My first surgical experience

Pre-warning for reading this post: There will be pictures that for some will be hard to watch, and it is therefor recommended to read with caution. 

Surgery
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Okay...


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No wait, give me a second to gather myself...


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There we go. Okay, so last week I was in the surgical department. This is the first time I have ever been in an OR...not being under...and it was awesome!!! Together with the CEO, Dr.Patrick, and one of the other general surgeons, Dr. Julia, I was allowed to observe some really interesting operations; including the repair of two hernias, an above the knee amputation, and a case of bilateral elephantiasis.Weeeeee...

And that was only some of what I was allowed to watch...

But what amazed me even more was the fact that the CEO said it was no problem if I wished to take pictures or video the procedures. What did I do? D'uh, course I documented my first ever surgical experience!

As some people do not enjoy seeing blood I now warn you: beyond this point there might be some pictures your abdominal area will not be pleased with witnessing.
 

 Here you can see me watching the final part of an amputation of a leg. Yum much?

And here is a little close up...

Awesomeness if you ask me. About the actual procedure, it was really different from what I had expected. I am not sure whether or not it was due to all the blood floating around, or the fact that the surgeons were rather rough, but watching a leg getting sawed off with a wire was definitely a first time. I do also have some videos, but I will spare you from those for now.

But yeah, as I mentioned earlier (okay, I didn't, but what ever), the doctors and interns are a great bunch of people! They talk me through all of what they do, they explain to me why they do things, when on ward-rounds they try to bring me up-to-date on patient history etc., and really include me in the diagnostics and interaction. Time of my life.

And for those who wanted to know what Elephantiasis is, here you go! It is a disease where the skin and underlying tissue, in this case - the lower legs, is thickened. It is often misheard as Elephantisis, though this only refers to inflammation of the area of disease. The pictures from this operation were quite gross and I therefor choose to leave them out. If you wish to see them you can always just message me, the operation was quite interesting to watch!


A little side-note 
A quick funny thing to mention, as Dr. Patrick (sorry Patrick, I wasn't sure how you spell your surname so I thought I better leave it unwritten) is amputating a leg he asks me whether or not I have a girlfriend.

- No, I do not. I respond

- Well, you know Dr. Waigumo (an intern at the surgical department) is a very nice and happy woman. She is only a few years older than you and you should definitely check that out.

- ... Uhm...  huh?

Later that day, while in surgery with Dr. Julia (sorry to you too Julia, these Kenyan surnames are difficult to catch when thrown five of them at you with a quick pace) she bursts out while repairing a hernia:

- So, I hear you are single, Nick.

- Yup, that is true ma'm.

- So is Dr. Waigumo in fact. You should go out clubbing with her. We'll take you out. 

- ?

 
Yeah... well, at least they sound friendly!

And to maintain awesomeness, this week I am in the orthopaedic and paediatric department where I also will be allowed to join in on the diagnostics and surgeries. I have been allowed to observe some really interesting cases, and it seems like there are more to come!!! Worth every penny...


When I'm not working
Oh well, work aside - the weather here is horrible. It rains EVERY SINGLE DAY, and I'm not talking about some drizzle now and then, I am talking about hard-core thunder and lightning that strikes as if Thor has some bad ass flatulence going on. The power goes several times a day, and we are left in the darkness of our living room and in the presence of bugs and creatures unknown to mankind.

Amusement?

Luckily I live with some cool people though. Recently, I have been living with a bunch of girls, which comes in hand when hungry or the house is in need of cleaning (I am joking -.- I'll leave my sexist comments), together with the only other guy in the house - my German, awesome friend, Andi.

Sadly, both him and several of the other people have left for now, as I am the unusual one - staying there for 6 weeks, whilst the rest of the bunch I have lived with, with one exception, only booked a two week stay. But I guess this has its pros and cons; I will get to meet a lot more people and get a lot more friends, though it would be nice to develop a bit deeper of a friendship rather than of that you obtain from sharing a house for only two weeks. Oh well, I will visit some of the English people when I get home from Africa, so that's at least something - stop worrying Nick.

It is rather strange to think about the fact that I have been away for a month already. Being away from wherever "home" would be, only having to pay 3DKK for 0,5 l of soda (don't worry, I am eating really healthily! Drinking almost only water every day, solid meals with chicken or beef... bla bla bla - have to satisfy people who worry about my diet as well, you know) being stared at as if  I have a mole with the size of my left butt-cheek on my nose. I am on a foreign continent I have never set foot on before, all alone - no family, relatives or old friends from school. No Facebook, yup - I tell you, no Facebook (I am really trying to distance myself from this consumerism - being a bi-product of a lifestyle obsession) Hm.

