The Clinic

Other hospitals in the area are on strike. An already stretched clinic here is now bursting at the seams. Yesterday we were registering over 60 women for the ante-natal clinic. This is no computer-run system either. Each woman must have a health card, detailing weight, BP, pregnancy history (‘how many time you get belle?’), health history, and all sorts of measurements and urine tests requiring private examinations. Records must be kept in separate books for the clinic and for the govt., so effectively each woman’s history is recorded 3 times.

The immunization clinic is even more hectic. Here’s one for an Away Day Team Challenge:

Can you and your team successfully manage the service delivery of the immunization clinic? The following points must be taken into consideration:

Task Details:
· Over 150 mothers and their babies likely to be present to receive different jabs depending on their age. Some are receiving multiple jabs.
· All babies must be weighed and recorded. There is one pair of scales.
· Over 500 needles must be unwrapped and drawn with a variety of fillings: Hep B, BCG, DPT, Measles, Yellow Fever, and Meningitis.
· Vaccinations should be kept cool.
· All mothers must register and should be carrying a health card for their baby. This then needs to be recorded into the book.
· They should also have a number, and should present their baby in turn.
· Payment must be made separately for each vaccination.

Other factors for consideration:
· There is only one table to work from.
· Many mothers are not sure what injection their baby should be having.
· People, bored of waiting, sit outside and chat. They miss their number being called, and try and push in later.
· African time.
· The temperature is somewhere around 34Celcius, and NEPA has taken the light (ie; Fans don’t work).
· 150 babies and small children cry A LOT when having needles puncturing them in many places.
· No-one has had anything to eat or drink since 6am.

You have six hours to complete the task, from scratch.
You may begin.

Alternative health-care for PLWHA

PWLHA = People living with HIV & AIDS

Another trip to the cool climates of Jos, this time for a ‘Capacitar - Living in Wellness’ workshop. It was very interesting; concentrating our minds on the energies present in our bodies, and channeling those energies to promote physical and mental healing. Techniques varied from breathing awareness, tai chi, acupressure, songs, and particular holds that target different types of physical/emotional pain. What was great about this workshop is that these skills and techniques can easily be passed on; it costs nothing and individuals can practice themselves.

It will be interesting again to see what the response is when I step down the training to some of the staff here in the clinic. People attending the workshop were all working in the field of HIV, some infected some affected, so the motivation to learn and carry out the techniques was high. I wonder what the reception will be in the wider care community.

Do Ants Sleep?

There is a steady stream of ants scurrying across the wall in my kitchen, from the window to a hole by the sink. They are traveling in the morning when I eat my breakfast, in the afternoon when I return from work, in the evening when I eat my dinner, and during the night when I need to collect more water. Do ants ever sleep? Shift sleeping I suppose, but I can’t find their house. Interesting.

They don’t swim that’s for sure. For some reason, a few of these pesky ants deviate from their creepy-crawlie motorway and head Kettle-bound. Why? I’ve no idea. Maybe they are thirsty and are health conscious enough to only drink boiled water? I’d say though that risk of drowning in boiling water far outweighs any health benefits. Maybe those ants have sinned and it’s their anty version of bubbling hell. Maybe I need to stop thinking about ants.

Star Lager

Contains formaldehyde
Strength: 5%...... well, could be 12, or 3. Depends on your luck.

Another Journey Up North

This time to Birnin-Kebbi, in Kebbi State, 9 hours drive away from Abuja. Thankfully, this was in a nice air-conditioned pick-up, so I was saved from the hot blast of dust up the nostrils while sitting on one bum-cheek with 10 people in a car made for 7. A quality hotel unfortunately it was not - dirty sheets and towels, dirty floors and nothing really to speak of in the kitchen to eat. The boasted ‘conference centre’ was a large hall with totally insufficient a/c, toilets from hell and wildly swinging ceiling fans. Despite the ever present risk of decapitation people were able to concentrate and the HIV programme review we were there for seemed to be a success.

The north is quite different from down here in Abuja. It seems more north African than West African, perhaps the influence of the Sahara creeping ever south. One thing I’ve noticed here is the many different tribes that make up Nigeria. Some are as different from each other as I am from them, and it seems to be a popular topic of conversation to discuss what weird things another tribe does, or is famous for.

With some other VSO staff and volunteers, we went to a place called Momi Market. It’s basically a military barracks outside of the town along rough sandy tracks. As it is military land, it is free from the Sharia Law that holds over Bernin-Kebbi, meaning alcohol can be served. We found a shack we liked the look of and sat down on plastic chairs in the sand under a tree. A red lampshade hung from the tree over a table-tennis table, and a furious game was being played. With bets at stake tempers simmer. Music blaring out from somewhere, as men on motors rev, and others wander round selling cigarettes. Girls are there too, earning their few naira the simplest way they can - selling themselves. I was pleased top see a group of young people in matching t-shirts wandering round with small boxes, thinking that they were peer-educators with condoms. Until I realised they were promoting cigarettes. I think tobacco companies are really struggling here; smoking, because of the strength of religion, is considered a really shameful thing to do.

