I've just got back from spending two weeks in Uganda with the charity Empower A Child. Since I've got back a question I've been asked many times is "how was your trip?". I really struggle to find an appropriate word to answer this question with. On the one hand it was amazing and wonderful and full of so many moments of joy. However on the other hand I saw and experienced some things which were truly awful and heartbreaking and so in this respect wonderful doesn't seem the right word to use. As I've said to most people I've spoken to so far, no amount of words and photos can come close to giving justice to the experience I had in Uganda but I wanted to do this final blog post to try my best!

I fell in love with Uganda pretty much as soon as I arrived (which came as no real surprise to me) and every time I visit Africa I think I leave a little more of my heart there. Uganda is a such a beautiful and colourful country - bright red dusty roads, lush green trees and landscapes, bright blue skies (most of the time). Kampala is a real city of contrasts. On one side of the street there may be a reasonably western looking shop and on the other side piles of rubbish and people living in slums. Along most streets there are small shacks with people selling things like drinks and mobile phone credit. Children seem to be absolutely everywhere and it's hard to be out for more than a couple of minutes without hearing 'mzungu!' shouted at you.

I spent more time in the orphanage during my second week in Uganda. I loved being able to give my time to help with some of the everyday jobs at the orphanage such as hanging out washing, changing beds, and sorting through buckets of beans to separate the good ones from the bad ones. They may sound boring and not particularly glamorous but they are so essential to enable this place to carry on functioning, and you didn't have to spend long there to see just how overwhelmed they are. Again during my second visit there I spent some time with the children in the nursery and yet again I was overwhelmed by how desperate they were to be loved and held by you. Many of them would cry and as soon as you gave them any physical contact they would settle. It was almost as if they knew even at the age of 2 years old that they don't have their own family. Don't get me wrong, the orphanage is doing an incredible job at giving these children a safe and happy start in life but it's not quite the same as them having their own individual family. I had to hold myself back from physically picking these children up from the ground because I knew this probably wouldn't be good in the long term for that child or for any of the others. It was wonderful though to sit on the floor with them and give them a little bit of love and individual attention that they may not have had for long time, but so heartbreaking to then have to walk away.

One of the most challenging days of my trip was a day I spent during the second  week visiting the paediatric department of
Mulago Hospital in Kampala, which is a government-run hospital and the biggest hospital in Uganda. The word 'shocking' was one of the first that sprung to mind when I got back and was asked what it was like. I counted 48 cots/beds in one of
the paediatric wards all crammed into the space where about 12 beds would probably be in a paediatric ward in the UK. The beds were rusty with ripped plastic covers on them for sheets and the floor was just simple concrete. It was evident as I walked around the ward that many of the children had been brought to the hospital at quite a late stage in their illness and were really sick. I think almost every child I saw was probably sicker than most of the children I have encountered during my time working in the paediatrics in the UK. I saw one boy with severe malnutrition, definitely the worst I have ever seen in all my trips to Africa. I estimated him to be about 7 years old. He was actually 13. He literally did fit the definition of 'skin and bone'. On top of this he had severe pneumonia and epilepsy. All the time mothers were bringing in their children limp and lifeless in their arms. I don't want to try and deliberately paint a really bleak picture, I just still can't quite comprehend that this is the reality of healthcare for many people in Uganda and for some people they don't even have access to this. I left Mulago feeling incredibly guilty but also pretty powerless and I'm still thinking through the best way to try and deal with this because it feels so wrong to just put it behind me.

I spent more time in the village of Zirobwe during the second half of my trip. Much of my time in the village was spent sat on the floor either in the middle of a field or amongst the mud huts, laying out my medical equipment and waiting for children needing medical attention to arrive (which never took long). Lots of the work involved dressing dirty and infected wounds
and removing splinters and jiggers from children's feet. I lost count of how many wounds I dressed but despite the many hours I spent doing this I never got bored of it. I guess this is partly because it's so easy to see how much of the need there is for a service like this and to be able to provide it for a short time was incredible. Experiencing the thankfulness of the people there was also really amazing and it was a real privilege to spend time in their community.

The sense of community in the village is amazing and something we really seem to have lost in the UK. The people of Uganda are so incredibly strong. In spite of often challenging circumstances I rarely failed to see beautiful smiling faces and hear happy voices and laughter. Every time I've been to Africa I've been overwhelmed by how incredibly friendly and
welcoming everyone is and this was certainly no different in Uganda. I lost count of the number of people I shook hands with or hugged and how many people wanted to find out about me and my life at home. As I've mentioned before the love of the children was one of the most joyful aspects of this trip. Despite being seen by the world as 'poor' these people are far richer than us in so many ways.

