLANE TO AFRICA IN 20 DAYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

ONE MONTH

Wow...time flies, exactly one month until I leave for Africa. Not a lot has changed, mostly just waiting for loan to come in (which is did yesterday) and should get processed in the next couple of days. Then I will pay Projects Abroad and I will be all set to go :) I should be getting my placement and housing details very soon too (probably after I pay), so I am excited to see where I will be living and the place I will be working!!

I will fill my malaria pill prescription in the next week or two, get my last Hep. B shot on the 3rd of May, finishing packing my apartment all up, take my finals then go home to visit family before I leave...I think for the first time I am getting nervous. I'm certainly going to miss all my friends and family, but it's getting very real for the first time since I started planning this trip!

Other then that, just waiting for paperwork to go through and counting down the days!!!

Why It Pays To Plan Early

I am very happy I booked my ticket early and really planned for this trip in advance. Recently Delta decided to cancel my return flight from Accra to the USA, so now I leave a day late which is fine, but they never rescheduled my connecting flight. I went through Student Universe and they are a fine company, but the back and forth with them in rediculous. They don't honor anything that Delta says, so don't bother calling the airline yourself to get answers, but you have to constantly check your stuff because it never matches up with what Delta has, so it's a waiting game.

I guess I might have paid a little extra to go through an airline company directly instead of a 3rd party because when things happen and you want answers quick, that doesn't happen! Either way hopefully they can figure it out :)

50 Days Left!!

I mentioned in earlier posts that I was getting 2 extra pills of Larium to try out and see what kind of side-effects I might have from them (I heard they are pretty nasty). So I took one yesterday and it seemed to be fine, I had a slight headache, but that went away soon after. I took it in the afternoon with my lunch, then drank a whole bottle of water right afterwords (it says to take with plenty of water and food). I will take it again next Monday, but the pharmacist seemed to think that if I was going to experience any of the paranoia, and bad dreams it would happen right away. So hopefully after next Monday I will be fine :) These pills are almost $400 cheaper then Malarone, and you take them once at week instead of everyday, so I'm hopefully these work!

I just received my passport back from the Ghanaian embassy with my Visa, so the only thing I have left is pay Projects Abroad and go shopping for the last remaining items! It's getting VERY CLOSE...50 more days!!!

Yellow Fever Shot

So I got my Yellow Fever shot yesterday and it wasn't bad at all. I heard from several people that this shot really hurts and it can take a lot out of you, but it was the least painful shot I've gotten, my arm doesn't hurt at all right now and I'm feeling good :) I got my Yellow Fever Card that is required to enter into Ghana so it looks like I'm all set now! I also got 2 pills of Larium to try out, hopefully I don't get those crazy dreams because Larium will cost me $160.00 compared to $642.95 for Malarone. So I'm going to take them on Monday and see what happens...

Mole National Park

Mole National Park is the largest and most frequently visited national park in Ghana. It is reasonably well set up to cater for tourists and although it is more expensive than many other parts of Ghana it is well worth a visit.

Mole has the widest range of wildlife in Ghana. You'll see elephants, antelope, bushbucks, monkeys, warthogs, baboons and other smaller wildlife.

It is rumored that lions exist in the park but even the wardens haven't seen any traces for a few years. The last lion sighting in August 2004 was immediately followed by serious poaching incident resulting in the capture and killing of a male lion the following day.

Wli Waterfall

Wli Waterfalls cascades from a height of 60-80 meters, and is the highest falls in West Africa. The hills mark the border between Ghana and neighboring Togo. A walk through the forest of the Agumatsa wildlife sanctuary offers a chance to see a large colony of fruit bats, butterflies, birds, monkeys and baboons. To get there one has to walk through the Rain Forest on a small footpath crossing 9 smaller streams in the process.

Busua Beach

The Busua Beach Resort is a Nature Lover's dream come true. Located on the shore of the Atlantic Ocean in the Western Region of Ghana, the Busua Resort is about halfway between Abidjan, the capital of Côte d'Ivoire, and Accra, the capital of Ghana. Busua is in the very heart of the region's attractions, both natural and man made.

