Showing posts with label public health. Show all posts
Showing posts with label public health. Show all posts
February 1, 2011
January 14, 2011
Birthday Party Flashback.
South African vintage collection bottles consumed: too many to count
persons befriending the toilet post spirits imbibing: one
skinny dipping participants in the Indian Ocean: three
hospital bills for 3 malaria victims: very, very many monies
memories to last a lifetime: priceless
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Source: Kristen Pfau via
October 25, 2010
July 8, 2010
My heart Swells with Pride.
The city we now call home recently ranked 12th out of 25 on a quite impressive list.
This Forbes list ranked the top 25 most dirty cities in the world. Dar landed itself the #12 spot both because of its souring population growth, which adds undue stress to the city's sanitation programs and also due to the fact that solid waste from the city enters directly into the Msimbazi River, which contributes widely to the spread of infectious diseases among Dar residents. You can scope out our competition here.
This list was developed based on the Mercer Human Resource Consulting's 2007 Health and Sanitation Rankings as part of their 2007 Quality of Life Report. This Report ranked 215 cities worldwide according to the following parameters: levels of air pollution, waste management, water potability, hospital services, medical supplies, and the presence of infectious disease.
All joking aside, the realities for residents of most of these cities can be very harsh, in places where "black plumes of smoke, acid rain and free-flowing sewage are part of everyday life." Also, such conditions are almost guaranteed to bear negative affects on the population's health and by extension life expectancy. Not so surprisingly, life expectancy here is extremely low. The UN reports that life expectancy for men is 55 years, for women 56 years, while USAID estimates life expectancy to be a bit lower at 48 years (due in part of the ravaging effects of HIV/AIDS and malaria). In either case, these statistics paint a dire picture, and anecdotally, I can attest to the fact that it is a rare sight to see elderly people around here. I can only imagine the horrendous conditions and associated consequences for the health of the residents of the cities unfortunate enough to rank ahead of Dar es Salaam on this list.
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References:
http://www.forbes.com/2008/02/26/pollution-baku-oil-biz-logistics-cx_tl_0226dirtycities.html
http://www.istafrica.com/general_information/student_guide/facts.htm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/country_profiles/1072330.stm
http://www.usaid.gov/locations/sub-saharan_africa/countries/tanzania/index.html
This list was developed based on the Mercer Human Resource Consulting's 2007 Health and Sanitation Rankings as part of their 2007 Quality of Life Report. This Report ranked 215 cities worldwide according to the following parameters: levels of air pollution, waste management, water potability, hospital services, medical supplies, and the presence of infectious disease.
All joking aside, the realities for residents of most of these cities can be very harsh, in places where "black plumes of smoke, acid rain and free-flowing sewage are part of everyday life." Also, such conditions are almost guaranteed to bear negative affects on the population's health and by extension life expectancy. Not so surprisingly, life expectancy here is extremely low. The UN reports that life expectancy for men is 55 years, for women 56 years, while USAID estimates life expectancy to be a bit lower at 48 years (due in part of the ravaging effects of HIV/AIDS and malaria). In either case, these statistics paint a dire picture, and anecdotally, I can attest to the fact that it is a rare sight to see elderly people around here. I can only imagine the horrendous conditions and associated consequences for the health of the residents of the cities unfortunate enough to rank ahead of Dar es Salaam on this list.
---
References:
http://www.forbes.com/2008/02/26/pollution-baku-oil-biz-logistics-cx_tl_0226dirtycities.html
http://www.istafrica.com/general_information/student_guide/facts.htm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/country_profiles/1072330.stm
http://www.usaid.gov/locations/sub-saharan_africa/countries/tanzania/index.html
June 24, 2010
Malaria Strikes.