Two weeks more and I am leaving Kenya. Namibia here I come! Soon.

Well, I think I should call it a day, I am really dragging this out with way too long sentences. Hope to hear feedback from people soon, though I cannot expect many people will read all the way to the bottom of such a long post. I do miss you guys though. This really makes one appreciate what one has. FYI.

Until next time,

//Nick

My instagram

Just as a little notification: instagram is a very nice app that works both for Android and iOS that let's you blog with photos. I tend to upload stuff there too, so catch me with the profile name nikolaikleftas if interested.  :-)

//Nick

My new work experience

So, I'm Nikolai L Kleftas, I am 20 years old and I'm a Pre-Med student.................

Recently I talked to one of the heads for African Impact, the people who organise my work here in Kenya, about if it was possible for me to get some medical experience while I am here. And they said I could. The day after I travelled to P.C.E.A. Kikuyu Mission Hospital, and I was introduced to the Chief Executive Officer who bombarded me with questions concerning my education. But, if there is one thing IB teaches you for sure, is to handle a stressful situation with a reasonable amount of bullshit! Okay, calm down, they don't think I am the Chief of Surgery from a Norwegian hospital or something... I just needed to make sure I would get at least some of what I payed for on this trip, some medical experience.

I was handed over to one of the GPs at the hospital who furthermore passed me on to four of the interns at Kikuyu Hospital. I joined them on a ward round for diagnostics and examinations, including two rectal examination (yes, it was quite weird watching a 69 year old getting his number II checked out), an ECG (Electrocardiogram - a transthroacic interpretation of the electrical activity of the heart) and a man with abnormal bone growth. It was a very exciting day, and the interns could not have been better! Explaining why they did what they did, being interested in my education and future plans, they really made my stay better than anticipated.

They also decided to make a plan for me to rotate between all the different departments of the hospital, including the medical departments, surgery and theater department, paediatrics, ICU and on it goes. I hope that my next few weeks will show me a different side of medicine, which I think will be very interesting to behold.

Oh, I almost forgot to mention... while on ward rounds, checking up on a patient, I looked out of the window for a second and noticed a monkey strolling around the hospital grounds, with everyone around being completely oblivious to its presence. Amusing...

And lastly, there are some new photos uploaded under "Kenya". Check them out... FULL SCREEN! by pressing on the pictures.

Until next time,

//Nick

My trip to BOC

On last Friday we were to organize a FUN-day for all the kids at BOC - Body of Christ Childrens Centre, a school/orphanage for the local kids. So what we did was to buy in fruit, balloons, beads and paint and we planned out several fun activities for the kids to try!

BOC is a very poor local school and orphanage, and it was very difficult seeing how the kids lived, and at what standard. It was therefore very important to us all that we would make a fantastic day for the kids, so they could have fun and forget, at least for a few hours, the hard life they have and enjoy some fun activities!

After their lunch we started off with some games like Tag, Stuck in the Mud and other childhood games. We then painted a board with the hand prints of all the kids for them to hang up on the wall. The kids had a great deal of fun playing around with the paint, coloring not only the board, but also the pavement and stones surrounding the school... and all the volunteers' clothes! Hehe...

We also had balloon races, a stand where they could make bracelets, and the guys organized some small football games with some of the children. In all it was a great success, the kids had a lot of fun, and we all left with a bunch of great memories!

If you want to see more pictures simply go under "Kenya" and they should be on the top!

//Nick

My first safari

I just got back from my first safari ever, and it was as far from disappointing as you can ever imagine. During the two-night stay at Mara Naiboisho Concervancy with some of the other volunteers I was basically crashing the back yard of the most amazing animal kingdom one could imagine. While on the game drives I saw animals in their true habitats. There were game drives both at 6 o'clock in the morning, and afternoon/night drives in the pitch black.

I witnessed almost all of the Big 5, animals like Lions and Gazelles, Elephants and Hyenas, Giraffes and Baboons. All of this in the scorching sun from a massive Land Rover. Check out some of the pictures under "Kenya".

Our camp was also incredible, with three course dinners, big beds, electricity, hot water and showers, flushing toilets (YES!!!) and on it goes. It was, as I mentioned under the pictures, the second best experience in my life, and I recommend everyone to try it out at least once!

