The Northern Region

e past couple of days have been amazing. Dr. Wanye offered to send us up to the northern region of Ghana to sight see since the clinic we worked with didn't have any outreaches planned. We were able to be part of a real African safari in Mole National Park. Then we saw a crocodile reservoir and historical slave camp in Paga, a city in the northern most part of Ghana. It was such a treat to see this part of the country. Despite the long travel times, I really enjoyed seeing the differences in regional culture. In terms of religion, Christianity is the predominant religion in Kumasi while Islam is the predominant in Tamale.

The best part about the past couple of days was definitely just being able to see preserved African nature. As volunteers we spend most of our time in busy parts of cities. Over the past couple of days, we have spent most of our time in relatively quiet places. During the day, a co-volunteer and I were able to sit on top of the vehicle we were using. It was very calming and enlightening to hear the wind blowing through the trees. God is good. I am so grateful that I was able to appreciate his creations while in the northern region.

We were also able to learn about a historical slave camp that was used in the transportation of slaves in the mid 1700s. It's hard for me to imagine a time where people willingly stripped other people of their freedom for personal benefit. I'm glad we've progressed to a time where that sort of lifestyle is no longer prevalent or commonplace.

Anyway. That's all for this week. We've done a lot of travelling. This week we head back to Accra for more work. Can't wait!

We gave Dr. Wanye a BYU shirt! So grateful for his kindness towards the volunteers.

In the jungle...

...there are elephants...

...and crocodiles?

K

A Typical Day at Work

So I have been in Ghana for three and a half weeks now. I'd imagine half of you are wondering what I'm actually doing here. In this post, I've decided to shed light on a normal day here working with Unite for Sight, specifically with Friends Eye Center.

For the past two weeks, our group has begun the day by waking up at 5:30AM. We're usually on the road by 6:00AM. Before getting to the site for our outreaches, we stop along the road to pick up members of the staff that help organize the outreaches we work at. Overall, travel generally takes us an hour or so to get to our destination.

Once we get to the sites, we set up shop. At the outreaches we work at, we have three stations: a station for visual acuity screenings (testing how well vision is), a tent where the on-call optometrist performs examinations on patients, and a table where we dispense reading glasses and eye drops to patients. As volunteers, we get to work at each of these stations. At the visual acuity station, we perform all of the tests. The staff usually helps us with language barriers. At the optometry station, we shadow the optometrist. We get the chance to use the scopes they use to look in the back of the patients' eyes. The optometrist then opens up to answer questions that we might have. At the dispense station we learn about the drugs that the clinic offers. I've also learned a lot about inventory and finances.

At the end of the six-hour day, we close shop and take a car ride back home. On the way, we drop the staff off wherever they need to be dropped off. Then we have the rest of the day to rest and adventure until the following day when we work at a different location.

Overall, this experience has been so fulfilling. I've learned that the eye is absolutely vital with our quality of life. If it loses even the slight bit of functionality, life becomes ten times more difficult. I'm so glad that I'm able to help others overcome that challenge. This literally changes lives. I love that.

The Kumasi volunteers!

Our view for an hour and a half before we get to the outreach.

The van we travel in.

The set-up.

A routine examination performed by Dr. Richmond.

Visual acuity!

A Week in Kumasi

This week has been absolutely amazing. Sorry for the lack of updates. We haven't had internet for the past couple of days. So here we go.

