This should have been put on a blog AGES ago, it is my report from my time at IHK in Uganda last year.
'I have just spent four weeks working at International Hospital Kampala (IHK), which is situated in Kisugu, just outside of the city centre of Kampala, the capital of Uganda. In one sentence, I have loved this placement and experience. In more than one sentence, these are the reasons why…
On first impressions the hospital is beautiful. It is a lovely building, within lovely grounds. Many of the walls have beautiful paintings on. You walk in and know it isn’t England, yet you don’t quite know it is Africa either.
It’s small in comparison to hospitals in England but then maybe it’s because this is a private hospital and medical/health care is considerably more expensive than at other medical/health centres. 
The professional team works differently. The wards never seem to be short of nurses, which is a very rare occurrence within England. The team of doctors is considerably smaller though.
There are many variances but I’m unsure of the reason for these. I don’t know if they are due to this being Uganda and me comparing it to England, or this being a general hospital and me comparing it to my usual paediatric setting.
One reason I love Uganda is because there are no restrictions on your faith. Within the hospital it is no surprise to hear Christian music, praying, people talking of their God and to see bibles being read. One nurse told me that she often sees mums praying for their premature babies and she confidently does the same. Faith, wherever it may stem from, is openly expressed and even encouraged here – a part of holistic care that is often forgotten by many in England.
To find a fast paced Ugandan is not the norm – being inside and outside of work has shown me this. Their jobs are done in a more relaxed manner. What is the point of rushing to get somewhere when you can enjoy the journey? Why rush the job when there is company to be enjoyed? In England this attitude may be perceived as lazy but it is far from that. This is their culture, their way of life - culture is ‘the lens through which we see the world (Helmany 2000)...there is no restriction to what that lens may look like. Our culture is paramount to who we are and it differs from person to person. We have to remember this when dealing not only with our patients but our colleagues as well.
My experiences varied, dealing with a variety of patients with a variety of conditions, dealing with both English and non-English speaking patients, of all ages and even all nationalities. I experienced my first delivery and it was a beautiful thing – something more cherishable than people realise. I saw my first theatre procedures, some of which ran considerably smoothly and some that didn’t. I dealt with patients who were at times critical and patients who were extremely well. Within the short 4 weeks I experienced more than I have experienced in the past two years of my training in England.
Nurses seem to have more responsibility here than in England. Maybe this has something to do with the smaller team of doctors but either way it has effective benefits. There is no waiting around for a doctor to fit a cannula or take blood, which is often the case on the childrens wards I’ve worked on, because that is their role – part of the nurses immediate care for their patient. And what nurses do students can do. It feels like students actually become nurses in their training here. Students (and even nurses) are not restricted, so they are free to nurse and therefore are free to become nurses.
My experience was worthwhile and I loved it. It was not my first time in Uganda so I wouldn’t say culture shock really affected me, but whenever I go new things are shown to me about their country and their way of life. Uganda is a beautiful country and the people are also beautiful. I would say to everyone that they should experience Africa at some point in their life, through some sort of student placement or voluntary work – it shows you something different about life and affects you for the good. It helps you to rebalance your priorities and see what the important things in life actually are.
Nicola Godward, Student Childrens Nurse
19th May – 15th June 2008
International Hospital Kampala, Uganda, East Africa
Negotiated Nursing Placement'
That's it, hope you liked it and I hope you enjoyed the music I chose to put with it, I wanted something Ugandan but the music I really love I don't know what they are singing so thought I better not include that on here just in case :) and the video wasn't the most appropriate either.
Enjoy...a glimpse of my future. x
