doing our best

On Sunday we visited some rocks several miles from the clinic. The rocks stand out dramatically from the flat land and short trees. We got to the rocks by driving on roads scarcely 2 feet wide, made of dirt, and lined with bushes. The rocks and caves were used by locals to hide from the rebels during the Ugandan civil war. Many of the locals had never seen white people before. As you can imagine they were quite surprised and enjoyed following us where ever we went. The views were unique, stunning, and we laughed to see monkeys clamoring among us.

At the clinic, we’ve been keeping pretty busy. We started construction over the weekend and are gearing up for the roof. We are hoping to have enough finances to finish the maternity ward before we leave. Donations welcome. If finished, David the clinic director is going to send an invitation to Ugandan President Museveni for the opening ceremony. The entire community is extremely excited about finishing the building that has been uncompleted for 3 years. Imagine the possibilities.

Malaria is eating this community away. Today we tested 5 patients before noon, and yesterday, all experienced a first when a baby girl was suffering from Malaria was brought in sadly, to late. Her parents could not afford to bring her into the clinic earlier, and were not aware of the severity of her situation. When she arrived at the clinic we rushed to do what we could but were left with few options. In this case, education could have truly saved a life.



more soon,
scott (with additions by melody)


Tuesday July 7th 2009 12:07pm Pallisa, Uganda