Sunday 6 December 2009

Bad times, but the truth of what happens in developing countries such as Ghana!

Feces on in the cot in the clinic...





Pics from my phone. What the drip was hanging from...


After my 3rd week in Ghana, i caught Malaria, yep bad times, bad times. before you say anything, yes i had vaccinations, yes i was taking my tablets, yes i sprayed mosquito repellent on myself, yes i slept with a net on and yes i did cover up, but those damn mosquito's still found a way to feast on my blood!

Earlier in my blog i mentioned we had a intensive talk on malaria, how it affects so many individuals and how you can die from it, it is SERIOUS!!! I didn't think i would get it but the doctors in Ghana know what they are doing as it is such a common thing!

The symptoms vary from people to people, you can get diarrhea headaches or have vomiting. I was very lucky, i thought i drunk to much fizzy drink as my stomach was really bloated lol...nope it was malaria.

I was ill for about a week, it was horrible! What really made me upset was the fact that as a Brit, i was seen first, in a way i didn't mind cause i was feeling awful, but at the same time it is unjust if there were other people before me.

Whilst lying down on the hospital bed all i could think about was my family, and how lucky i am and how i really love the NHS right now!

I am telling you we are extremely lucky, it is all relative but nevertheless we are lucky! I couldn't hold my emotions anymore, i was sobbing my eyes out. I was lying down on a stained bed, feces in the cot beside me and a chicken was running around yep you heard right! It doesn't seem right huh?

But i wasn't crying for me cause i know i would be ok, i was crying for the people in the community and i was told by my supervisor Knox, this is the best clinic in the village! Its just not right! How can people live like this, they are human beings...

After a week i was fine, but i sure respected my health after that! Quite a few of us in the group fell ill which was expected, we are Westerners, never lived away from Europe for such a lengthy time, it was to be expected. But my group was amazing, we helped eachother out, looked out for one another and we had good support from our supervisors! :-)


Moi on a drip...

Bad times people, bad times!

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