Medical Mission to Uganda '08

Dr. Bob's Injury

2008-08-12T04:53:00.001-07:00

During our trip, Dr. Bob had a accident and injured his knee. We were not sure how serious his injury was, but we knew that he was in much pain throughout the trip. However, he was a super trooper and continued on with our trip. Entire team pitched to help him throughout the trip. Craig, Jamie, and Marco ran to the hospital in the middle of the night to get ice and plaster. They also had the pleasure of dealing with "nice" Ugandan nurses. Marco made two casts on Dr. Bob which was a master piece and held on until the last day. Great job to everyone for helping Dr. Bob during the trip. But, our kudos to Dr. Bob for showing us his continues dedication even through his ill-fated injury. We wish you a speedy recovery and back on your feet.

White water rafting on the White Nile

2008-08-12T04:45:00.000-07:00

We ended our great trip with some fun in the White Nile. We rafted with the Nile River Explorers (probably the best rafting in the world) for a 40 km ride. It was simple a wild ride. We hit several class 3, 4, and 5. There were a few class 6 rapids, but I appreciated my life. Also, it wasn't part of the deal anyway. Well, we video taped our adventure, so enjoy.

Discover Simple, Private Sharing at Drop.io

Link to the video: White water rafting video

We are back!

2008-08-10T08:24:00.000-07:00

Thanks everyone for your support. We have returned safely from our trip. This trip has been an amazing experience and it will be hard to top it. I try to learning something from each trip, but it will take a while to process everything that I have experience in Uganda. I will try to get everyone from the trip to write their experience and share it with everyone so keep checking the blog.

Tororo, Uganda

2008-08-03T10:54:00.000-07:00

We arrived in Tororo safely from Iganga. We were welcomed by Jean and Paul McFades who are a very close from of Dr. Bob. They are are originally from Albany area and moved to Uganda several years ago as missionaries. They have established themselves in Tororo and go back and forth to the States. They have graciously invited us to their house and cooked us a grand dinner. This was our first time eating some familar food since we left the States. She made us her "secrete" BBQ ribs, cole slaws, pumpkin mash, green beans, baked potatoes, and a amazing lemon pie as dessert. Anyway, I am pretty sure I am going to sleep very well tonight with my full stomach. Well, tomorrow is another day...

p.s. We saw baboons on road. Instead of deer, they have baboon on the road here.

Iganga, Jinja and the Nile

2008-08-02T22:47:00.000-07:00

We took a break yesterday from clinic. David gave us a tour of Iganga which is the town we are staying right now. It's a small town with a main road going through it. He did take us little off the main road showed us the other side of the town. The picture was totally different from the side we were staying. We lived in a brick block that is no more than 20 feet by 15 feet with a tin roof. No running water, electricity, sanitation, and bathroom. There were smoke belowing from different spots where they were burning trash. It was an eye openning but not totally unexpected.

From Iganga we travelled to Jinja where David lived. White Nile river was very close to his house, so we went for brief visit. We are going back to the Nile for white water rafting, but that has to wait until end of the trip... Anyway, we did some shopping in Jinja. Some of us bought more that other and practiced our bargaining skills. I got 15000 shillings off a mask which was a pretty good deal. The shop keeper told us that in Africa woman are known for bargaining, but apparently it's opposite in the America because Marco and I bargained like there was no tomorrow.

After some shopping, we went over to David house for dinner. His wife cooked us genuine Ugandan food. We had chicken, peanut sause, fish stew, chapete (looks like tortillas), Ugali (flour and water pretty much), and fresh fruits. I thought I was going to loose some weight during this trip, but my scrubs are stopping on my thigh. This is not really good...

We are having a great time here in Uganda and learning from much from each other. We are heading out to Tororo which is about 2 hours east of Iganga. It's a much more rural area so we are expected to rough it more. I am not sure there will be internet connection in Tororo, so don't get too worried if you don't see any updates for a while. Wish us luck!

Nabintende Day 2

2008-07-31T12:59:00.000-07:00

We survived another day. We went to a place called Nabitende in Kalilo district. We saw about 400 patients. I'll post more stories tomorrow when I have more time. Funny story... our bus ran out gas on our way back. Also, we chased down a cow in the middle road. This happens only in Uganda. Anyway, tomorrow is our last day in Kalilo district and we are heading out to Tororo on Saturday. We don't know what to expect tomorrow, but it has been unbelievable experience so far.

Shout out!

2008-07-30T10:10:00.000-07:00

Ok, this is from everyone in the team.

Africa is amazing and Dubai was wild. No problems at all so far, can't wait to who you all the pix!
- Alana N.

