3 Month Update

Hey Everyone!

Life is as normal and therefore as unpredictable as usual here in Masindi. The time has really been flying by. I cannot believe we are over half way through July. When we were leaving home back in April, we knew that we would have our first 6 weeks with Michael and Amanda, as well as a team in May. That left the time between mid-June to mid-August with just us here, or so we thought. We thought that since it would be just us, the time would go by slowly and these few weeks could potentially have been tough. In keeping with our theme of never being able to predict life here, we have actually had a lot of visitors during these weeks and it has flown by. We have had 2 pharmacy students from USC College of Pharmacy for a month, our Peace Corps volunteer for a few days, and a Citadel cadet for 2 weeks throughout this time. It was our first time having guests in this house, so I now have a better idea of how to host here.

I have not had as much time in the clinic, due to a little more to do at home, but I enjoy the flexibility and the change of pace. Also, I have not been as needed in the clinic these days since we have more staff hired and the new ward is not quite up and running yet. There are plenty of very able hands around, which is great. I have been really impressed so far with the new staff. They are doing an amazing job, and they are a huge answer to my prayers. With the new wards being surgical and labor and delivery, I was really praying for some good staff, and that prayer was answered. So, really everything is working out really well with us having guests and more to do at home, and me not feeling like I am neglecting the staff.

Another thing I have been working on is making sure that I maintain my RN certification while we’re here. There are a few ways that the SC Board of Nursing will allow a nurse to maintain their license.  One way is to have your employer sign off on the hours you worked. Since I am not an actual employee of the clinic and I am not on the payroll, I cannot have anyone sign off on my working hours. Another option is taking 30 hours of approved Continuing Education or CE courses. I was very happy to find that I can take these courses online, and many are free!! Since I have a little down time from the clinic, I have begun to take some of these courses which have also been a great refresher of information.

Newman has been working almost nonstop on many things, one of which is getting everything ready for the new wards to open. This requires frequent trips to the construction site, doing research on and ordering equipment and supplies within a budget, and a working on a host of other details and tasks. It is also time for PMI’s first NGO renewal, so Newman has been working diligently to first of all, figure out how to do it, and secondly, get it done. He is definitely learning on the job. I think he enjoys the challenge and he is learning more than he realizes all the time. The hard part is knowing when to stop. By living just a few yards away from the clinic and having a home office, he has a hard time ending the work day. He is doing a fantastic job though and luckily he is a very flexible person, because there are constant interruptions. For instance this is what is happening at this very moment: Newman rode on a boda boda (motorcycle) into town with Mustafa because our vehicle is being used today, and a HUGE storm just rolled in leaving him stranded in town. What was supposed to be a quick trip to the bank, Masindi Hotel, and the internet store, will now be substantially longer. These things happen and are out of our control, and we have learned to just roll with it.

We were able to get away this weekend for a night which was really great, and much needed especially for Newman. We took the 2 pharmacy students, Brooke and Brittany, and the Citadel cadet, Franklin, with us to Para Safari Lodge in Murchison Falls. Newman and I both did not bring computers which was great, and Newman’s phone was dead part of the time, which I was happy about so that he was able to relax. We went on a game drive and a river safari on the Nile and both were amazing! They were definitely the best safaris both Newman and I had ever been on. We were given fantastic service during our meals from the chef there who we have gotten to know. Michael and Amanda had gotten to know him when they were here, so he knows about PMI and the groups that we bring there. He took really good care of us. When we returned Newman told me that he was so glad we did that and he felt very refreshed. I will leave you with a few pictures from our weekend. More are on facebook if you want to see the rest. Thanks so much for following along with our lives here and for your prayers and support. We really appreciate it!!