Why we are there? AMPATH
In December of 2011 Michael and I signed a contract with
IU/Kenya, which is a medical school partnership, to oversee the building of a
new chronic care facility in Eldoret, Kenya.
The public hospital
in Eldoret, the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital, has been home to the
IU/Kenya partnership and the larger consortium of North American Medical
Schools called AMPATH for about 30 years. In the midst of the AIDS crisis, back
in the early 2000’s IU/Kenya AMPATH
shifted its focus to HIV testing and prevention and support of HIV positive
patients. They built about 60 clinics out in the countryside of western Kenya,
and their efforts there have made great strides in the prevention and treatment
of AIDS in that part of the world. In fact, AMPATH has now moved into a new phase where they are
dealing with a lot of other medical issues, some of which are the results of
AIDS. There is a growing cancer rate in Kenya, and heart disease and diabetes
are bigger issues than before. A Hoosier donor, someone who has some passion
for the medical work being done in Kenya, donated a lot of money and wanted to
get this medical facility built. It will not only be just the second cancer
care center in Kenya, it will be the only one in western Kenya and it will
serve people from all over the west, plus Uganda, Tanzania, Ethiopia and Sudan.
It’s a complex project because of the many doctors who have collaborated on it,
including IU’s Dr. Bob Einterz and Dr.
Loehrer from Simon Cancer Center in Indianapolis. It is also complex because of
the space needed for both care and research and the high end equipment which
will need to be installed. There are no chemotherapy or radiology facilities in
this part of the world. So, in a lot of ways, it is a whole new ball game.
We got involved with AMPATH many years ago when we were
engaged in a local group here called AIDS ACTION. AIDS ACTION held events each
year with the goal of educating the public about the realities of the global
AIDS crisis and also to raise some funds for various organizations who were on
the forefront of the battle. AMPATH is one of those groups so one year we
donated money to them, Dr. Einterz came here to the UU Congregation to speak,
and our relationship with them was forever solidified. Several years later
Michael was asked to come to Eldoret to consult on the construction of a new
facility, the Mother and Babies hospital, funded by donors at Riley,
which is now a mainstay of the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital, and
prevents thousands of deaths by providing prenatal care and healthy
deliveries for women and post natal
treatment for babies in western Kenya.
With this new contract, Michael started going over to Eldoret
once a month for the first 8 months, as well as organizing the building project from here. He is not the
General Contractor, but rather, represents IU in getting the building right and
also making sure that they get their money’s worth. He is also, as a green
builder, very focused on the energy efficiency of the building and saving the
hospital money in the long term. As a public hospital, you can imagine that
their funding is not great or stable.
He made several trips that spring, and met with architects,
builders, doctors, and solar providers while getting the project underway
before they actually broke ground.
As a family we decided it would be both interesting and
challenging to go live in Kenya for a couple of years. It has been both, no
question, but there is so much more to it, that one cannot even imagine from
afar, that we have experienced and that
we have learned. I am going to try to describe some of what we do but mostly
focus on AMPATH and the project so that as Hoosiers, you can learn about it and
also tell people about it because it is something all Hoosiers should be proud
of.
As I say, as a green builder, Michael has focused a lot of
his energy on the sustainability of the building, both energy wise and
equipment wise. Strangely, to us, solar power is not used as often as it might
be in East Africa. Mostly this has to do with the fact that people hesitate to
invest money in solar energy because of the costs, earlier, but now maybe due
to instability in the region. Michael has lived in Africa before, and he feels
strongly that there has to be some risk taken in order to move things along.
Not unlike how the folks who started and continue to push the AMPATh
organization operate.
The new building, which I will show you some pictures of
soon, will have a lot of features thanks to Michael Greven, which it probably
wouldn’t have otherwise. Not only is there not a lot of creative thinking
around buildings in Kenya, there is also not a lot of knowledge about what can
be done differently. Also, of course, money is always an issue. Fortunately for
us, the woman who donated the majority of the money for this new building also
has an interest in energy efficiency and environmental sustainability, so she
was very pleased to have someone managing the construction, who is also focused
on those aspects.