Frogs2: An Update

Wo ha ha ha haaaa. Harmattan and the carpenter are my new allies in the amphibian battle. Dry dusty air and wooden door blockers are the weapons of choice, holding siege over the frogs wherever their murky pond may be. The journey to my room (aka Toad Twilight Resort) is now perilously dry, and even the most ambitious of amphibians will find no entry upon arrival at the doorstep.

I am slightly concerned that one of the initial invaders has died underneath my wardrobe.

Aso Rock

Aso Rock is a huge great mound of rock that sits stately at the head of Abuja. A half hour rally-car drive along what is essentially an overgrown, semi-eroded footpath, led us to the beginning of the walk. No Pay-and-Display here! Another half hour of walking through the bush and we came to a small village. People sitting in the shade chopping and preparing garden egg, dogs barking at our oyibo (white person) heels. We greeted the villagers before heading up up up onto the rock. It was very very steep!! Alex asserted that it wasn’t even 45degrees. Dave and I agreed that it was then probably around 44.5…. ish.

The views from the top were wonderful, despite the murky haze of dust and pollution that has settled over the capital. Alex pointed out the landmarks, we could clearly see the central mosque and church - built opposite each other, these buildings are easily the most attractive in Abuja, and we worked out the various districts that comprise the city. Below us was the president’s house, parliament, lots of military barracks and the zoo. The Zoo requires it’s own story…..

The Zoo (Animal Lovers - Read at Own Risk)

Animal Protection People noticed that rich people in the city were keeping large animals in their gardens. In one heist/ emancipatory effort they saved quite a number of buffalo, and succeeded in loading them on to a truck. Ahah. Where were the keys? A Key Hunt was mounted, and a few hours passed. The driver? Another hunt. A little into the journey, the vehicle suffered a puncture. Another few hours. By the time they got to the Zoo a couple of the buffalo had perished inside the lorry. The others, understandably were getting a bit agitated. When the doors were opened they bolted for freedom, some breaking their legs on the jump down. Was the enclosure ready? No no no. Those still with four working legs continued their dash, straight into something like a cattle grid, only by the sounds of it a little deeper. One survived.

Residential Workshop Menu

08.30 Breakfast
Fried plantain or chips, 3 egg omlette, stew, tea.

10.30 Elevenses
Tea, apple, piece of solid chicken, meat pie.

12.30 Lunch
Piece of solid chicken, liver stew, rice, beans, slice of pawpaw.

15.00 Afternoon Break
Tea, piece of solid chicken, doughnut.

18.30 Supper
Piece of solid chicken, Egusi soup (made from melonseed, catfish, and pumpkin leaves), semovita (like South African pap, made from maize and shaped into a fat disk).

Frogs & Mothballs

It's hot and dusty as the harmattan season takes it's grip. It's not rained for 3 weeks now, but that doesn't seem to have affected the frogs. Yet. They'll dry up soon enough. Hopefully not under my cupboard, where they like to hide after a short duel with me on my doorstep. Damn hoppity things.

There's a bunch of us here in Abuja at the moment, for HIV Policy training. We're staying in what seems to be a typical hotel here - friendly staff, neglegted old buildings, with rattling a/c, snowy tv and bucket showers. My room hum-dings of mothballs, I discovered one under the sink, but there must be more.

More to come when I remember....

How can I tell my wife?

“I have come for HIV test and I’m waiting for result. I’ve been having some illness and the doctor is unsure what it is so he advised the test. I am a married man with 2 small children. I know AIDS kills people, and I know that it can be transmitted through sex. My society holds a lot of stigma about HIV & AIDS. My wife is a strong, educated lady, but she won’t speak of HIV. People who have HIV lose respect, and their family and friends can desert them. They will lose their job. Nobody knows I am having the test. My mind is having torment while I think of what might happen. I will see the doctor and get my result tomorrow and I will hold my secret until then. But if I am positive…. how can I tell my wife?”

Bush Taxis

A journey from Jos to Abuja. Half way through the engine starts belching out smoke. Drive continues until nearest town, where the Driver assures us he will fix the problem. We coast along in neutral, down through the town, way past the filling station and motor park. Driver remembers the smoke, so we stop. A quick look inside the bonnet confirms that indeed oil is leaking all over the place. The driver hops on a machine back to the motor park to find another car.

We sit under a tree.

Original Driver returns with New Driver (no.1) and car. Drivers argue. New Driver drives off without us. Original Driver hops on another machine back to the motor park.

We eat guava.

Time passes.

New Car arrives. Yes this is the car. We load up. New Driver (no.2) hops on machine to motor park to find Original Driver.

More time passes.

Original Driver, New Driver and Newer Driver return in another car. This is the car. We get in and sit while Drivers and Random-Passer-By argue. Other passengers join in. We sweat, but finally we are off.

We grind to a halt just outside Abuja.

Passengers argue, we get on bus.