February News

The month of February has brought many adventures and memories. From counting the numerous ant bites on my ankles and arms to starting a new schedule at work including working nights, I have cherished each moment. On Valentines day, the Tans, Lisa and myself headed out on a four day camping trip to the Serengeti. We spent the first night right in the middle of the National Park and then the last two nights at a camping resort just on the edge of the park. The days were filled with wonderful experiences of seeing animals close up and in person! A highlight was when a herd of over 35 elephants came right in front of our car. Seeing little elephants clinging to their mothers and enjoying the slow saunter of the massive animals was breath taking. I was able to get pictures of several animals in action with my camera, including a group of zebras startled by a noise far off, feeling the stare of a male lion and his pride up close beside our safari truck, capturing the glide of a cheetah as he made his way across the plain, and many unique shots of giraffes eating leaves from way up in the trees! The second evening at Kigereshi, our camping site, proved to be quite the experience as Lisa and I were preparing to get into our tent. We were faced with several hundred biting ants in the dark of the night and soon found ourselves running all over with these little ones crawling up our dresses! The night was quite eventful as Isaac, our cook, poured kerosene around the tents and allowed us to take his place to ensure we would not have to go anywhere near the ants again! In the morning, they were no where to be seen. The trip was a success. It was a nice rest from our routine here in Mwanza and allowed for many moments of growth in friendships! Praise the Lord!

At the Makongoro Clinic, many changes have occurred. Renovations of the private room and washrooms were finally finished and they look great! With money that I was able to gather from family and supporting churches, we together were able to support the clinic in an area that they found the most necessary. This will allow for them to generate income for months and years to come. Ensuring that this project was sustainable, we talked with the staff and were able to come up with an idea on how to use approximately $700. It is a blessing to be able to continue to impact this place even after I leave. Thank you everyone for your support in these months, people here at Makongoro have truly felt your support and love.
In about two weeks, the Tans and myself will head to Kenya for a week long nursing conference and some debriefing with a CRWRC staff worker. I am really looking forward to this time and pray that the Lord would continue to speak to me as I learn about tropical nursing and what this trip to Tanzania means for my future career in Nursing.

As you hold me up in prayer please join together with me in the following areas:

• I pray for energy as the days are getting longer with more responsibilities at the clinic.
• I pray for the friendships that I have been blessed with thus far here and seek after Him as He shows me how to love each and every person that I meet.
• I have been thinking a lot about the different experience I will have as I prepare to leave Mwanza. Pray for these times, for the different interactions that I have with people and that I can leave well.

At church, this Sunday, the pastor focused on praying and not giving up. I pray, knowing that the Lord provides in so many ways. “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.” Matthew 7:7-8

Nursing Overseas

Many months ago, the thought of nursing overseas was just a thought. Something that I dreamed of doing and was excited about, a new adventure that the Lord would take me on. I would experience a new culture in a new way, with the foundation of nursing as a starting point. Today I want to share with you just a little about how nursing overseas has impacted me thus far. I want to share stories with you and encourage all who have a thought right now for something new and challenging. I want to encourage you to surrender to the Lord your plans and passionately pursue Him as He guides you along the journey.
First, nursing overseas provides many challenges with differences not only in diseases but also in the names of common medications. Several months were required for me to figure this out, but eventually I have become accustomed to the common illnesses and treatment options.
The environment that I am nursing in right now is different than from back home. Although I never worked in a hospital as a full time nurse prior to this trip, with several hospital placements in nursing school, I do have a base of comparison.

One day, as Margaret and I were preparing medication in the stock room – without even blinking an eye I said to her, “Would you look at that, a gecko is in with the Gentamicin ampoules!” We broke out laughing at the thought – that we have become so comfortable nursing here that, even a small animal amongst the medication doesn’t phases us. A great memory!
Graduating with a nursing degree has enabled me to work alongside the Matron, Nurse in Charge – a Registered Nurse with further education and much experience. With this opportunity, I have been able to assist in rounds with the doctor and the other nursing staff, walking from patient to patient in the mornings. At the beginning, these moments were very stressful as reading the charts and understanding the health situations were new, but now these are memorable times of the day. We get to interact with staff and patients at the same time – even encourage different treatments or make suggestions based on previous regimens.
Currently, the need at AICT Makongoro Health Centre is to work on updating data management, thus Margaret and I find ourselves helping with information details on the computer. We are working on imputing admission, diagnosis, and discharge information for patients that come through the clinic. This will allow the management staff to have a better idea of overall patient management and will encourage the Health Department to purchase more computers for the clinic. Using my gifts, even if they are not directly related to nursing, is what I have come here to do. I am so thankful that the Lord has placed me where I can be used the most. From typing out reports for the HIV/AIDS counselling clinic to organizing medication on an updated flow sheet, I am learning. I hope to be able to share this knowledge with staff at the clinic and look forward to more opportunities to share in my gifts in the coming months.