Making New Friends

Last Thursday I was reading a book that the embassy gave called “Uganda Society Observed” out on the porch of my house. I was in the middle of an unfortunately true explanation of the submissive role women take in the Ugandan culture. The author was detailing how most Ugandan men engage in semi-polygamous relationships. This section especially resonated with me because it reminded my of an ad that caught my eye in the city. The ad read something along the lines of “Not sure where he’s been? Get your HIV test today.” It was a huge ad, something, billboard sized. If that is effective advertising that most women can relate to, Uganda has a long was to come in women’s rights. But that is a discussion for another time. I don’t know enough yet about the culture to draw any conclusions.

            In the middle of this semi-deep thinking, I noticed a young boy who was peeking his head around the corner of the house. I had noticed him many times before, and every time I look at him, he just runs away. This time, I followed and called after him. “Hey man, you know I don’t bite.” He was really shy, but I started talking to him. His older brother came down to say hi too. Polasco, his brother, was 24. Polasco and I started talking, and then he asked if I wanted to go on a walk to see some of the city.  “30 minute walk,” he said. If you like sports, we will go to a sports field. I agreed. After all, he seemed like a nice guy.

            We started walking up the hill. Past new Mulago, and into old Mulago hospital. Old Mulago and New Mulago are different sites of the same organization that house different specialties. I had never been to old Mulago, and I could easily tell where the terms came from. We emerged from a narrow alley to a much more pedestrian scene compared to the city. No cars, very few bikes, and a lot of smaller shack shops. Just as Polasco promised, there was a soccer field. A bit different from the states, this one had no grass whatsoever. Polasco, was also quick to show me the basketball hoop. Oh, he is pointing to that pole in the ground with a ring at the top. No net. No backboard. No concrete court. There were dozens of children and young adults playing various games on the fields. It looked like a fun time.

            We kept walking through the field and he took me to his friends shop. A shack with a computer in it that was blasting music. He said his friend made CDs, and I could get a custom mix if I wanted. For 3000 Ugs ($1.20), how could I say no? He instructed me to sit next to his friend in the hut and give a thumbs up or down as he played songs. I asked for all Ugandan artists. The CD turned out great.

            We kept walking down the street, this time into a hilly and grassy area that was much more residential. Polasco said that he was taking me to where he was building a house. It was here when I first started hearing it…”Muzungu! Muzungu!” I was previously wondering if Uganda children didn’t know the familiar term for a white person. Turns out you just have to get a little out of the city and into the residential area, where less Muzungus hang out. Polasco showed me his house under construction with great pride. He made clear which room was the soon to be living room and which room was the bedroom. He explained that it looked like sticks and mud right now, but after some work he would finishing mudding the walls, and then he could seal it with concrete, run electricity, and move in! His neighbors were great, too. Three generations of women working together to prepare dinner outside. They joked and said that they kick down the walls when Polasco leaves so that he can’t move in anytime soon. They also said, however, that the both of us were welcome for dinner anytime.

            It was now 6pm and the sun would be going down soon. Polasco was very conscious of the time, and ensured we headed back soon. We walked and talked. He even grabbed my hand, and we walked hand in hand for a while. This is a very sincere gesture of friendship in most East African cultures. Polasco already considered me a good friend. This is great, cause I can always use good friends in foreign places.

Landed in Kampala. So Far, so good!

First Few Days in Kampala.

I finally made it! What was supposed to be a 26 hour travel time ended up taking an extra day. When I was on the flight from Minneapolis to Amsterdam the pilot said that the plane was giving “some serious warning signals of possible trouble.” Not wanting to go over ocean, we had to backtrack an hour and ground in Detroit. After a 4 hour delay in Detroit, we took off and arrived in Amsterdam 5 hours after the scheduled arrival date, which caused us to miss our layover to Kigali, Rwanda. Because the route only flies once a day, we spent the night in Amsterdam. Not  a bad place to be stranded! Troy and I headed into the city, got drinks, and dinner. He treated me to probably the best meal I will ever have. 6 course meal with paired wines at each course. Price tag: you don’t want to know. Troy called it my last supper. Still grateful for the treat. It was a great time.

We flew out of Amsterdam on Friday morning and landed in Entebbe at 11:00pm. We took a taxi to nearby hotel and overnighted so that we did not travel during the night. Traveling at night in Africa is never really a good idea. In the morning we had an arranged pick up from the Embassy and drove into the city of Kampala. On the way there, I noticed that Uganda was very similar to Tanzania at first glance. Every road had ample pot holes, speed bumps, and not-so-cautious motorcycles (termed boda-bodas in Lugandan). All of the shops and houses along the main road were painted bright colors that served as advertisements for Fanta, Coke, Pepsi, or local telecommunications companies. It felt good to be back J

When we got to the Mulago Guest House, where I would be living for the next 7 months, I was initially impressed with the facility. It was really nice! A large living room that is shared by the residents of the house (capacity for 8, but only one other person is here right now). A shared kitchen is available as well. My bedroom is probably about twice as big as my room in the US! With ample closet space, a desk, a queen size bed, and a private bathroom, the room provides more than enough to be comfortable. Breakfast is included in the room rate each morning, and consists of eggs, toast, fruit, coffee, and passion fruit juice. Everything I need, and more! Oh, and there were monkeys hanging out on the front porch today, so that’s always nice.