//Nick

My starfish

An old man walked across the beach until he came across a young boy throwing something into the breaking waves. Upon closer inspection, the old man could see that the boy was tossing stranded starfish from the sandy beach, back into the ocean.

"What are you doing, young man?" He asked.

"If the starfish are still on the beach when the sun rises, they will die," the boy answered. 

"That is ridiculous. There are thousands of miles of beach and millions of starfish. It doesn't matter how many you throw in; you can't make a difference."

"It matters to this one," the boy said as he threw another starfish into the waves.

It matters to this one. 

//Nick

My encounter with gratefulness

I feel disgusted and sickened, appalled and demoralised.

At Limuru Children Centre, a local orphanage taking care of over 130 kids from the age of 5 till 18, the Easter holiday is creeping on and  approximately 40 children are present. While preparing their food I hear the energetic shouts of prayer and as they run in to the dining area they give me some of the most honest, touching smiles I have seen, saying with a hint of embarrassment; 'hooww aaa yooouu?'. Forty kids run into a room made for ten, without complaint sit closely together quietly and eat their food, without cutlery, and when finished they bring their plates out, wash their plate and mouth, and comes over to 'the mother' (the local volunteer making food) and me to thank us. They then left for school again with a smile on their mouth, waved at me and said; 'kwa heri' (goodbye in Kiswahili).

- Limuru Children Centre

I am well aware that children most often appreciate what they receive and are offered, but seeing this up close, witnessing it firsthand how truly grateful they are is emotional.

It disgusts me, those spoilt, ungrateful brats of the modern world. We eat with our eyes whilst they eat with their stomachs.

It is amazing seeing their happy faces, their outgoing personalities, spite noticing their obvious undernourishment. They play and talk like they have no worries in the world. The thin legs of the mothers and their wobbling walk firmly confirms that they consider their younglings before themselves - yet they have this energy to laugh and joke, and to take the effort to talk to me and tell me about their lives struggles. 'Asante'.

It is admirable beyond any recognition.

//Nick

My arrival

After a dashing two day travel and zero hours of sleep I arrived at Jomo international airport, and it took less than 35 seconds of driving before I saw a beautiful Sabel Antelope. Clearly this was Kenya. The humid conditions plastered the clothes to my body, and while opening the window in the car for a breath of fresh air I got a taste of the Nairobi smog. Cough cough...

Ben, the local African Impact worker that picked me up from the airport, luckily assured me that malaria wasn't as prominent in Limuru as in other parts of Kenya. Brackenhaust, the conference centre in Limuru which I am hosted at, lies on the 'mountain tops' amongst vast tea farms, and I can remark with the utmost truthfulness; it's stunning, it's beautiful, and surprisingly - my lodge is luxurious!

You might judge my being at a luxurious conference centre while in Africa to do volunteer work, but I would like to justify my situation. I payed an immense amount of money for this trip, and this  mainly to I did to assure my security (as I have been notified that both Nairobi and Limuru are quite dangerous areas at the moment) and for some form of living standard as I prefer not having runs.

Now, about the actual place; there is a tennis court, a gym, a restaurant, a personal chef and personal guards for the volunteer workers, a standard bed and bedroom and on it goes. Food is great and weather is humid but enjoyable. But don't worry - my living standards will fade as I will travel to rural, poor areas for the actual volunteer work tomorrow. I will start on one out of two projects: work with special needs kids; or hospital and clinic work, and this I will do for some weeks, where I then will be offered to change projects if I wanted to experience something different.

My first choice would obviously be to get work experience in the hospitals and clinics, so fingers crossed for that! But nevertheless, I would of course accept any work experience. My wonderful mum has been so kind as to teach me some basic things I could use when interacting with kids where communication is challenging on several levels, so in fact - fingers crossed for what ever tomorrow will bring!

Until next time...

//Nick

My trip has begun

So this is the first post... Yesterday I flew from Copenhagen to London Heathrow, where I have spent the night on a very cosy bench. Now I only have to wait 12 hours for my flight to Kenya -.-

Must say it's strange. I have never been away from everyone like this before. Travelling alone I have done tons of times, but not to a completely unfamiliar continent where I will be on my own so to speak for almost five months. Wow! I think I'm finally starting to let it sink in, the whole situation.

I have had a thought though, that I might have brought too much baggage. One massive Norwegian mountain bag, two shoulder bags and one small backpack. One day in and my shoulders are killing me. Hehe... But then again, I can't really say that I have been the most active person lately, so I think I just need to give it some time.  :-)

Until next time...

//Nick