Hello everyone and welcome back to my blog! The previous week in Kenya has been very busy for me because my schedule was jam packed with clinical observations at local hospitals, group meetings, and delicious dining experiences. For the clinical observations, I met up with GMI faculty members, Rice iSEED undergraduate students, Rice 360 undergraduate students, Rice GMI graduate students, and Kenyatta University students to tour the Thika, Kiambu, Kiandutu, and Kenyatta University Teaching, Research, and Rehabilitation hospitals. In these hospitals, the other students and I observed patient care in the Emergency Room, ICU, Newborn Care Center, Nutritionist Office, Surgical Theatre, and Cancer Care Centre. We learned there are 6 levels of public hospitals in Kenya. Level 1 is the smallest hospital with the least amount of funding and resources, whereas Level 6 hospitals are the largest, receive the most patients, and have the most funding for medical equipment. Thika and Kiambu were both Level 5 hospitals filled with many patients and doctors rushing around. Several road accident patients, diabetic patients, people who need surgeries, and pregnant mothers were at those hospitals. Kiandutu was a small Level 3 hospital located next to a Nairobi slum. The staff members there were very friendly and patiently explained how they offer several resources for pregnant mothers who need health exams, people who want testing and treatments for STDs, nutrition centers to diagnose malnourished children, and free vaccine clinics for toddlers and newborns. The Kenyatta University Teaching, Research, and Rehabilitation hospital was massive and we spent a lot of time talking to nurses about the chemotherapy treatments available for cancer patients and the various radiation therapy medical devices used to treat patients with tumors. For example, we got to see their CyberKnife, a non-invasive robotic device that delivers high doses of precisely targeted radiation to patients with brain tumors, lung cancer, and pancreatic cancer. I wrote down several of the clinical needs I noticed in the hospitals, then met with a team of 4 other students to learn what problems they had witnessed and discuss a medical device prototype that could be used to address one of the problems. We learned how to write a need statement and researched methods to improve patient care for people in Kenya with Diabetic Ketoacidosis, a life-threatening complication of diabetes that occurs when the body doesn’t have enough insulin to allow blood sugar into cells for energy. I had to return to my internship at Drop Access this week, but I’m curious to learn what diabetes related prototype my teammates design over the next few days.
When I wasn’t at the Kenya hospitals, I spent a lot of time having poolside study sessions at the Fairview Hotel, eating copious amounts of steak, lamb, and roasted pineapple at the Fogo Gaucho Brazilian steakhouse with my roommates, and baking peanut butter brownies for my roommate Colin’s birthday. I got a painful stomach ache last weekend, but the food was delicious and I was able to sleep better on a full stomach. This week, I will be doing more CAD work for the VacciBox lid redesign, helping to install a completed VacciBox at a local hospital, and explaining the VacciBox manufacturing process to Rice and Kenyatta University students who visit the Drop Access warehouse. It’s going to be another busy week, but I look forward to seeing how much progress I can make on my internship project. Thanks for reading and I’ll share more about my Kenya experiences in next week’s blog post.
GMI faculty, Rice students, and Kenyatta students at Kiambu Hospital
Newborn warming bed in Kiandutu Hospital delivery room
CyberKnife at Kenyatta University Treatment, Research, and Rehabilitation Hospital
Studying and snacking at Fairview Hotel
Fogo Gaucho steak dinner with my roommates