Andrei fell victim first. After two feverish nights in bed (and mind you, not from newlywed extracurricular activities), he causally passed by the medical center on the way to work to get tested for malaria. When the results were returned with an astronomically high count of parasites in his blood cells he was casually informed he would not be making it into work that day, would be held for 24 hour observation (or beyond as the case proved to be), and an IV was swiftly inserted into the most convenient vein his body had to offer. I found him in one of the two admittance beds drowning in a sea of thick wool blankets. And there he remained for the next three days, sometimes more visible than others depending on his respective level of sweats. Somewhat on the mend or at least able-bodied enough to entertain visitors, we all shuddered when a dear friend stopped by to remind us that not everyone recovers from this disease. Right, thanks.
According to his parasite count, his case was much more severe than mine, according to whining and complaining, my case was definitely the more severe of the two. And just when I thought the puking and the nausea would never subside, that the pounding in my head would never stop, that my eyes would never uncross, that I would never be able to see without tunnel vision again, that I would never be able to arrest the seemingly unbreakable cycle of sweats and shivering and teeth chattering, I eased into a night filled with actual rest and awoke with a clear head, normal body temperature, and no dizzyness. Thank you pharmaceutical industries and tropical medicine doctors.
Thousands of dollars later in top of the line medical treatment, we have realized that good health is priceless. Well, almost.
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Photo Credit:
http://katearends.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/sleep_viasimplyseductive.png
March 25, 2010
Thank you, please come again.
Andrei used to find it quite amusing to thank his employees for coming into work everyday. At day's end, he would send off his employees with an ironic "Thank you for coming to work today, please come again," similar to how 7-11 attempts to entice their customers into repeat visits (or maybe 7-11 achieves this with their delicious tacquitos, er, lest I digress...). In response, Andrei often received befuddled expressions and blank stares.
Here in Tanzania, getting into work safely each day sometimes feels like a herculean feat. Traffic is intense. Three lanes of traffic crowd into a space designed for one. Cars play chicken with each other angling to jump ahead of throngs of standstill traffic by driving against cars coming from the opposite direction. The clamor of taxi horns and dala-dala touts shouting to solicit passengers ignites the senses quicker than any local brand of instant coffee. Most days I arrive to work dripping in sweat from my bike ride to the office, with feet caked in mud from the previous nights' rains which require me to push my bike through pools of stagnant water in the sewer-less streets, jarred by an all too close encounter with a car. I often wish somebody would thank me for bothering to come into work each day and beckon me to please return again.
Instead, a few weeks ago I was told directly by someone in my office that I do not offer any valuable professional services as a mere "intern", however my tenacity is "endearing". This comment felt like a punch in the stomach for two main reasons, among others. Firstly, I know my current scope of work and portfolio of responsibilities would fetch a handsome salary under any other circumstances (ie: not being allowed to accept renumeration for my work here in Tanzania on account of the Fellowship I was awarded to support my time here). Secondly, I inherited a project from another visiting fellow that was distinguished from me by this person as offering "real" professional services. Upon a stroke of her goodwill, this individual decided to privately fund raise among her friends and colleagues from back home in the US the monies necessary to facilitate the purchase of an emergency motorized tricycle vehicle in a rural village in Tanzania to allow women to arrive in a timely manner to health facilities to give birth under the care of a skilled health professional. She did this outside any structured programming within our organization. Despite her good intentions, she did not consider the logistics of how this vehicle would be introduced into the community (including identifying and training drivers of the vehicle), and failed to develop a strategy to ensure the vehicle would be financially sustainable over time (including payments for fuel and maintenance servicing). Soon after I began work here, I inherited these tasks. I was asked to undertake research and develop a strategy to ensure a smooth transition of this vehicle to local community ownership and management. All the while, I feared my role was too little, too late. Until today.
Upon arrival to the office compound this morning, Mr. Ndaki, a man whom I greatly admire and respect, came rushing up to me to impart great news. Before he even greeted me (you know its big news in Africa when the niceties of the greeting ritual fall by the wayside), he shared a very welcome status update on the management of the emergency tricycle within this community. Following our community facilitation exercises in February, the transportation committee we helped establish has since generated 800,000 Tsh (approximately $600USD - a huge sum in a village with pervasive poverty) in community contributions towards an emergency fund for the vehicle to support maintenance and servicing needs as they arise and they have agreed to establish financial management systems to ensure the long term financial sustainability of this vehicle including the collection of funds on an annualized basis from each community household, and perhaps, most importantly, the vehicle has already been instrumental in helping to save several mothers lives by facilitating timely arrival to a health facility at the time of delivery.
