Dear Ones Who Care for Tanzania,
The first news is not the best news. The Elizabeth Glazer Foundation, which
we'd hoped would help us build the Safe Birthing Center, has been assigned
other areas of Tanzania in which to work. So, the funding for this desperately
needed facility will have to come from other sources.
We went to Shinyanga and Isaka to "get the lay of the land" and see what's
there, what's needed, and think about what it will cost. The roads were paved,
for awhile. Then it was bumpity bump over unimproved roads. However, the
South Africans have the contract and are building a nice new road. It may just
be a few years before it's done.
Shinyanga is about 3 hours from Mwanza. The dispensary there is well-run but
is undersized for the population it serves. The medical board has plans to
improve and expand the facility, and wants to buy the kindergarten school that
is next door and for sale. It would make excellent wards and the dispensary
would be on its way to becoming a health center. We looked at the plans which
meet government regulations, but we have some suggestions, they have some
ideas, and Denny is now busy working on a master plan.
There is not enough water at the dispensary to keep up with the needs. The
toilets don't work well and some do not work at all. There is a huge pipe
being laid from Lake Victoria to Shinyanga, but we're not sure when that will
happen. They need a bore hole and a holding tank. They also need to be able
to harvest the roof water to use for toilets, etc.
There is a government hospital at Shinyanga but only 100 beds and one M.D.
There are several AMOs (Assistant Medical Officers) but not enough to serve
the needs of all the people. The dispensary needs to become a health center.
The difference between a health center and a dispensary is the number of beds
available to serve overnight patients as well as a few other things. Being
able to do safe deliveries is the most important renovation needed but that
means creating an operating room for C-Sections. At Shinyanga the old offices
of the pastor and staff would work very well as a pre-op, surgery, and post-op
area and an addition could be put on the rear of the building for sterilization
and lab.
There is a nice AIDS counseling center and they have medications for treating
opportunistic infections but no anti-retroviral medication is available as they
do not have a CD-4 counter.
The staff was capable but overworked. The meds were carefully controlled,
the bookkeeping was adequate but would be better if computerized.
Isaka is a "If you build it, they will come" type of place. It is far, far
out in the bush on 125 acres of land owned by the church. It does not at this
point attract all that many people because they have no Maternal and Child
Health Center. They do not have an exam table with stirrups. The rooms are
there, the equipment is not.
The biggest problem at Isaka is lack of water. They need a bore hole with a
submersible pump and a water tower. There was a test bore drilled but we do
not have the results yet as to whether there is an aquifer under the land and
how far down it is.
Another problem at Isaka is that the corrugated iron roofing is on top of
flat boards and this has attracted bees to make their hives in the open space.
Then, when the dry season comes and the heat of the metal roof melts the wax
it drips into the ceiling boards and is a mess. Soon the weight will pull them
down. So, new roofs, expansion into a safe birthing center, and water.
The staff was adorable. They were "fupi" like Denny and me. Short. There
are several tribes in the area, but far and away the Sukuma outnumber the
others. They are tall and slender like the Massai.
The medications were well controlled and the bookkeeping accurate.
Everything was clean which is astounding considering how water must be
purchased and carried.
If we want to think big for these people, there is enough space for a landing
strip for airlifting emergency cases. There are air ambulance services
available in this area.
We're booking medical teams now into 2008, not that 2007 is already full.
We've got medical students coming from Germany and guests coming to help from
the U.S.
We welcome you to this place. We need all the help we can get.
Mary Ellen has made tremendous strides getting the e-learning nursing school
ready to launch. She coordinates all the regulatory things that need to be
done in Dar es Salaam for all of the projects. Denny is drawing, drawing,
drawing plans to be gone over with the medical boards involved. Sele is
working daily to get the dispensary at Isaka ready to open. Denny is shopping
for lab equipment so the dispensary will be a good one. I'm telling you about
it.....and a few other things.
Thank you and bless each of you for caring and for your help. Your devotion
is what makes this happen.
We found a place to eat a quick lunch yesterday called the Hub Hub Fast Food
Restaurant. Denny and I ordered kuku (chicken) and it was like rubber, and
Mandasi, sort of a fried bread. Sele and Magola, however, were smarter and
ordered samake (fish) and rice. Theirs was delicious (Magola gave me a bite).
There was landscaping around the patio of the outdoor eating area and there
was the most beautiful pink double hibiscus flower I'd ever seen. How few
flowers are perfect. How few things in nature are what we'd call "perfect."
People are that way, too, aren't they? We all have little flaws. God did
make us and in God's eyes we are perfect. Perfection is not common at all, but
we work towards excellence. Then, we accept the shortfall knowing we've done
our best. God forgives us our deficits, as we forgive others....
Many blessings,
Paula and Denny