Camel's Milk

Outside the hospital with 2 nursing students.

The 3 Amigos.....Maxamed, Ismail, and Abdulrasheed.

Hibo, Sohur, and Nimco.

My favorite picture for the week from Edna's farm. Isn't she the cutest?

Celebrating Eid at the Monsoor Hotel.

My Somali sister who is all for Obama.

Visiting Hargeisa Univeristy with Sohur.

Interviewing students for the lab technician training program.

Drove past this camel a few days ago.

I can hardly believe that I’ve been in Somaliland for 3 weeks!! I have experienced quite a lot in this short period of time. Today I tried camel’s milk for the first time…didn’t care for it much as it has a pungent smell and unappealing taste. It also sent me to visit the porcelain throne.

Today I also assisted with the interview process for applicants to the lab technician training program here at the hospital. There were over 100 applicants. One of the requirements is proficiency in English, thus it was easy for me to participate. At one point I asked an applicant his birthday, after which he looked quite puzzled. The representative from the Ministry of Education conducting the interviews with me then asked him in which year was he born. Edna later informed me that many Somalis don’t celebrate or acknowledge a birthdate, just the year in which they were born.

 

So far I have caught 13 babies at the Edna Adan Hospital, and did 1 delivery at a local government hospital. My experience at the government hospital was quite interesting as Sohur and I were chastised by a hostile midwife who thought we were Ethiopians. This woman had not done any work pertaining to patients while we were there. She was too busy putting henna on her hands and feet. Maybe she was disgruntled because Sohur and I were actually doing her job……like catching babies and giving breastfeeding support in the immediate postpartum period. I can’t begin to describe the condition in the delivery area of that government hospital…I’ll just say that there is no Vitamin K, eye drops, suction bulbs, or oxygen. Babies born with respiratory distress are out of luck. Instruments don’t appear to be sterile, and I only saw 3 pair of sterile gloves. Luckily we had brought our own sterile emergency deliver packs. Thank God for the Edna Adan Maternity Hospital.

 

Last week I provided immediate newborn care to a baby born at 35 weeks with an omphalocele. His liver was protruding through his umbilicus. I was present for the surgical repair, which was simply short of amazing. I’ve also done quite a number of newborn resuscitations. Those chest compressions actually work! Yesterday was the first time I had to actually have epinephrine administered, as baby was unresponsive to prior resuscitation efforts.

 

I’ve eaten more meat in the past 3 weeks, than I have for the first 9 months of the year. Here they eat a lot of goat, lamb, and pasta. Edna took us out to a restaurant for Eid (celebration at the end of Ramadan) and I ate the most delicious fish.

 

I spend most of my time here at the hospital of course. However I’ve had the pleasure of visiting Edna’s farm, Hargeisa University, and the Ministry of Health. Somaliland is safe, and most of the people are quite nice. I met one woman at the outpatient clinic who thought I was Ethiopian (for some reason most people assume I’m Ethiopian). When she learned I was from Jamaica, W.I. by way of NY, she held her fist in the air and said “Obama!” I just love itJ