Some of the
sustainability features which Michael has insisted on, and really made a focus
for the hospital, engineers, and architects are:
v Solar photovoltaic generating 405.8
kw saving 14,355,000 ksh yearly
v Solar hot water for lavatories
v 350,000 litres of captured rainwater
for irrigation and flushing of toilets
v High efficiency toilets and faucets
v High efficiency lighting controls
v Low to zero volatile organic
compounds in paints
v Focus on natural ventilation and
lighting
v Minimum usage of timber and no use of
endangered timber
v Tinted glass to reduce heat gain
v Selection of finishes based on
durability and sustainable maintenance
v Locally sourced materials to the
greatest extent possible and a focus on products “Made in Kenya”
There are some pamphlets available in
the Fellowship Hall for those who would like to read more about the
construction project. I am going to show some photographs now of the project so
you can get an idea of the construction work itself, the size of the project,
and how it has progressed over the last year and a half.
SHOW PHOTOS HERE
As we adjusted to our new lives, it
became clear that there could be a million opportunities to get involved in one
way or another, yet we were uncertain for awhile of how to engage. Michael had
his work of course, but the pace of work is not as intense as it is here, so he
has more free time than he has ever had I think, since we’ve been married. That
has been nice for us, in a lot of ways, as we have time to be together, visit
on things that have happened, debrief about activities and things that are
befuddling to us, and support each other more. We decided, early on, that there
was only so much we could do, as visitors, and a lot that we didn’t understand,
so our motto became,
“Be Kind, Don’t Judge, Don’t Assume, and Be Generous.” This has basically served us well and has enabled us to focus in on things that are important to us but also helpful to our surrounding community.
“Be Kind, Don’t Judge, Don’t Assume, and Be Generous.” This has basically served us well and has enabled us to focus in on things that are important to us but also helpful to our surrounding community.
One of the mysteries that we faced
upon our arrival in Eldoret was how life would be for Liam and me. Liam’s story
is quite interesting because he did go to school there for a term, but he also ended
up hanging out with a lot of interesting young medical students, residents,
etc, who came through to do their rotations and studies. However, as you know,
he did end up finishing his HS diploma online through the Indiana Virtual
Schools and then felt like he really was ready to come home and be on our
property here and make some money so he can “move on.” So that is what he is
doing. I will go back in early September to join Michael for the final 10
months of our contract, so our life will be quite different without Liam there.
The most difficult aspect of moving
away from here for me has been not having work of my own. I have had to create
and recreate, over and over again, work for myself. I have to say it has really helped
me understand better what I like to do, what I can stand doing, and what is
important to me. Kenya is a place that has an enormous amount of challenges,
many of which you know about, just because it is a developing country in
Africa. I had been in Africa as a young person, but in a very different area
and country. A lot of time has passed since then, and Kenya has been through a
lot in the last 30 years including the AIDS crisis, which I consider to be sort
of the fundamental reason for other ongoing issues they have. As I mentioned
before, AMPATH has been instrumental in minimizing the rate of AIDS in western
Kenya and increasing treatment and care. It’s such an inspirational
organization and filled with really amazing people. I have benefitted a lot
from meeting many of them. I had not thought about exactly what I would do but
I did know that I like to DO. Michael and I are alike that way, which is good.
Not being a medical person, and not having a lot of background in any of the
work being done at the hospital, it became clear over time that my focus would
need to be on children. I have always been interested in the well- being of
kids and had thought that might be where I landed, I just wasn’t sure how.
Fortunately there are some
organizations already set up in Eldoret, associated with the hospital and
AMPATH in which I have been able to pour some energy and time. Sally Test
Pediatric Center is one of the most important things happening in Eldoret, in
my opinion, and I have great respect for the people who are involved there. One
of the early doctors to come to Eldoret with IU/Kenya is Dr. Joe Mamlin. Joe is
an incredibly smart and committed doctor and he and his wife Sarah Ellen have
now lived there consistently for 13 years. They do an amazing amount of work
revolving around the hospital, the students who go to the US and Canada, and
the clinics. SarahEllen has been heaven-sent for me because she also is all
about children’s health and welfare and knows everyone and everything. The
hardest thing for me, coming in as a new person, and not being a medical
person, was finding my niche. The Sally Test Pediatric Center made this
somewhat easy because there are children there all the time who need attention,
care, and love.
I say it was easy, but it was most definitely
NOT Easy to start volunteering there. AS I mentioned, since I’m not a medical
person, I did not used to be all that comfortable in hospital settings. This
hospital is particularly not pleasant, between the unsanitized sensual
experiences, and the lack of privacy for patients, and just the incredible
horrifying injuries and diseases that you see children suffering from there.
