September
the 12th.
Jambo!
Habari gani?
Talking
about the community health, we found out that, after 2006 Kenya, to
avoid preventable deaths due to lack of knowledge or health
education, introduced a new strategy by creating groups of community
health workers. These people aren't exactly educated other than
2 weeks courses in first aid and minor information about infection,
fever
and child nutrition. On the other hand their work has a big positive
impact on the community's health on minimising the rate of
preventable deaths. They are volunteers and it is amazing the
engagement these
people put in their work. And the reason is that they want to help
their community and indirectly helping them self and their families.
In
Daraja there is a group of 20 community workers and they have to
visit an average of about 10 families in a week, which live miles
apart. These people have families and jobs on their own
to take care of but they still manage to find the time to help others
and I find that inspirational.
We
were so lucky to follow such a worker on his rounds to 2-3 families.
They walk around with a register where they mark what they do, like:
mothers with newborns counselled
on exclusive breast feeding, children under 1 year referred
to immunization, children
under 5 referred
for growth monitoring, cases of fever identified and managed, cases
of diarrhea
managed, elderly people referred for health check-ups, Tuberculosis
defaulters traced and referred, households
visited for health education and so on.
Looking
at this from a Danish
perspective,
we could have a huge debate on pros and cons of this health care
strategy but I refuse to go there. The idea is that it works for the
rural Kenya and it is amazing what a 2 week trainings course
in basic hygiene,
nutrition and health issues can do for an entire community.
 |
| Visiting a local family |
In
the evening, we arranged a game drive just half an hour outside
Daraja. There were no lions to be seen that day, but we've definitely
seen giraffes,
antelopes,
zebras, elephants,
baboons and giselles.
It was an amazing ride and the views were breathtaking. I don't
believe
that there is something more relaxing than
watching
the silhouettes of an elephant
family in the twilight of the dawn. You feel small and insignificant
in this enormous and calm scenery,
but at the same time I've never lived a more tranquil and relaxing
moment, boarding
on utopic happiness.
 |
| Find the elephant... |
 |
| and the giraffe... |
By
the way the term "bumpy road" was invented on Kenyan
roads.
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