LiterallyLibby: Many Meru Meetings – Friday February 4, 2011

Friday morning started later, thank goodness. We had an 8am meeting with Jane, a woman from DCC (a German acronym). She explained to us all of the services that her group offers people in the Mikinduri area, specifically for disabled people. Most of the services are medical, but one that is different than I’ve ever heard is that they form women’s empowerment groups. These groups are made up of women in a community that all invest a small amount of money (less than a dollar maybe), and give a microloan to someone who needs it. Once that is paid back with interest, they reinvest in someone else. This program is so successful because it is entirely based in the community. The money comes from the community. Jane was delightful and a strong command of the internal workings of the Kenyan medical system, something that no one else that we had talked to seemed to possess. In addition, she was funny. She told Dr. Ed that he looked like a doctor because he had ‘serious specs’.

Later we took a tour of the Meru hospital. It looked more like an army camp with small barracks in rows that served for different departments. The hospital in general just seemed odd, and it was hard to put my finger on why. After much reflection (as our tour was a few hours long), I realized it was because even though the building was shabby, with dirt all over the painted concrete floor, something brown leaking from the ceiling down the walls, blue steel bars covering the windows, the smell of marijuana in one particular room, and nothing giving the impression of clean, the doctors are dressed immaculately. They are wearing nice full suits with pristine white overcoats. It just seems out of place. In addition, an interesting aspect of their clothing is that it’s quite oversized. No one has tailored clothes on so it’s rare to find someone wearing a suit that actually fits them. The crisp button up shirts and nice suits have the effect that many men look like they’re playing dress-up with their father’s clothes. The hospital has many services, especially for the disabled, and we fostered a partnership to refer people to their hospital from our medical clinics. The doctors we met that day would also be attending the clinic the following Tuesday to evaluate the need for help for disabled people in the Mikinduri area. While at the hospital, we happened to run into Chief Alex, the main representative of the President of Kenya in Mikinduri. He was there working on a practicum for his Master’s in counseling. We had an impromptu meeting with him concerning the upcoming medical clinics. On the outside of the counseling office, there were educational paintings on the building. One was describing how to avoid rape for women. It said ‘Avoid provocative dressing and avoid secluded areas’. Gosh. This was such a blunt, skewed message, that it was nothing less than shocking in so many ways.

Shocking wall painting near conselling center

We grabbed a quick lunch back at the Three Steers, and went back out. This particular afternoon, Ted and I joined Jack in his water services meeting. While Kathy and Ed were in meetings trying to learn more about local medical facilities in order to benefit our new Community Based Health Care program, Jack has been meeting with the different water departments in the different towns. Oh, there’s more than one you ask? Well yes. Apparently there was a new department created when extra funds were made available for water. Rather than increase the budget of the existing permit division, the Kenyan government created a new division to fund new water projects. As an expert in water resource management, Jack was the right one for the job to cut through the bureaucracy and find out what was going on. In this meeting there was a man with very long finger nails who couldn’t have been 5 feet tall. His job was to give out water permits. He was very kind, helpful, and knowledgeable, but I couldn’t tear my eyes from his long, dirty fingernails. Many options on how to get water to some of the schools MCOH sponsors were discussed. We left the meeting with the resolve to meet the man up by the schools to determine good solution to supply the school with water. This was the best possible outcome. Hopefully the meeting will occur.

Meanwhile, Kathy and Ed were at Sparks, a group that helps disabled people. There’s weren’t many people in the office so although it was a partnership we formally held, it was not advanced at all. We then drove as a large group to a hospital called ‘Ripples International’. They are a privately sponsored hospital that takes in children for outpatient care, and will eventually be able to accept them for inpatient care as well. Their organization has many other services, and hopefully we will be able to send people their way once their hospital is completed.

We finally arrived back at the Three Steers after a long day of meetings, only to have one more over dinner with an acquaintance of Ted’s. He was a really interesting man and we had wonderful conversation. The Three Steers is an interesting place. There are flat screen tv’s in the rooms, but no internet, the window overlooks a dump, and the laundry is all hung out on the line. Just interesting. Today was quite a successful day, though surprisingly exhausting to spend so much time talking and listening. Tomorrow we head for Mikinduri, with a few stops on the way!