So, the internet went out with the rain yesterday, but luckily I was able to save this posting. Here it is, a day late!
I was a bit sluggish this morning since I woke up a few times throughout the night last night – once to thunder and rain, once because it was really hot (I think the power must have gone out, since the fan stopped), and a few times because of a mosquito buzzing around my head! We got off to a little bit of a late start this morning, as we took a different route than the Health Surveillance Assistant (HSA) that was riding with us was used to taking. She usually bikes along a path that is not exactly car-friendly, so we got a bit turned around. Nevertheless, we arrived at a health clinic site (the building is still under construction) and found nearly 150 people participating in the event by listening to health education presentations, having their babies weighed, or watching a cooking demonstration.
The HSA, who is an employee of the Ministry of Health and has been trained to give Depo injections, gave a presentation on family planning that used comedy, songs, and drama. One song said that you should use FP to space your births so you don’t have complications in labor and die from a ruptured uterus, because if you die your husband will take another wife and she won’t take care of the children you already have… a bit dramatic, no? She and her supervisor actively used flipcharts outlining each available method (including Norplant, the pill, male and female condoms, tubal ligation, Depo, and natural methods) and even went more in-depth into how the reproductive system works. They gave a lot of detailed information on each method, as the project (and the government of Malawi) are committed to offering all citizens informed choice.
After the education portion, the HSA, a CBDA, and a community nurse went to work! The nurse offered 1:1 counseling for new clients, those who had side effects or problems with their current method, and those who wanted more information about implants or tubal ligation. The HSA gave over 20 injections of Depo (most were returning users) and the CBDA distributed condoms and/or pills to 36 women. It was great to see the team divide and conquer like that!
As things were winding down, I left the clinic and entered a sea of children who all wanted to stare at the mzungo (sp?) – white woman. I greeted them as best I could in the local language and shook their hands as I was making my way to the car. Being on display like that because I come from the US and am Caucasian always makes me a little uncomfortable. I don’t really know anything, and the people who are impressive are those with me, the Malawians who are doing the REAL work. I understand the appeal of a stranger who looks different, though. It was interesting to see personalities at play even though I couldn’t understand the words they were saying – some kids shyly put forth their hands, others pushed themselves to the front, and one kid would just move alongside me and stick out his hand for me to shake every opportunity he got (probably about 10 times in all). I tried my best to catch everyone who wanted to shake my hand, but felt like I was in an unending sea of children – especially when their movement carried me along like I was being pulled by a current! Zina, the district coordinator here, got some pictures that I will post when I have a quicker connection.
Then I met with three different CBDAs to hear more about their work, how it is going, and to see if they had recommendations for improving the program. I was amazed to hear that one CBDA had over 400 clients, another had a youth clientele of nearly 20%, and another had counseled 30 men on family planning. They all were committed to their work, although they are volunteers, and didn’t have too many recommendations for improvement, other than mentioning that they needed an umbrella for the rainy season, honorarium would be nice, or that another CBDA to help them out would be nice.
Overall, it was a productive and inspiring day and I look forward to watching the inauguration tonight! I’m skipping a run to watch it (I think it is worth it, especially since I have a few open days later this week so I can make it up).
I was a bit sluggish this morning since I woke up a few times throughout the night last night – once to thunder and rain, once because it was really hot (I think the power must have gone out, since the fan stopped), and a few times because of a mosquito buzzing around my head! We got off to a little bit of a late start this morning, as we took a different route than the Health Surveillance Assistant (HSA) that was riding with us was used to taking. She usually bikes along a path that is not exactly car-friendly, so we got a bit turned around. Nevertheless, we arrived at a health clinic site (the building is still under construction) and found nearly 150 people participating in the event by listening to health education presentations, having their babies weighed, or watching a cooking demonstration.
The HSA, who is an employee of the Ministry of Health and has been trained to give Depo injections, gave a presentation on family planning that used comedy, songs, and drama. One song said that you should use FP to space your births so you don’t have complications in labor and die from a ruptured uterus, because if you die your husband will take another wife and she won’t take care of the children you already have… a bit dramatic, no? She and her supervisor actively used flipcharts outlining each available method (including Norplant, the pill, male and female condoms, tubal ligation, Depo, and natural methods) and even went more in-depth into how the reproductive system works. They gave a lot of detailed information on each method, as the project (and the government of Malawi) are committed to offering all citizens informed choice.
After the education portion, the HSA, a CBDA, and a community nurse went to work! The nurse offered 1:1 counseling for new clients, those who had side effects or problems with their current method, and those who wanted more information about implants or tubal ligation. The HSA gave over 20 injections of Depo (most were returning users) and the CBDA distributed condoms and/or pills to 36 women. It was great to see the team divide and conquer like that!
As things were winding down, I left the clinic and entered a sea of children who all wanted to stare at the mzungo (sp?) – white woman. I greeted them as best I could in the local language and shook their hands as I was making my way to the car. Being on display like that because I come from the US and am Caucasian always makes me a little uncomfortable. I don’t really know anything, and the people who are impressive are those with me, the Malawians who are doing the REAL work. I understand the appeal of a stranger who looks different, though. It was interesting to see personalities at play even though I couldn’t understand the words they were saying – some kids shyly put forth their hands, others pushed themselves to the front, and one kid would just move alongside me and stick out his hand for me to shake every opportunity he got (probably about 10 times in all). I tried my best to catch everyone who wanted to shake my hand, but felt like I was in an unending sea of children – especially when their movement carried me along like I was being pulled by a current! Zina, the district coordinator here, got some pictures that I will post when I have a quicker connection.
Then I met with three different CBDAs to hear more about their work, how it is going, and to see if they had recommendations for improving the program. I was amazed to hear that one CBDA had over 400 clients, another had a youth clientele of nearly 20%, and another had counseled 30 men on family planning. They all were committed to their work, although they are volunteers, and didn’t have too many recommendations for improvement, other than mentioning that they needed an umbrella for the rainy season, honorarium would be nice, or that another CBDA to help them out would be nice.
Overall, it was a productive and inspiring day and I look forward to watching the inauguration tonight! I’m skipping a run to watch it (I think it is worth it, especially since I have a few open days later this week so I can make it up).
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