I spent my last day in Uganda back at the primary school in one of the slums that I had visited near the start of my trip, New Brainstorm School. Despite having no background in teaching myself, something about this place really touched my heart. I guess it really hit home how much we take education for granted in the UK (having gone through 19 years of education myself from starting school to graduating from university, admittedly I would include myself in this). As I mentioned before these children want to learn so badly and I can't think of a better word to describe them other than amazing. They are just
so full of joy. I took out to Uganda a large pile of colouring books, packets of crayons, soaps, toothbrushes, toothpaste and a few other things and on this last visit to Brainstorm I decided to give them out to the children at the school. I can't describe the look on the faces of these children after giving these gifts. I had more cuddles on that day than I think I've ever had in a single day before. This day alone would have made the whole trip worthwhile.

As I've explained to many people this trip was harder than I anticipated and also harder than the other trips I have been on. Being the only medic was difficult and overwhelming at times and I think I felt even more than ever before that what I was doing was just a drop in the ocean. I think working as part of a short term team who arrive and leave with you and experience everything with you shelters you a little bit and whilst I had a lovely group of girls from the US to work alongside for some of the projects I guess I felt a little more exposed to everything travelling to Uganda alone. I loved being able to make a deeper connection with people but I think this made the coming home process more difficult.

I genuinely feel like I was blessed far more than the people of Uganda that I was fortunate enough to connect with during my time there. I want to give all the glory of this trip to God. The message which came to me repeatedly during my time in Uganda is that I can do nothing incredible by myself but as I follow God into sometimes overwhelming situations he can
accomplish much through me.

I think I've finally managed to wash the red dust off my feet and clothes but Uganda is still very much in my thoughts. I've
been back home for a week now and even as I've gone back to work in the NHS and my life has gone back to 'normal' I think it will remain in my thoughts for some time. This week has been emotionally very up and down and the impact that this
trip has had on me emotionally has been far greater than I anticipated. I think I was so engrossed in everything when I was in Uganda that it's only now that everything is slowly sinking in and I'm accepting now that this will take some time.

I know I will go back to Africa at some point and I look to God to point out when the right time for this is. Thank you once again to everybody who supported this trip financially, through donating things for me to take, in prayer, and in words of encouragement. Thank you to those people who have spent time with me this week talking things through and listening to me. And I apologise to all of you now who will be on the receiving end of me recalling stories from Africa for weeks to come :)

I've been in Uganda for over a week now and have been involved in a few different project since I was last on here......

I visited a primary school in one of the slum areas of Kampala. The children here were absolutely amazing. Their school is a collection of small wooden shelters with a dirt floor and a few benches inside, and about 40 children all crammed inside a classroom. But what was incredible was how proud they are of their school and how eager they are to learn. There were so many blessings spending time at the school - being able to pick up a little person and cuddle them when they fell over and hurt themselves, sitting outside in the sunshine and singing songs, seeing the look of joy on a child's face after giving them a simple gift of a balloon or bouncy ball.

I spent a couple of days at a children's rehabilitation hospital in Kampala called Katalemwa Cheshire Children's Home. This is an amazing place which provides rehabilitation and therapy services to children from all across Uganda and sometimes neighbouring countries such as Sudan and Tanzania, who have problems such as cerebral palsy or who are recovering from major limb surgery. These places are rare in much of Africa but provide such an essential service. Understandably many of the children here get acute illnesses as well, but due to the complexity of their condition they are often unable to travel to an acute hospital to get help. I was told by the staff at the centre that they are unable to afford to employ a doctor there so basically just have to do without one. I was pretty speechless when I was told this and so it was wonderful to be able to provide some acute medical help for a couple of days. I saw a little 4 year old girl with cerebral palsy who had quite severe dehydration secondary to diarrhoea. I had some oral rehydration salts with me so was able to teach the mum how to mix these up and administer them to her daughter - something so simple but so essential. Whilst I was able to give a couple of days of my time to this amazing place, restock their cupboard with calpol, and provide a bit of education, it's hard to think that much of the time they are without medical help, and I pray that they are soon able to get a full time doctor there that they so badly need.

I spent some time at an orphanage for babies and children up to 4 years of age. I helped out with many of the jobs that have to be done at the orphanage - changing the children's beds, washing, feeding the children. I went into the nursery at one point and was immediately pounced on by about 10 toddlers all wanting cuddles. These children were all so beautiful and full of love and it's heartbreaking that they don't have their own family, but what's even more heartbreaking is that many of their mothers left them outside the gates of the orphanage not because they don't love them but because they want a better quality of life for them which they know they can't afford to provide - what amazing sacrificial love.

