Malaria Again. My latest blog
I am writing in my bed, four days after contracting malaria a second time in less than two weeks! Who would have thought that possible? Tuesday after lunch, as I rose from my chair, I suddenly felt giddy, tired and had the aches and pains similar to my symptoms a few weeks back but more acute.
At the Coptic Hospital, saw the same doctor, had the blood smear and was on a vitamin B drip within an hour in a room lying down which is all I wanted to do. The doctor came to confirm the diagnosis but this time the blood smear indicated a more severe case of falciparum malaria. Symptoms include fever, chills, sweats. headaches, nausea and vomiting, body aches, general malaise. I had everything apart from the nuasea and vomiting. I was started on a 24 hour course of three injections for malaria and then moved to an annex where the doctor resides.
The next twenty four hours was essentially spent asleep apart from when the nurse came to medicate me and inject me at 6am. I was discharged next evening with a cocktail of medications including a follow up dose of anti-malarials for three day (4 tablets twice a day). Since then my hosts have been forcing me to eat (as much as I don’t feel like it) and the aches and pains have essentially gone but lethargy and breathlessness is still a problem. I was given antibiotics for a possible URTI given my oxygen was at 90% on discharge.
Up till then I had been flat out. The previous week I spent three days at Bunda about an hour south. The trip down on Tuesday saw us having to replace a puncture. which was an experience in itself. Half a dozen guys helped the drived get the jack underneath a thirty years Landcruiser and replace the tyre.
On Tuesday I met with school leaders conducting a workshop on Inclusive Education as there amy be an opportunity to establish a unit to support schools in the region cater for kids with disabilities. It went surprisingly well and I learned a lot about the Tanzanian education system in my preparations.
Wednesday and Thursday was spent at Bunda Bible College helping them prepare their budget for 2023. A bigger task than anticipated as changes to how students are supported and different types of scholarships needed sorting. In addition, the new secretary there was tasked with trying to help the principal move from student lists as word documents and using spreadsheets to make it simpler to update records. She also saw the magic of Google Drive as I showed her how she and the principal can share files easily. Thursday was interrupted for two hours with the handowever at Shalom School of the new classroom block and the electricity substation generously provided by a donor. Very formal and time taken due to local protocols involved, followed by lunch.
Friday was the final workshop for senior staff on strategic planning. Essentially the ideas raised at the three previous workshops were distilled into a number of themes. A final workshop with the executive and then a draft plan that can be approved at year’s end Diocesan Council.
My weekend was in Rorya Diocese where I was the guest speaker at an ordination service for 16 men and women being consecrated as deacons, priests and lay readers. I was being installed with an 80 year old woman as a lay canon of their cathedral (St Peter’s Rorya). I bought another goat and donated it t the old lady.
I arrived Saturday and was taken to the site of a new school being built about ninety minutes across dirt roads to Nyang’ombe. The location is beautiful sited on the banks of Lake Victoria and could easily be a development for a resort if not so isolated and if you could swim in Lake Victoria. I was impressed that with US$50,000 the church had completed four classrooms, a teacher’s house, toilet block and water pump. They hope to open in January 2023 but have a long way to go.
After church Sunday I visited a school where the church does a feeding program. I have posted a photo of the ebst classroom. 125 kids per class and one teacher. Sadly not uncommon across Africa in government schools. That explains the proliferation of private education as a business here.
I spent Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning with the director of the local compassion program who was seeking my advice on graduates from vocational college and his submission to the national office to start a hairdressing salonand mechanic workshop with nine graduates working collaboratively to establish businesses that could eventually train others. An then malaria hit.
So that’s been my fortnight with enforced bed rest since Tuesday and hopefully back to work Monday after seeing the doctor for a review.