We are across the street from Mulago Hospital, where I will be spending the bulk of my time. It takes me about 4 minutes to get out the door and to the lab I work in at Mulago. Can’t complain with that commute. I will be working with Derrick Bengo, the head lab tech at Mulago. I have talked with Derrick for a good amount of time and I can say that he is going to be a pleasure to work worth. A 33 year old energetic guy, Derrick has two young sons and talks of all of his motivation coming from wanting to provide a better life for his sons. Derrick is also excited that he can show me around the town, some of the local spots, and show me his house, church, and family. Upon meeting Derrick, I became much more settled in my duties and project at Mulago.

Today (Monday) we went to Mulago and started to walk through the different steps of the project in the research lab. Everything is coming together well! I will write more about that, as well as my impressions of the town (very good) in the next blog post. Right now it is time for bed.

 

Mulago Guest House

Monkey on the roof

Shared living room

my bedroom

my bathroom

More than research

My Fulbright Grant gives me an opportunity to live in another country and experience an entirely different culture for 7 months. I am excited for the opportunity to engage in the local community and provide service where I can. An organization that I have decided to engage with is called the Need For All Orphanage, located a few miles outside of Kampala. My mentor, Dr. Troy Lund, has been visiting this orphanage for many years, and he started a non-profit organization with the direct goal of impacting the lives of the children who have the misfortune of being orphans. The non-profit is called the Medicine For Sick Children Foundation.

The Medicine for Sick Children Foundation (MSCF) has a simple goal: keeping the children healthy by ensuring they have the medicine and resources they need to stay in school. Every penny that is donated to MSCF goes to providing medicine, medical supplies, and child educational costs for the Need For All Orphanage. Dr. Lund supports MSCF as a complete volunteer. He personally donates enough money that may be incurred for administrative expenses. That means 100% of all donations go to helping the kids!

During my time in Uganda I will travel to the Need For All Orphanage on the weekends to volunteer to help clean the facilities, play with the children, and teach English and science lessons. My goal is to raise $3000 for MSCF and the Need For All orphanage--enough money to keep the medicine cabinet stocked and the children in school for a little more than a year.

Can you help me reach my goal?! Please consider making a donation by going to the Medicine for Sick Children Foundation website below. Any amount is VERY appreciated! I will also be sure to provide you with updates from the children and staff at the Need for All Orphanage.

DONATE HERE!
Medicine for Sick Children Foundation Website

Thank you for your consideration,

Paul

My Project in Uganda

the Ugandan country flag

Greetings, all!

Some of you may know, but for those of you who do not, I have been awarded a Fulbright Research Grant to conduct research at the Uganda Cancer Institute/Mulago Hospital in Kampala, Uganda from December 11th, 2013-July 11th, 2014. In a few short weeks I will be leaving the United States, and I wanted to set up a blog to provide a way to keep everyone (who may care) updated on my life in Uganda. I am not a blogger, and I do not really enjoy writing my thoughts down but I will do my best to make sure that I try to update this at least once every 1-2 weeks.

First things first: What am I going to be doing in Uganda?
My project will be focused on a disease called glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency. G6PD deficiency is the most common enzyme defect in the world, affecting nearly 400 million people worldwide. It is especially prevalent in sub-Saharan Africa, which makes Uganda an ideal location for researchers to study the disease. G6PD deficiency is usually not life-threatening, and someone may even live with the disease without even knowing it. G6PD deficiency can, however, affect the way the body in many ways. Of interest to me is the way the body handles oxidative stress. This might be sort of a lengthy explanation.... so bear with me if you care about the science :)

The body produces billions of chemical reactions everyday, and some of these reactions produce harmful oxidants. Oxidants can cause damages to the bodies cells, so we are told to "eat our fruits and vegetables" because they contain anti-oxidants. The anti-oxidants help to prevent cellular damage. Although we can get anti-oxidants from our diet, our body also makes anti-oxidants. An individual with G6PD deficiency has a defect in one of the pathways that makes an anti-oxidant called glutathione. We think that individuals with G6PD deficiency will have higher levels of oxidative stress than individuals who do not have the enzyme defect. High levels of oxidative stress is bad because it can cause cell death, DNA damage, and ultimately cancer (we think).

My study attempts to determine if individuals with G6PD deficiency have high levels of oxidative stress. We will do this by collecting blood samples from patients at Mulago Hospital and running tests to compare oxidative stress markers. The correlation seems logical, but no one has ever done it before! Hopefully this research will help us better understand G6PD deficiency and risks for patients who have it.

Dr. Troy Lund, MD, PhD is my research mentor at the University of Minnesota who helped me develop this study. Dr. Lund has been traveling to Uganda for over 10 years, and he will help orientate me during the first week in Kampala. He is also providing the funding for the research materials (the Fulbright Grant only funds my living expenses). I owe Dr. Lund many thanks for his help and guidance throughout the years of research in his lab.

For more information on G6PD deficiency:
Wikipedia G6PD deficiency

More questions on my project? Comment below! Thanks for listening, and stay in touch!

-Paul