Not to mention the fact that abandoned babies are left at Sally Test as well. I
started going regularly in September, soon after arriving. There were days when
I could hardly drag myself in. Once I got there, after winding my way through
the very open spaces of the hospital wards, passing lots of unpleasantness
along the way, I was ok. The babies and small children who were abandoned were
suffering from all sorts of neglect, abuse, and physical maladies. In fact, I
had never held a badly malnourished or disabled or sick baby before. Hard to
believe, but it’s true and I know now how privileged I have been. One of the
important things I learned quickly, is that with a bit of love and correct
health care and nourishment, these kids can survive and thrive. I held a lot of sick babies over the last 20 months, and although I can’t say
it was always enjoyable, it has always been worthwhile. What more could a baby or small
child need than just to be held, snuggled and smiled at by a loving adult? These
babies to me are the most important people that I can touch because their needs
are so basic. Having this place and
these kids has been a life saver and a real distinct and solid way to use my
energies and talents to their benefit. I can’t say that I always feel like going in, because sometimes
the eyes of those kids just gets to me too much, but I know that the caretakers
there are very dedicated and well trained and I am grateful for their work and
I do go in to see them and lend a hand
when I can. Our efforts around the community have expanded beyond the building
and Sally Test at this point and we are always trying to find a balance between
helping and not burning out.
The Sally Test Pædiatric Centre (STPC) has four primary goals:
1.
To prepare
hospitalized children and their caregivers for medical procedures by explaining
WHY and HOW they will take place and provide a variety of positions for comfort
and other coping techniques.
2.
To be a catalyst for a
positive change in attitude toward children, women, and families as important
participants in medical decision-making within the local and national medical
communities.
3.
To provide a safe
place for children to play, grow, and develop while they are hospitalized.
4.
To give the highest
quality care for abandoned infants, toddlers and all children, providing
stimulation and love that ensure each child reaches his or her developmental
potential while awaiting placement.
The Facts
·
Child Life Health
Workers provide intense counseling, medical play and procedural preparation for
60-100 children and families daily from among 200 children on the wards or
visiting clinics.
·
The Centre creates a
variety of activities for between 20-30 ambulatory children daily.
·
Annually between 25
and 50 abandoned children receive loving attention.
·
Five times a week the
STPC Outreach Team reaches 25-50 children and 25 parents in each of 5 rural
settings.
·
Parent classes are
presented twice weekly to approximately 25 parents by visiting medical
students, residents, faculty and MTRH staff.
Your Support Can Provide:
·
$25 - Disposable
diapers for 1 week
·
$25 - Procedural
distraction toys
·
$100 - Juice and
biscuits for Outreach Clinic kids for one quarter
·
$100 - 20 stuffed
dolls for medical play made by Imani Workshops
There is so much need in Kenya, that
when you are there long term, you have to find your path for helping people
without becoming the local ATM or drowning in sadness. Michael and I have
chosen to help several children who have no one and adults who have no means,
and to support organizations, like children’s homes, which are working towards
becoming more sustainable. We are hoping to get our IRS not for profit status
any minutes so we can continue this work through the upcoming year and
thereafter. Whether it be sponsoring orphans to go to school, teaching kids and
adults about global warming, helping farmers learn to better use their property
with fewer chemicals and more production, or planting trees, building gardens,
etc, for those who are either unable to do so or need a hand, or lending a hand
at the local street children drop in center, we are happy to be able to help and we have made some headway in several
projects.
There have been several opportunities
that we have promoted where folks here at UUCCI have been supportive and we do appreciate all
the support. We are constantly amazed by the generosity of this congregation and
it just shows that where there is a will there is a way to make a difference.
Aside from all the need, living in
East Africa is both intellectually and emotionally stimulating. Yes, there is a
lot or poverty. There is also a lot being pushed forward that will one day
result in that country making its way forward as a more developed country, and
hopefully, all of its citizens will benefit. The struggles they face are not
uncommon in the developing world, or even here, for a lot of people. In fact,
greed and corruption, tribalism and old rivalries do still exist, but there are lots of good folks
working hard to break barriers and help the society in general move forward. It’s
a complex place and we feel strongly that there is a lot to learn and
understand about its history, geography, culture and development which we are
just getting a small taste of by living there these three years.
I want to touch a little bit on the
adventure side of our life there because it is not all just work and helping
people and facing the realities of this nation which is struggling to move
forward. Kenya is situated on the equator, it has a long coast on the Indian
Ocean, and Eldoret, where we live is, in the Great Rift Valley. The Great Rift
Valley is an enormous geographic phenomenon, which runs from the ME all the way
through East Africa. It’s quite stunning to see and quite a lovely place to
live. Eldoret is 8500 feet in elevation,
so it has a nice temperate climate, where all the flowers that you purchase at
your local nursery in the summertime grow wild, and there is an abundance of
all kinds of vegetables and fruit all year round. The Great Rift Valley is an
incredible offering in terms of natural beauty. The valley is actually several
“rifts’ connected together caused by heaving of tectonic plates and volcanic
eruptions thousands of years ago. The North end of the Great Rift Valley, in
Kenya, is bordered by Escarpments which are quite picturesque. We have taken
some wild and interesting trips through the valley and over the valley as well.