I also went back yesterday to the village where I spent some time at the start of my time here, and set up a mini medical clinic in the middle of the village amongst the mud huts. It was amazing to be welcomed so openly into these people's community and to be able to provide a medical service which they would otherwise have to walk for hours to get or just go without altogether.

Today is a well needed day of rest before it all starts again tomorrow!! This trip is one of the most challenging things I have ever done and there have been many times when I have felt quite overwhelmed but it's a real blessing to be able to spend this time in Uganda and thank you all so much for your continued prayers and support :)

So I'm finally here in Uganda! I'm very thankful to have had a straightforward journey, making it successfully to Uganda with all 70kg of luggage! I got straight to work just 8 hours after arriving here with 3 days of outreach in a village called Zirobwe, about an hour away from where I'm staying. One of the most amazing and overwhelming things about my time here so far is experiencing the love of the Ugandan people, especially the children. It's hard to walk outside for more than 2 minutes without feeling a little hand slip into yours or feel a little person tugging at your skirt to be picked up.

I've been doing some medical clinics in the villages for the children. This is certainly a different experience to running a clinic in the UK - yesterday I sat on the grass in middle of a village dressing children's wounds while about 6 children plaited my hair and another 4 climbed into my lap, and an audience of about 50 children sat around watching in fascination. The children are so hungry for love and it feels quite overwhelming at times but it's such a blessing to be here and be able to reach out to at least some of them.

Today I had a day off so I went with a couple of other missionary girls to explore some of Kampala. We rode a bodaboda which was a scary experience but fun, though I'm not sure if I'll do it again!

Tomorrow I'm going to a primary school in one of the slum areas of Kampala to do some medical work but also to maybe try my hand at teaching - we'll see how that goes! Then I'm spending a few days at a children's rehabilitation hospital in Kampala to give a helping hand where I can.

I can't really give justice to the awesomeness of this experience in the words of this blog but I hope I can at least give some idea of what I'm getting up to. Thank you all so much for your support and prayers :)

Well tomorrow is the day I finally leave for Uganda!

I can’t thank everybody enough for the support I’ve been given over the past few weeks and months whilst I’ve been preparing to go to Uganda – financially, through prayer, and just generally giving me encouraging words and adding to the excitement! After a few hours of packing, rearranging and weighing suitcases, I've now got 3 cases ready and packed full of bandages, medicines, bubbles, bouncy balls, colouring books, crayons and much more!

I’ve tried to take some time over the last couple of days amongst all the excitement to remember why I’m really going on this trip. It’s not about me, it’s about God, and doing what He has called me to do, and that is to share His love with others.

I don’t know what the next two weeks have in store, and whilst that’s scary in a way it’s also massively exciting. I don’t think we can ever be 100% ready for these trips so as I head off tomorrow I keep this verse in mind, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me”, Philippians 4:13.

So, it’s now just 17 days until I leave for Uganda!! Saying I’m excited doesn’t quite cover it!

I’ve been absolutely overwhelmed by the generosity of people donating money to this project. So far I’ve bought 50 colouring books, 50 packets of crayons, over 300 satchets of calpol, numerous tubes of ringworm cream, rehydration salts, toothbrushes, and I still have lots of money left to buy things like antibiotics and anti-malarials when I get to Uganda so THANK YOU!! :)
 
I’ve recently received an itinerary of the 2 weeks I’m going to be spending in Uganda with a bit more detail of what I’m going to be doing – I’ll be spending a couple of days at an orphanage, visiting some primary schools, doing some medical outreach work in a village, and I’ll also be spending a few days working at a children’s rehabilitation hospital in Kampala. I’m anticipating it to be an extremely busy time and I’ve been advised to sleep as much as I can in the couple of days before I leave!

I’ve also had some more conversations with a few different people around the topic if “why are you doing this?”. I must admit there are times in the business and stressfulness of work here that I think a relaxing beach holiday sounds quite appealing but then I’m reminded of what an amazing opportunity this is – medical things aside, what an amazing opportunity to serve God and to share his love with others who otherwise might not know it. As much as I’d love to sunbathe by the beach for 2 weeks, so much more I want to use this time to try and make a difference, even if it is just to one person, and follow this calling God has given me.

I came across this amazing quote from Mother Teresa when I was reading the other day and wanted to share it on here:

“ Be kind and merciful. Let no one ever come to you without coming away better and happier. Be the living expression of God’s kindness: kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile, kindness in your warm greeting. In the slums we are the light of God’s kindness to the poor. To children, to the poor, to all who suffer and are lonely, give always a
happy smile – give them not only your care, but also your heart”. 

