So… I was slightly unlucky in Zanzibar and I got sick one night most likely from the food. I was encouraged by my program after waking up feeling sick yesterday to go to the hospital and take a Malaria test. Thankfully my test was negative but it was an experience in itself.
This was a different hospital than I had been to before. I walked into the room which acted as a waiting room, patient room, and laboratory all in one. The technician pricked my finger and put the blood on a slide. After adding chemicals to it (I assume to reveal the malaria) I waited only about 20 minutes for the results. It was like watching a biology lab, the technician put the slide under a microscope and looked at it, taking notes on the lab report.
I am fortunate not to have contracted malaria. Despite preventative measures like mosquito nets, bug spray, and medication malaria is still contractible by foreigners and local Tanzanians alike. The disease is treatable in early stages but too often people slip into the second stage (past flu symptoms and headaches) into extreme fatigue, eventual coma, and eventual death. Malaria, like HIV and AIDS, is paralyzing Tanzania.
In Bagamoyo, the oldest person I have met has been only 50. Life expectancy is extremely low here – 42 – and the absence of an elderly community is visible. Malaria and HIV/AIDS are attributed as the main causes, and they link into other health issues like malnutrition and child hunger. My experience was a crude reminder to how vulnerable this population is and the amount of resources needed to reverse the negative trends it is shaping throughout the country.
No comments:
Post a Comment