Resources at Nyakahanga Hospital

By: Christine Shaneberger

Today was difficult. We toured the hospital grounds at Nyakahanga Hospital. I didn’t exactly expect this to be a pleasant experience, but I wasn’t prepared for what I would see. It was an odd experience. As an American I’m exposed to countless images of starving children and frail AIDS patients, but seeing it in real life was completely different. Being able to look in the eye of a starving 12 year old girl with Typhoid, or a man who was sentenced to die in 2 months of a condition that was easily fixable in America was something I was completely unprepared for.

One of the most difficult parts was watching the staff introduce us to individual patients, explain their ailments and prognosis of survival and go on to explain how aware they were of their lack of resources. There were many times that Dr. Peter explained that if a particular patient had been simply born elsewhere they would be recovering from a simple surgery rather than struggling through their last few months or days in a hospital bed.

On a more positive note, I was astounded by two things. Firstly, the absolute passion and dedication of the doctors and staff at Nyakahanga. While I couldn’t imagine the personal struggles they face on a daily basis they approached their work with compassion and dedication I think we can all learn from. Secondly, as Dr. Winkler eloquently pointed out, the patients are an amazing example of the will to survive and overcome adversity.

The complexity of this problem has really highlighted the delusion of our self importance; the thought that we came here to help people more than they can help us. Amid such human suffering was an overtone of hope and acceptance of human joy and suffering. I think it goes without saying that we all have so much to learn from these people. The problems here are much more complex than I could have imagined. They extend beyond resources and education and seem to lie at the structural level. The hospital in Karagwe has a long way to go, but they are making strides in the right direction. I’m hopeful for the future of healthcare in rural Tanzania.

Watching a young girl care for her siblings.