Home.

Recently, returning to Choma and piling out of the vehicle at the guesthouse has felt so much like coming home. It is a good thing. I never thought living in a room with 9 other girls would be so cozy. I love the Zambian staff here at the guesthouse and I know we will all miss them when we leave. I wish all of you could come and visit us here.

The last two days were again spent at Zimba Mission Hospital. The first day, I worked in the ART clinic for a bit, Outpatient Department ( kinda like our ER), and the Labratory. I enjoyed being in OPD. The line was so endlessly long and it felt as if we would never get to all of the patients. I worked with Dr. Dan Jones ( a missionary doctor stationed at Zimba) and helped to assess, admit, and direct patients.
The minute I walked in, he handed me the file of a twelve year old boy who was obviously in the middle of a severe Asthma exacerbation. I walked him over to the ward and ensured that he got set up with the nebulizer. I was also able to start his IV for hydrocortisone. I walked by later and he looked much more comfortable. We had many more admits that day, some that I was able to care for the next day while I was in Pediatrics.
Later, I spent time in the lab doing blood draws and many urinalysis/micrology tests.

Tuesday, I spent the day in Pediatrics playing with kids and talking with moms. Almost half of the kids were HIV+, just like many of the patients that we care for in the hospital here in Zambia. The reason is because the virus inhibits and eradicates the bodys ability to fight infection. Many things that the body could normally fight become huge problems.
I loved playing with those little babies, letting them hold onto my finger, and getting them to smile. At one point I just sat down and used a chart to fan one of the babies that was screaming becasue of the heat and flies that kept bothering her. One of my favorite kids was a litte seven year old girl, Linovia, who is just waiting for the plastic surgeon to come and do surgery on her little hand.

I was frustrated at times, very hot most of the time, wishing I had more resources, but so glad to be there and able to serve where I could. In Zambia, nursing care is not so much about doing techincal skills, although those are very important, but it is about being present.

Hope you all are well!