In this way, I have received the greatest, "Thank you, please come again," I could expect and all the convincing I need to continue to make the effort to come to the office each day. All is well that ends well I suppose.
-----
In case anyone is interested here is a link to a video I placed on youtube of the excited reception of this vehicle into the community.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5UkcrSiyyM
Here in Tanzania, getting into work safely each day sometimes feels like a herculean feat. Traffic is intense. Three lanes of traffic crowd into a space designed for one. Cars play chicken with each other angling to jump ahead of throngs of standstill traffic by driving against cars coming from the opposite direction. The clamor of taxi horns and dala-dala touts shouting to solicit passengers ignites the senses quicker than any local brand of instant coffee. Most days I arrive to work dripping in sweat from my bike ride to the office, with feet caked in mud from the previous nights' rains which require me to push my bike through pools of stagnant water in the sewer-less streets, jarred by an all too close encounter with a car. I often wish somebody would thank me for bothering to come into work each day and beckon me to please return again.
Instead, a few weeks ago I was told directly by someone in my office that I do not offer any valuable professional services as a mere "intern", however my tenacity is "endearing". This comment felt like a punch in the stomach for two main reasons, among others. Firstly, I know my current scope of work and portfolio of responsibilities would fetch a handsome salary under any other circumstances (ie: not being allowed to accept renumeration for my work here in Tanzania on account of the Fellowship I was awarded to support my time here). Secondly, I inherited a project from another visiting fellow that was distinguished from me by this person as offering "real" professional services. Upon a stroke of her goodwill, this individual decided to privately fund raise among her friends and colleagues from back home in the US the monies necessary to facilitate the purchase of an emergency motorized tricycle vehicle in a rural village in Tanzania to allow women to arrive in a timely manner to health facilities to give birth under the care of a skilled health professional. She did this outside any structured programming within our organization. Despite her good intentions, she did not consider the logistics of how this vehicle would be introduced into the community (including identifying and training drivers of the vehicle), and failed to develop a strategy to ensure the vehicle would be financially sustainable over time (including payments for fuel and maintenance servicing). Soon after I began work here, I inherited these tasks. I was asked to undertake research and develop a strategy to ensure a smooth transition of this vehicle to local community ownership and management. All the while, I feared my role was too little, too late. Until today.
Upon arrival to the office compound this morning, Mr. Ndaki, a man whom I greatly admire and respect, came rushing up to me to impart great news. Before he even greeted me (you know its big news in Africa when the niceties of the greeting ritual fall by the wayside), he shared a very welcome status update on the management of the emergency tricycle within this community. Following our community facilitation exercises in February, the transportation committee we helped establish has since generated 800,000 Tsh (approximately $600USD - a huge sum in a village with pervasive poverty) in community contributions towards an emergency fund for the vehicle to support maintenance and servicing needs as they arise and they have agreed to establish financial management systems to ensure the long term financial sustainability of this vehicle including the collection of funds on an annualized basis from each community household, and perhaps, most importantly, the vehicle has already been instrumental in helping to save several mothers lives by facilitating timely arrival to a health facility at the time of delivery.
In this way, I have received the greatest, "Thank you, please come again," I could expect and all the convincing I need to continue to make the effort to come to the office each day. All is well that ends well I suppose.
-----
In case anyone is interested here is a link to a video I placed on youtube of the excited reception of this vehicle into the community.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5UkcrSiyyM
March 8, 2010
Blood and Gore.
While Dar es Salaam has Indian Crows, Mwanza, Tanzania's second largest city, has Marabou Storks. However, these are not the fairytale-like storks believed to gracefully deliver babies in a swaddling blanket, rather these storks are downright ugly, even offensive in appearance. Their presence in Mwanza is commanding. They are large, both in size and number, especially around the city's trash dumps. Marabou Storks will eat just about any kind of animal, dead or alive. In fact, their appearance has evolved to adapt to this fact, as their naked heads and necks allow feeding on large animal carcasses without getting their head feathers soiled with blood and gore. Although, despite their offensive appearance, the benefits of their presence are worthy of appreciation, they are notably efficient in reducing disease by cleaning up carcasses and other rubbish.
