I am safe and sound in Gimbie. It is truly an amazing place! It is the rainy season now, so it is green all the time. My trip from Addis wasn’t as long and arduous as I thought it would be. There were many obstacles, though. The main two were live stock, such as goats, sheep, and cows, and people. Some of the roads are really bad. Ethiopia is getting international help with their roads. The worst roads were improved first, so the best roads now are from Addis going out towards Gimbie for just under two hours and the last hour and a half arriving into Gimbie. On the way, we got roasted corn and sugar cane. We arrived in Gimbie late, so we got a tour the next day. There are so many projects going on. I can tell that the vision for Gimbie Adventist Hospital isn’t just maintaining what they have, but also making it better and adding new areas and projects that fulfill different needs of the community. For example, the growth of goiters can be increased by a lack of iodine in the diet. Trudy wants to start up a health education project including presentations on cleanliness and tips for preventing different conditions such as cancer and goiters. Another area being improved is the Volunteer Dorm, where I live. We simply call it the VD. In addition to the one American style toilet and shower, two more showers along with another toilet and a hot water tank are being installed. I am excited about this, not only because I live in the VD, but also because it will provide a more comfortable environment for volunteers and medical students alike. There is definite progress being made, though. The water tanks that can hold about 3 days worth of water, gravity fed are an improvement from having to carry water from place to place when the power goes out. At the current time, the power goes out about every other day. The generator only supplies power to the hospital. One task that I have already started doing is triage work in the Outpatient Department. It is good experience to start with. The language barrier makes taking vitals slightly more difficult, but people in this culture are very patient and polite.
The town of Gimbie itself doesn’t have the extremes Addis did. In Addis, you would see buildings that were made of nothing more than a few pieces of plywood next to a five story building that had really nice clothes, even by American standards. In Gimbie, there are a lot of small shops and the difference between the fancy and not so fancy isn’t so wide. Gimbie has a lot less beggars, but a lot more children saying “you, you, you” and “farenji (foreigner)”. I went into town to get shampoo. It was 25 birr, about 2 dollars. I also got some soap and some soda for 2 dollars. My shampoo smells just like my orange soda I got.
The people that work at the hospital are really nice, too. The second full day that I was here I got sick. I think it was something I ate because I started to get sick right after lunch and within five hours I threw up. I was thirsty, but I was afraid to even drink my purified water. I went over to the head nurse’s house, Ansley. She gave me some tea, rehydration (sugar, salt water) formula, and reassured me that I would be fine and that it was safe to drink my water. She said that if I got sick in the middle of the night, I could go to her house or send someone to get her. I got better after that and haven’t been sick since.
Overall, I am excited about being here. I will keep you updated about how I am doing, projects that are going on, and projects you can help with. Thank you for reading my blog!