Day 4 – Lutheran Field Hospital & Lake Manyara National Park

We began the day by visiting a Lutheran Hospital.  The hospital has 6 doctors, all general practitioners, who like the old days in the USA, do everything, from internal medicine to delivering babies & pediatrics.  They also do surgeries such as gallbladders, appendectomies, prostatectomy’s, and the most common, the c-section.  Most of the babies are delivered at home, 80%, only high risk babies are delivered at the hospital.  They run some basic labs but also have a CD4 machine to monitor Aids patients, currently at 3% of the population, down from 7%, which they are quite proud of.  They have an old dilapidated X-Ray machine and an even more dilapidated Ultrasound.  The Ultrasound probes were all duct taped up.  Their funding comes from the government and the Lutheran church provides the brick and mortar.  By receiving these funds, it is mandated they treat for free, children under 5, people over 60, and anyone with a chronic health condition.  This means only about 30% of their patients pay for services.  There is a 35 year old woman who has been in their hospital for 4 years and refuses to go home for lack of a caregiver.  Like everyone else, they are hurting for money and cannot provide the meds for their patients.  This is quite a difference from our cushy hospitals in the US.  I'll try to post some photos of the hospital soon. 

Pharmacy

Lab Drawing Room

Lab

Radiology

Ultrasound Rooom

OR or "Theater" as they are called here

OB Ward

Pediatric Ward



After lunch, we proceeded to the Lake Manyara National Park where we viewed many of the same animals we did yesterday and several new ones.  The new ones included a Water Buck, Monitor Lizard, Impala’s (not the Chevy), and a Dik Dik, the world’s smallest deer, about 1 ½ foot high, named after the size of its….no, actually for the sound it makes.  And last but not least, we saw a sexually frustrated monkey with turquoise balls.  You can’t make this stuff up!

Here's Proof!