The people are amazing here and I cannot believe how different the world can be. All is well! Thanks for all your suppor!
- Love, Jamie

Hello from Uganda! This country and its people are absoultely beutiful. We are havinga great time and doing beatiful wirk. Miss you all.
- Viv

Hi mom and Laura I am having an amazing time. The Coutnry and the people are beatifu. Love you.
- Janel

Hellofrom Uganda! I love you and miss you, but I am having a wonderful experience here. I can't wait until I can tell you about it! So far everyone on the trip is healthy and well, but please kepp us in your prayers! Love.
- Sara

Mbaeteko! Los muchachos... in saludos a todos desde Uganda a Paraguay...
- Marco

I am still alive. Although I am thousands of miles away, my thoughts are still with you.
- Jack

Mom, Dad, Kuyang,Dykang, Sean, Aden, I am doing well in Uganda. Don't worry I am doing well and enjoying myself. Love,
- Vic

Hey Gang, things are great! The team is doing a wonderful job. Africa is stillAfrica. Tia, praying for you all.
- Dr. Bob

Mom, Dad, Elaine. I am doing great in Africa. We arrived here without any problem. Uganda is a very beatiful place. I am trying to soak everything and as much as possible. I have only been here for two days, but I have so many stories to tell. Don't worry about me... no malaria yet. ;-)
See you when I get back. Much love,
- John

Live from Dubai

2008-07-27T20:37:00.000-07:00

We arrived in Dubai last night. Our flight was about 12 hours long, but it was uneventful and it went by rather quickly. I got to seat next to a structural engineer who was coming to build another crazy building. He said whatever they were building was nearly impossible, but they are going to build it since they were going to pay them an insane amount of money.

Anyway, we decided to fight our lack of sleep and venture out in the city. We found a tour guide named Sharif who had agreed to take us out in the middle of the night. Dubai is a city of light in the middle of the dessert. There were as many skyscrapper as NYC, but much modern. There are constructions everywhere you look. We got to see the 7 star hotel, dipped our feet in the warm water of Arabian Sea, walked in the indoor ski slope, and more...

We are heading out to Uganda in a few minutes. Wish us luck.

At the aiport!

2008-07-26T19:16:00.000-07:00

It's go time baby!

2008-07-26T11:30:00.000-07:00

I am trying to update my blog from my cellphone since there is a slight chance that AT&T will have world coverage in Africa. But I am not having much of expectation ;-).

About Uganda

2008-07-26T09:31:00.001-07:00

I figure it would be wise to learn something about the country before I get there. Here are some facts about this country.

It's a Republic

Kampala is the capital of Uganda

Currency is Uganda Shillings

Official language is English

Gained independence in 1962 - Former British Protectorate

Landlocked, but bordering Lake Victoria

Populations is about 32 million

Three major ethnic groups - Bantu, Nilotic, and Nilo-Hamitic.

Bantu is considered a majority in Uganda

Banyankole and Bahima, the Bakiga, the Banyarwanda, the Bunyoro, and the Batoro are the major ethnic groups that we will encounter in our clinic area.

Agriculture is the main economic driving force.

Packin' and more packin'

2008-07-24T17:51:00.000-07:00

From our last trip meeting, I brought back about 3 boxes full of medical supplies. There some bandages, sterile gloves, sutures, q-tips, gauzes, needle drivers, tegaderms, and other random things. Packing is never fun. It takes too much time and effort. After all, it will probably end up being dumped out at the airport for inspection. I seriously doubt that they will accept a large black trash bag full of medical supplies. I had to be sort of "inconspicuous" with this stuff anyway.

As I was packing, I wondered if we had enough supplies to last our trip. I don't know how many patients we are expected to see during our trip. It could be 1,000, 2,000, or even 5,000. Your guess is good as mine. I know that I will see some interesting tropical pathology, so I am hoping I retained enough material from Dr. Miller's (our infectious diseases teacher) lectures. All I remember is Chage's disease but nonetheless useless since Chaga's is not prevalent in Uganda...

Anyway, packing reminded me of an article that I read in JAMA awhile ago. I am always aware of my presence and possible impact that I will make in the community. We are just strangers with bags filled with medicine and supplies who have travelled many miles to make things better. There will be endless line of people who have travelled hours or even days to get medical treatment. I am excited to treat those who are in need of care. However, what will happen to those who I have treated after I leave the country? Will they be cared by another physician or do they have to wait until another stranger comes along to patch them up? I I do not mean to sound cynical, but I do wonder if I am doing this to pat myself on the back or for those who really in need.

Priceless moments...

2008-07-24T14:07:00.001-07:00

1. Hepatitis A vaccine: Free
2. Hepatitis B vaccine: Free
3. Meningococcal vaccine: Free
4. Tetanus vaccine: Free
5. Typhoid vaccine: $53.00
6. Yellow fever vaccine: $93.00
7. Malaria prophylaxis : $4.23

Endless shots on my left arm to prevent me from puking, crapping, and dying: Priceless

Hello everyone!

2008-07-24T09:08:00.000-07:00

Two days left! I am already tossin' and turnin' at night because of the excitement. I have been looking forward to this trip since my first year in medical school. I am leaving on Saturday to Uganda for a 16 day journey. We are heading out with Dr. Paeglow who is sort of a local "hero" here in Albany. He is an Albany Med alumni who has devoted his career in helping the underserved population in Albany, NY.

Our groups of nine medical students, one intern, one college student, and Dr. Paeglow will be departing from New York on Saturday. We are going to make a pit stop in Dubai for a day. We don't have any particular plans in Dubai since our stop will be very short. But hopefully, I'll grab a picture in front of the Burj Al Arab hotel since it cost $75 just get inside. From Dubai, we will touch down in Entebbe, Uganda next day.

Our team members are Jamie, Vivienne, Ben, Janel, Alana, Joan, Jacqueline, Victor, Sarah, Marco and Dr. Paeglow. I'll invite everyone in our group to put their thoughts and experiences during the trip. So come and visit us often!