At the Hospital

I've made it to Shirati safely. what a journy. My plane out of Dar es Salaam, ended up leaving early so I had to shop to replace my clothing in about 30 minutes and get to the airport. Musoma airport is a tiny landing strip with a one room terminal for arriavals. It was definitely a small town airport.

The drive to Shirati was easy on mostly paved roads except for the last 40 kilometers. I'm staying in a house about 1/2 km behind the hospital. They have found a cook for me, so she makes my meals. Otherwise, I try to spend as much time in the hospital as possible to see and learn as much as I can.

The culture in the hospital is very slow here. Nothing is too urgent. Nothing happens fast. People work from 9am to 2:30 pm so it is not nearly as intense as I am used to in residency. I was in the operating room on Tuesday and saw a good number of cases and have been rounding on the pediatrics service since yesterday.

Tomorrow I'm going to visit with the HIV testing folks and see what they do. I haven't made it to labor and delivery yet, but it seems like most of the deliveries are handled by the nurses, unless there is a c-section.

The town of shirati is small, quiet and along the lake, so Malaria is a big problem. Electricity is come and go, but my cell phone works great. Actually, I have never seen such a thriving cell phone system, I think AT&T could learn a thing or two.

My love to everyone, I'll try to keep in touch and post something every few days.