After a six-hour ride to Kumasi from Accra, we arrived to our residence of two weeks. It's the guest house of Dr. Wanye, a local ophthalmologist. He's been doing surgeries in a more northern city called Tamale for the past couple of days, so we didn't meet him upon arrival. But he gets back today so that'll be nice. Anyway, we've been doing essentially the same thing we've been doing in Accra. We've been performing visual accuity tests for the locals as well as dispensing medicine for those who wish to have it. We set up our station at about 7am. Where we work just depends on where they need us. Then we work until about 1pm when the inflow of patients slows down substantially. While we work, we help those who one by one until no one comes. That usally happens around 1pm. One unique thing about my experience here, though, has been shadowing the working optometrist. When he does basic check-ups for patients, he uses a retinal scope to look into the back of the patient's eyes for any abnormalities. And he has two scopes. So he let us use one to look into the back of patients' eyes. It is so cool to experience something like that first-hand. At first it was a little tricky to focus the scope because the hole you look through is about a millimeter wide. But whatever. Over the past two days, I've looked at over 200 people's eyes (which makes that about 400 eyes.) It's been awesome.

This week we worked at two primary schools and the communities surrounding those schools. It's been nice to see the welcoming faces of the students. Kids are great.

Overall, this week has been awesome. The staff is great. The locals are awesome. And to be quite frank, Ghana is a dream. I love it here. Helping out had been such a great experience. I'm so glad I still have four weeks to go.

These are some of the students we looked at.

Observing Surgeries and Volunteering, Kumasi Next Week!

The past couple of days have been amazing. Since I last posted, we have been able to do a lot more work. On Tuesday we observed surgeries at Crystal Eye Clinic, one of the few clinics in Accra that offers eye surgeries to those who need it. It was very intriguing to see healthcare professionals in a developing country. We observed Dr. James Clarke, the local surgeon. He has been practicing surgeries for over 40 years now and is very skilled at his craft. He works at his clinic until there are literally no more patients waiting in line for him to perform a surgery. Sometimes he has worked in the clinic for over 12 hours just to get to all of the patients that need him. He is an example of true dedication.

We were also able to work at a couple of outreaches in various villages in Ghana. I continued to assist in administering visual acuity tests to the locals. It is such a blessing to be able to help those in need. Some of these people have never experienced an eye test or even basic eye care. Doing this has helped me appreciate the care we receive in the United States. Though it may seem so routine to us, some in other parts of the world never even fathom getting the same care. I love serving and am so excited to continue doing it for the next couple of weeks.
 
Today we had a break. We got to go to visit the local LDS Temple here in Accra. Then we went to the beach! It has been a fantastic week. Next week, a group of us leaves to Kumasi for two weeks. It's a more of a jungle area. That's what the locals say, at least. I'm very excited and grateful for every moment I have here in this wonderful country.
 

The whole gang.

 

Here is Connor and I performing a couple of visual acuity tests for locals in the area.

 

Don't Worry. I've Arrived in Ghana.

After traveling for a little over 24 hours of traveling and a quick detour in Amsterdam, we have made it to Ghana safely. First off, let me be frank in divulging that I hate planes. Sitting for hours in an airplane is definitely not my favorite. So when we touched down in Accra yesterday, needless to say, I was relieved.

We got here in the middle of the night, so I went straight to bed after I was checked in to my room. And let me say, right from the get go the people here in Ghana have keen so kind. They naturally want to help visitors have a great experience in their country. We went to church this morning. The members here are so nice. They are all very hospitable to the international interns.

Even though it hasn't been very long, we've already learned and experienced a lot. When we got to the hotel, the manager of the hotel welcomed us with the term akwaba. I don't know if it was because I was just so delirious and tired from traveling so long, but that phrase didn't process in my head very quickly. I had NO clue what that meant, so I just responded with drooping eyes "Umm. Hello? My name is Ben." She then answered with "Akwaba means 'you're welcome'." I didn't quite get why she greeted me with "you're welcome" and I'm still trying to figure that out. But ever since then, I've been trying to pick up as much Twi (the local language) as I can. 

Something else interesting about this place is acquiring drinkable water. We had to pass buy a local vendor to purchase little bags of water filled with filtered water. About 3 gallons costs about 75 cents. Interesting.

Tomorrow we start doing the real volunteering. I'll be working with Crystal Eye Clinic all afternoon. Updates later this week.

Please excuse my weird hair. We took this right after church.