Places To Visit While in Ghana: Kokrobite Beach Resort

25km west of Accra, Kokrobite is also home to the Academy of African Music and Arts.

One great little hostle is called Big Milly's Backyard. A small hotel for rucksack travellers. Simple. Cosy. A garden surrounded with walls with small houses, rooms, cold beer and a snack three times a day. Wendy is Big Milly. A somewhat elder English woman who found her spot in Ghana. Very nice setting and well worth the short drive out of Accra. Definitely worth the short drive out of Accra

Visa Application

Time to start my Visa application. I found the application for Ghana on my Projects Abroad website, but clearly people can find the proper work on the web. I also need to attach a letter of support from Projects Abroad that states I will be participating in their program. The application is pretty easy to fill out, it just needs to be in all capital letters. You need 4 copies (5 total), you send 3 plus the original application (I'm sending it to Washington D.C.) in a traceable envelope from UPS and you need to send a pre-paid, self addressed envelope with it so they can send your passport back to you. So here are things going with my Visa application:

1. Visa Application (4 copies)
2. 4 passport photos
3. 4 letters of support from Projects Abroad
4. Passport
5. Pre-paid, self-addressed, traceable envelope
6. $50 money order, cashiers check, or bank certified check (I got a money order from my bank).

It was about $62 to ship my Visa application ($28 there and $34 back)...pretty pricey, but I added some insurance for an extra $2 that will cover up to $200 if anything happens to my to my stuff. I mean my passport, photos, and the $50 money order was about $170 so $2 extra wasn't really like much of investment! I went to UPS and the lady there was really helpful.

Projects Abroad

Here is some information about the company I will be traveling with. They are really helpful and amazing to work with.

http://www.projects-abroad.org/

Ticket is Booked!!!

Airplane ticket is booked! Now it seems very real. I'm flying with Delta Airlines and leaving around 7am on a Friday with one connection in JFK, then arriving in Accra around 7:30am Saturday morning.

I booked my ticket on StudentUniverse.com and they had a lot more options and the prices were also a lot cheaper. I decided that I would pay a little bit more for an earlier flight and for a flight that only made one stop. So I paid $1,562.00 for my ticket and yes it is expensive, but so worth it!

It's OFFICIAL, I'M OFF TO AFRICA :)

Beach

Skyline

Accra, Ghana's Capital City

Facts About Accra

Accras the capital and most populous city of Ghana, a nation on the coast of the western region of Africa. The city also doubles as the capital of the Great Accra Region, and of the Accra Metropolis District. Among the attractions of Accra are the National Museum, with a display of exhibits that reflect the heritage of Ghana from prehistoric times to modern times, the National Theatre with its distinct modern architecture, the National Arts Center with local arts and crafts to suit all tastes,Independence Square, the Kwame Nkrumah Mausoleum, the Accra International Conference Centre, the Anglican Holy Trinity Cathedral, the fishing port at Jamestown and Makola Market.

2 Months Away

Well it's about 64 days away and I couldn't be more excited to take off. I have applied for a private student loan through Sallie Mae to help cover the costs of this trip and here is what I have come up with (hopefully it all gets approved by the Financial Aid office).

1. Study Abroad Fee: $100.00
2. Program Fee: $4,415.00
3. Accommodations: included
4. Meals: included
5. On-Site Transportation: $450.00
6. Airfare: est. $2,500.00
7. Passport and passport photos: $110.00
8. Visas: $90.00 (I need to renew my Visa while out in Ghana)
9. Immunizations: $1,194.10
10. Health Insurance: included
11. Personal Spending Money: $2,520.00 ($210 a week, $30 a day)
12. Other: $621.43

TOTAL: $11,606.37

While out in Ghana it will cost me about $10 to renew my visa including 2 more passport photos. My immunizations included the shots I talked about earlier and the malaria pill, Malarone, which cost $642.95 (for 100 pills), plus some prescriptions I had to get.

The website Lonelyplanet.com was a really helpful website about Ghana (you can choose whatever country you want) and it gave me the costs of transportation. I also decided to talk to other people that had been to Ghana and that was the most helpful part. Also my contact person from Projects Abroad in Ghana is incredibly helpful, so it is important to choose a program to go with that are good with communication.