They are wild, mostly because you are never sure what to expect, except that
you will be surprised. Generally, the roads are not good, and often hazardous,
but nonetheless, if you put your seatbelt on and try to relax and enjoy,
despite the flat tires and bumpy roads, it is usually fun and always
interesting. Not only have we seen people living in the countryside in ways
that one never sees here, we have also seen amazingly beautiful biological
diversity, whacky birds and wild animals, and we have been warmly welcomed on
our path by people from all the 42 tribes of Kenya, living their lives as
pastoralists, farmers, teachers and children’s home directors, as well as
doctors, engineers, nurses and “mamas” selling their wares in the market, or
taking care of children who have no parents. We have been lucky to make
acquaintances with a large number and variety of Kenyans, which has helped us
learn more and better understand just how complex this country is.
We have also had several visitors,
including our adult children and some of their friends, and I guarantee you,
their visit to Kenya has been a highlight of their young lives and something
they are never going to forget. After 20 months, although we know we will never
be insiders, or natives, we do feel comfortable and at ease and like it is our
home for the time being. Since most of the what the media has to say about
Africa and there is plenty of bad news coming out of Kenya I think it’s
important for folks here to understand how much beauty there truly is, both in
the people of Kenya but in its natural environment as well. There really is so
much more to it than I can possibly express. We have a large house there and
welcome visitors, so if you are ever so inclined…..As we say in Kenya,
KARIBUNI! (Welcome)
Reading I: WHAT has been said about
AMPATH in the World of GLOBAL HEALTH.
Nominated
multiple times for the Nobel Peace Prize; featured in The Wall Street Journal,
National Public Radio, BBC and other international media.
"Of
all the HIV/AIDS programs that have received funding from The President's
Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) none has been more effective than
AMPATH. Its focus on training Kenyans to treat Kenyans is extraordinarily
enlightened in its potential for genuine sustainability."
-Randall L. Tobias, Former United States Ambassador and Founding
United States Global AIDS Coordinator
"It
takes money to lessen poverty, food to lessen hunger, medicines to lessen
deaths from AIDS, operating suites to address obstructed labor, and so
on. But it also takes passion and, above all, vision, and that is what
the leaders of this program allow to flourish and encourage in others."
-Dr. Paul Farmer, Founding Director, Partners in Health
"This
Indiana-Moi partnership is a model for how to tackle the huge challenges of
HIV/AIDS and poverty in general, and one of the most inspiring examples of
humanitarian partnership I have ever seen."
-James Morris, Former Executive Director, United Nations World
Food Programme
"AMPATH
goes far beyond providing 'just' healthcare - strengthening livelihoods and
also working with the local community to take away some of the shame and
stigma associated with HIV/AIDS."
-George McGovern, Former U.S. Senator from South Dakota
"The
people working on this program are public health heroes. They are doing
things that many people thought could never be done, and it is going to have a
huge multiplier effect."
-Dr. Tim Evans, Former Director of Health Equity for the
Rockefeller Foundation
Closing Words
Some sources say that the words below were written on the wall in Mother Teresa's own room. In any case, their association with Mother Teresa and the Missionaries of Charity has made them popular worldwide, expressing as they do, the spirit in which they lived their lives.
Some sources say that the words below were written on the wall in Mother Teresa's own room. In any case, their association with Mother Teresa and the Missionaries of Charity has made them popular worldwide, expressing as they do, the spirit in which they lived their lives.
They seem to be based on a composition originally by Kent Keith, but much of the second half has been
re-written in a more spiritual way. Both versions are shown below.
___________________________________________
1. The version found written on the wall
in Mother Teresa's home for children in Calcutta:
People are often unreasonable, irrational,
and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of
selfish, ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some
unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies. Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and sincere people may
deceive you. Be honest and sincere anyway.
What you spend years creating, others could
destroy overnight. Create anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, some may
be jealous. Be happy anyway.
The good you
do today, will often be forgotten. Do good anyway.
Give the best you have, and it will never be enough. Give your
best anyway.
In the final analysis, it is between you and your God. It was
never between you and them anyway.