The last couple of weeks have been fairly busy with work and with  various Uganda preparations. I can’t believe that it’s now September and I can officially say I’m going to Uganda NEXT MONTH (just!)!!

A few weeks ago, having been told by the team at Empower A Child that skin infections and nasty wounds are a big problem for lots of the children they work with in Uganda, I wrote to a couple of companies which sell dressings, bandages and other medical supplies, and asked if they would be willing to donate anything for me to take out there. I was expecting perhaps a few bandages and a couple of boxes of plasters but was overwhelmed by an incredibly generous response, as the photo shows! The only challenge now is going to be packing and actually transporting this to Uganda, but I'm sure I'll find a way around that!

There's also been some discussions with the team in Uganda about exactly how best to plan the medical work I'll be doing to make the most of the relatively short time I have. Being asked questions such as "How do you feel about doing some dental work?" and "Do you know how to remove jiggers?" has suggested that the medical work I am going to be doing is going to be varied and probably unpredictable!

For those of you who don't know what jiggers are (I didn't before I looked it up), they're tiny parasites that look a bit like fleas. They live in dusty conditions and are generally associated with poverty-stricken populations. There are many villages in Africa that have been completely infested with them. They manage to embed themselves in people’s feet, hands and other exposed body parts and can actually be really dangerous if they’re not removed – serious infestations can cause severe inflammation leading to loss of fingers and toes, serious infections, and even death. I removed a few ticks (and various other foreign bodies.....) during my time working in A&E but jiggers are definitely something new! I never thought I would be searching YouTube for a video on "removing jiggers" but that is something I have now done!

I've also had the opportunity to have a feature written about my trip in a couple of local newspapers which has been very exciting and I’m very thankful to have had the opportunity to raise awareness of this project.

Finally, I’ve recently set up a fundraising page. I don’t feel hugely comfortable asking people for money and certainly all costs involved relating to flights, accommodation and food etc. will be funded directly by me. However, if I do manage to raise any additional money then 100% of these donations will be used to pay for medical supplies in Uganda (i.e. antibiotics, oral rehydration solution, malaria treatment) which will be used in medical outreach clinics that I will be doing in some rural villages in Uganda where medical care is pretty inexistent – this money will go an awfully long way in Uganda.

Empower A Child isn’t currently registered with  Justgiving or similar so I’ve set up a “gogetfunding” page: http://gogetfunding.com/project/becky-s-mission-to-uganda

8 weeks to go!!

Hello! Thanks for taking time to visit this blog which I’ve set up mainly to keep people updated with the plans for my next trip to Africa which is happening later this year. Many of you who know me will know that I have a bit of a soft spot for Africa and I just can’t seem to stay away for that long :)

This will be my third journey to Africa. My first adventure was in 2010 when I spent 6 weeks working at a mission hospital in Northern Cameroon, and last year I went to Ghana for 2 weeks on a medical mission trip going out into villages and putting on free clinics with a team of other health professionals. These were both incredible experiences, and I’ve always struggled to put into words exactly why this is but I hope the fact that I’m frequently talking about wanting to go back speaks for itself!

Many people have asked me why I choose to spend large chunks of my annual leave going over to work in Africa rather than choosing a more relaxing holiday option. There’s just something about the culture and people of Africa that’s so warm and inviting, and despite these trips being pretty tiring, they’re also incredibly refreshing and it just feels like the right thing to do.
Time and time again I am reminded of this amazing verse from Isaiah, “Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”” (Isaiah 6:8).

My trip this time is to Uganda in the first 2 weeks of November, and I’m very excited to be visiting a part of Africa which is brand new to me.

The charity I am travelling with is called Empower A Child, which works in both Uganda and Kenya, primarily with children and young people.  More than 50% of the population of Uganda is under the age of 16. Approximately 2.3 million of these children are orphans due to decades of war, AIDS and other diseases, and 1 million children alone are orphaned due to the AIDS epidemic. The average child in Uganda has just 4.7 years of schooling. 
 
Empower A Child aims to reach some of these children through projects and outreaches based in schools, babies’ and children’s homes and local communities. The work they do includes feeding, teaching, playing games, sharing bible stories, prayer and worship, and health education. Every week over 200 children are reached through these projects. During my time in Uganda I will be joining in all of these projects but also spending some time carrying out medical clinics for the children.

Over the next few weeks I will be doing some more research about exactly where I’m going and getting a more detailed itinerary of my 2 weeks and the work I’ll be doing. I’ll also be starting to collect various supplies I’ll be taking out with me to use whilst I’m there and also donate to the projects, for example, medical supplies, school equipment, books, toys, toothbrushes, toothpaste…...

I’ll be trying to keep this blog updated fairly regularly so tune in soon for the next instalment! :)