Four Months!!

Well we have been here four months now. Its just amazing how the time has flown by. That's one third of our time gone. Life is trundling along well, we are in a pretty fixed routine. We have made a few friends, especially Joe's football lot, which has given us a bit more of a social life. We have had a few invites to various parties and occasions. Life is fun.

I feel this month we have really been making some progress. Joe has almost completed his 3 week web design course. Many people are eager to learn advanced computer skills as it will help them find employment. The course has been pretty successfully, though stressful at times I think with the students occasionally being totally clueless. There has been a great demand for it and he will be repeating the course in a few weeks time.

I completed my house to house interviews I was doing when I wrote last month. When collating the data I saw that the local people have a real need for a health centre in the local area. If people are sick their only choice is to go to the local hospital, which ends up being pretty costly. So we have decided that HINT will open a health post. It will be small, to begin with anyway. We will offer free consultations and advice. Drugs will be at cost price and we will also offer basic health care, dressings etc. It will be nurse led (that's me) and I hope over the next few months to train staff so the health post can continue once we leave.

Most of this month has been spent making preparations. We have found a building and hope to open in the new year. I have been writing proposals, I feel like a business woman more than a nurse at the moment. So we will be applying for a grant to help fund the centre. We have also been able to donate some of the money we raised before we came here. I am very excited about the prospect of opening a health post as I know it will really benefit the local people and make a difference. Genesis wanted to name the health post after us - but we declined. So it will be the Bonduma Community Health Post (BCHP).

I am sure I will keep you up to date with my progress. I will also be continuing with HIV work. Many people I spoke to while doing the questionnaire were quite clued up about HIV in many respects, I have to be careful how I approach the subject so that people are interested and learn something new. I will use the health post as a central post to run HIV education from.