In doing some follow-up research on these strikingly looking birds, I came across this quote, which elicited laughter on my part:
"To the casual observer the massive Marabou Stork with its balding, scabby head and pendulous pink air sac may appear to be one of the ugliest creatures in the world. If this same observer were to notice the Marabou's fondness for carrion and its habit of squirting excrement onto its own legs he or she would probably consider the original opinion to be justified. It takes a real bird lover to see past all of this stork's bizarre adornments to recognize the scruffy charm underneath." (Smithsonian National Zoo)
And so it seems, my propensity to label these birds as truly grotesque creatures puts me in the category of not being a real bird lover at heart. Strange defeat.
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Source:
http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Animals/Birds/Facts/FactSheets/fact-maraboustork.cfm
In doing some follow-up research on these strikingly looking birds, I came across this quote, which elicited laughter on my part:
"To the casual observer the massive Marabou Stork with its balding, scabby head and pendulous pink air sac may appear to be one of the ugliest creatures in the world. If this same observer were to notice the Marabou's fondness for carrion and its habit of squirting excrement onto its own legs he or she would probably consider the original opinion to be justified. It takes a real bird lover to see past all of this stork's bizarre adornments to recognize the scruffy charm underneath." (Smithsonian National Zoo)
And so it seems, my propensity to label these birds as truly grotesque creatures puts me in the category of not being a real bird lover at heart. Strange defeat.
----
Source:
http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Animals/Birds/Facts/FactSheets/fact-maraboustork.cfm
March 5, 2010
Ex-pat grumblings and rumblings.
There is a plague in Dar es Salaam. A plague of crows. These loud, large black birds are Indian Crows. Their entry into Tanzania was originally anticipated to be more of a blessing than a curse. Over a century ago, the Indian Crow was imported to Zanzibar by Sir Gerald Portal to help the island's sanitary conditions through their penchant for consuming waste. Since that time, the crow population has grown in both their population size and reach. Today, in Dar es Salaam on mainland Tanzania, the crow population is estimated to be 1 million.
Dislike for these birds, also commonly referred to as "flying rats", is palatable. For instance, former U.S. ambassador Robert V. Royall made quite a name for himself here within the Dar es Salaam community when he called in members of his Marine detachment to his compound to fire at these birds with 12-gauge shotguns. This pasttime for the former ambassador resulted in the killing of about 1,000 crows, which hardly made a dent in their overall numbers, but I suppose proved quite a diversion for him on a personal level. To be sure, dislike for these birds extends well beyond trivial concerns about commonplace nuisances to ecological concerns related to how these crows have wiped out other bird populations within Dar es Salaam, and public health concerns that they are can potentially pass avian influenza because they are known to attack and eat young chickens.
----
Sources:
http://articles.sfgate.com/2006-07-02/news/17302188_1_crow-population-new-embassy-golf-cart
http://www.zanzibar.org/
Dislike for these birds, also commonly referred to as "flying rats", is palatable. For instance, former U.S. ambassador Robert V. Royall made quite a name for himself here within the Dar es Salaam community when he called in members of his Marine detachment to his compound to fire at these birds with 12-gauge shotguns. This pasttime for the former ambassador resulted in the killing of about 1,000 crows, which hardly made a dent in their overall numbers, but I suppose proved quite a diversion for him on a personal level. To be sure, dislike for these birds extends well beyond trivial concerns about commonplace nuisances to ecological concerns related to how these crows have wiped out other bird populations within Dar es Salaam, and public health concerns that they are can potentially pass avian influenza because they are known to attack and eat young chickens.
----
Sources:
http://articles.sfgate.com/2006-07-02/news/17302188_1_crow-population-new-embassy-golf-cart
http://www.zanzibar.org/
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