The Field, Part 3: We’re Actually Doing Something Good!

Being in the field has also given me a chance to see first-hand what it is we actually do in South Sudan – who it is we’re serving, and what we provide them with.

I’ve been able to spend some time in our clinics, following our staff around.

I got to see a brand-new, soft, clean Sudanese baby - skin smooth and silky like chocolate milk.

I observed as a group of patients waiting under a tree listened to a health education message about STIs and engaged in some lively discussion on the topic.

I saw a man the day before he died from a gunshot wound from an ambush on the road just outside the town I was in and a woman with a gunshot wound in her hand, the consequences of a roudy dispute where a gun was too close at hand.

I watched as one of our staff dressed the severe burn on the entire back of a woman who fell on a fire during an epileptic seizure.

I got to see a very beautiful, but nasty schistosomiasis parasite under the microscope in the lab. I met some giggling girls splashing in the stagnant river/swamp water and watched as one of our staff explained about the dangers of getting schistosomiasis.

I got to listen with a stethoscope to a baby's raspy breathing due to pneumonia, and played with babies waiting in queue for their vaccinations so that we don't see them later in their lives as victims of polio or a measles outbreak.

And I stood in on a children’s club under a tree as they sang songs about peace and loving each other, after learning about hand washing.

It’s encouraging to see on this end that some things are indeed working, and the services are being delivered. It’s easy to get all tied up in politics and donor reports and emails and meetings in Juba, and not realize what’s coming out of it all in the end.