I will be traveling with the organization: Projects of Hope to Lari, Kenya to Kanyekini Primary School to provide medical care to children in the region. I will be partnering with an emergency medicine physician and licensed pharmacist to perform complete history and physical exams on patients and treat necessary ailments. In the past 11 years, 530-748 patients were treated during the 1 trip each year. The patients that were seen doing these visits do not have primary care doctors. Their only means of medical treatment is through a county medical center that is not within traveling distance for many. Thus, any medical care our team can provide is incredibly vital.
Our team will be partnering with Kanyekini Primary School and providing health assessments to students and children in the surrounding community. The Projects of Hope organization has been providing assistance to this region of Kenya and 2 others for the past 11 years and has seen significant progress in their efforts. They have repaired an existing water tank, providing clean water for the school and the surrounding community, built libraries and dairy farms, provided health supplies, taught health hygiene classes, and ran medical clinics treating lacerations, broken ribs, compound fractures, foreign matter exposure to the body, severe allergies, ringworms, scabies, conjunctivitis, and severe retina damage. To provide sustainability, the organization will be returning to Kanyekini Primary School this year.
In the regions surrounding this school, between one quarter and one half of the population make less than $1 US each day. Weak infrastructure in the country has resulted in scarce employment. Additionally, education fees are not affordable for poor families perpetuating a lack of economic advance in future generations. Every moment spent aiding this community can help alter this trajectory.
As a physician in the United States, I treat patient from all over the world. In one of the community hospitals in Greensboro, NC where I work there is a large refugee population from various regions of Africa. My work in Kenya will not only improve my understanding of culture and how that impacts patient care but inform my decision making to support their health.
We started our trip in Kenya by visiting the two schools Projects of Hope reconstructed in previous years. Seeing the dairy farms, soccer fields, playground and shambas (gardens) the team built was inspiring. However, what stood out the most was the joy on the children’s faces of recognizing familiar team members who had served in the past. They played and ran on the grassy fields, so carefree, beaming with excitement. Being with them gave hope for the transformation and service to take place at Kanyekini Primary School.
Day 1, we hit the ground running. Serving as the triage doctor from the start, I saw 50+ students that came to the clinic that day. With the help of an interpreter, we deciphered their chief complaints, and directed them to the appropriate medical care team. Our pharmacist was able to give medication to students dealing with allergies, ear infections, rashes, insect bites and provided required antiparasitic therapy to protect against organisms endemic to the community. By Day 2, we physically evaluated and treated all 120+ students at Kanyekini Primary school and we were able to open our clinic to the local community for the remainder of the week.
Our team also partnered with health providers working at a local hospital in Lari, Kenya. The hospital included a pediatric outpatient clinic where we were able to refer any primary school students or children in the community who needed additional workup for diagnoses found by our team or further management of chronic issues. The health providers worked on site with us in our school clinic establishing vital continuity of care. With their assistance we were also able to visit and care for students at a local special needs school and ensure that they would have long-term management.
Outside of the clinic, I was able to participate in the girls’ health class that focused on the female reproductive system. Team members instructed the girls about the function of their reproductive organs and reviewed the menstrual cycle. They showed them how to use hygiene products and the girls created black, green, and red beaded bracelets and necklaces to track the days of their cycle. The boys’ health class focused on their personal hygiene. Team members discussed bathing habits and the importance of dental care. At the end of our trip, we gave every student a gift bag with toiletries and other needed essentials such as socks and underwear.
Projects of Hope will be returning to Kanyekini Primary School for the next two years to continue building efforts and providing care to the community. I am deeply grateful to the Doximity Foundation for helping to sponsor the organization’s medical mission efforts.
Learn more about our trip here:
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