Less Then 3 Months Away!

Well some major changes have been happening...

1) I'm now going alone, which is totally fine because this trip means a lot to me and I want to make the most out of the trip. And it's traveling to a 3rd world country and if someone can't handle that, then this trip is not for them! So off I go...and I'm so excited :)

2) I'm getting my budget together and it's about $10,000 plus right now with program costs and all of the travel things I need. It's a lot of money, but I just don't think you can put a price on this trip

3) I got a scholarship from the Political Science department at my school!!!!!! It's $3,000 and I couldn't be happier! It will help out a lot

3) In about a week, I will get my Yellow Fever Shot...not looking forward to that. I have heard that it takes a lot out of you so I'm going to get it on a Friday and lay low for the weekend.

4) In April I will get my last shot, Hep B

5) I will be getting my financial aid set and getting my plane ticket booked :) I will be going home for two weeks to see my family and then OFF TO AFRICA :)

Shots!

Today I got some of my vaccinations for my trip, and although I was pretty nervous about getting them since I haven't had a shot since I was 12, it didn't hurt at all :) I went to my campus Health Center because it could get charged to my student account so I don't have to front all the money at once, and it's a lot cheaper there then anywhere else. My doctor and nurse were very nice and helpful and it made the whole thing a lot easier to do.

I got Hepatitis A, Tetanus, and Polio today,so I have to go back in a month and get my Yellow Fever and flu shots. I got my prescription for my Typhoid (it is a liquid) and I take it once a day, every other day for 4 days. I will start that about 2 weeks before I go...so I'll start taking that at the end of April! Also I got my prescription for Malaria, I will be taking Lariam, but if I get the bad dreams that sometimes happen with Lariam I will be switching to Malarone.

Lariam is taken 1 week prior to leaving, once a week while in Africa, and 4 weeks after we return. Malarone is taken 2 days prior to leaving, every day while in Africa, and 2 weeks after we return. So I'm hoping Lariam works, but once a week is much better then everyday and Malarone is pretty expensive.

Budgeting

Time to budget for this trip...the financial aid office at our college needs this to determine how much aid we will get to go on trip. I'm seeing a lot of paper pushing to come, but I think if I can get a head start, when something goes wrong (which it will) I will have time to fix it.

So Projects Abroad has a lot things included in our program fee:

Total: $4,145.00 which includes the following

• Accommodation
• Food
• Airport pick up and drop off
• Full travel insurance
• Medical insuranc
• In-country induction with a staff member upon arrival
• Support and 24 hour back-up from both our local and US/Canada staff
• Personalized MyProjectsAbroad page
• Pre-departure support from Desk Officer by email and phone
• Visa support (if applicable)

Projects Abroad also sets up our flights, so I looked ahead to get an idea of what the cost it. I'll be flying out of Minneapolis, MN and if I flew with Delta it's around $1700.00 with one layover at JFK. Trying to prepare for a 16 hour fly :(

Other cost we have to think about it is:

• Spending money
• Clothing
• Personal products
• Transportation within Ghana

So I am trying to find out all prices for these things so I can hand in my budget report!

Change of Plans

Well after some thought, Europe will be off the schedule:( Just too much to do and not enough time or money! But one day I will get over there and do our trip. But now I'm focusing on getting geared up for Africa. We will be heading out May 20, 2010 and coming back August 20, 2010 and I am getting very excited. This Friday I will start getting my shots, so I'll let everyone know how that goes :) But so far, just getting the paperwork and all the details set before we leave and I'm sure there will be bumps a long the way. But we had a meeting with our International Affairs adviser, and now we are getting this set in stone!

For school, I will be registering for PS 490 credits (Political Science Internships credits) and during my time in Ghana I will be blogging about my experience. I will also have to write a paper about my time out there, and have an assessment paper that will need to be signed by my supervisor out there.

Now we just have to get the financial aid office to corporate a little bit more and we should be set to go!!!

123 DAYS TO GO !!!!!