Itchy itchy skin!

We had a gorgeous weekend, with bursting sunshine! It was so refreshing to be able to spend some time outdoors and do some painting :)

This week is about skin and the diseases of the skin. Wound care and dental care included.

These are some of the goodies we bake... as you see I have the best work duty ever! And now you're wishing you were here, as you rightly should be!

Nottingham

I went to Nottingham this weekend: WOUAHOUOuuuu!!!! T'was a wonderful time...it's a beautiful place. And great compagny :) Saw my first bluebells which got me really excited!

This week is on the digestive system. So great subjects like diarrhoea, cholera, desentry, malnutrition :s But also nutrition, weight monitoring and all that cool stuff!
5 milion children die because of diarrhoea every year and nearly all the casulties are preventable! That's a huge amount we can save just by a bit of simple education about re-hydration.
I'm really enjoying being on a Christian base and living in that atmosphere. The times of worship and intercession are a blessing and the friendships and fellowship are encouraging and challenging. Hope you are all well. I'm glad you got to visit this page. :)

Nutrition:

Worldview & Poverty

This week we learnt more about how to teach people so that they can put it into practise and remember it. But we also studied about a biblical worldview and health and poverty. It was a very challenging week of lectures. I realised that we (at least I) often have a very fatalistic understanding about the world that doesn't leave much space for hope. This is actually conditioned by our societies and churches. We often believe the world is going down the drain anyway, that there isn't much we can do to change things globally.

What do you think? Is the world getting better or worse?

3 little students!

So this is us! The IPHC students (James, me and Chelan). I know, we're a tiny group!!! We went to Nuneaton, the closest town from here. The weather was usual crazy English weather: one minute it's sunny the next it's raining than sunny than haling :)

The King's Lodge

Two main settings

This is a picture of my bed :) I hope to put up a few pics of just my environment during the next few days...

Today was test day: it went very well, it's a good way to summarise and digest what we have learnt.



A few interesting facts for you:

• Did you know you produced enough siliva in your life time to swim in? You could acctually fill two pools with it!
  
• If you unravelled your intestines they would be 4 times higher then you!


• Uganda has the highest rate of pur alcohol liters per person in the world! In Switzerland they count 11l./ person in Uganda 19l.!!!

And my desk and it's pile of books!

Doing Vitals!

This has been pretty exciting; as well and learning about basic anatomy and physiology, we have been learning to take blood pressures, temperatures, respiration, and pulse! So we have all received our own stethoscopes and blood pressure equipment. Fun hey? I am just so excited whenever I hear the heart beat... we are so beautifully made. Otherwise we have been learning about patient assessments and how to train people on health care. As you see it's all quite vast!
I was struck today by how immensly huge God is. He has created the whole universe... What we can understand about Him is soo limitted, so conditioned and tiny winy! Even that God had to reveal it to us. And we ourselves are so small and infignificant in that universe. But He gave up His own life, Him the Creator, for the sins we commited in the first place. It blows me away again. We are so quick to complain about our problems, our stuggles as Christians or the things we don't understand. God IS gracious.
I also learnt I'll be working in the hospitality department of which I'm very glad.

Primary Health Care

First day of lectures!!! We have been looking at what Primary Health Care is and the 8 keys of Primary Health Care. Now I can tell you more about it!!! :)
It is essential and simple health care, accessible to the local community through their participation and at a cost that they can maintain at all times. It is the first level of contact for the individuals with the national health system and based closest possible to where they live. Therefore it is simple but of great impact.
To insure this you have to look at

• food and nutrition (adequate, affordable and balanced diet),
• water and sanitation (clean water, improving hygene),
• disease control (preventing and controlling major diseases through immunisation or teaching),
• mother and child health (pre- and postnatal care, training birth attendants),
• curative care (trainng health workers to recognise and treat diseases),
• essential drugs (obtaining most effective drugs at cheapest costs),
• health education (empowering local people),
• community resources (assisting local community).

Did you know that 80% of the world's diseases are caused by unsafe water or sanitation? Or that 5 million of young children's deaths per year could be prevented? Or still that one third of children in developing countries are seriously malnourished? I meen anyone can do something about that and yet do you know where 99% of the money in Christian countries go? yeah that's it: to itself.

Sunday 6th April 2008

We learnt where we are probably going on outreach; Uganda!!! It's good to know about where we are going. We received a huge pile of books. I'm excited about started the courses now :)

Saturday 5th April 2008

This was a busy day today: orientation and trip to the nearest town... Tonight we are having worship with all the new schools. It's bound to be great!

Friday 4th April 2008

Today was very encouraging for me. God showed me how this school was His plan for me. The staff were thinking of cancelling the school but after praying stronlyfelt it should run however few we may be, that God had great plans and fruit for the school.

"The smallest family will multiply into a large clan. The tiniest group will become a large nation. I, the Lord, will bring it to pass at the right time."
Is 60:22

While I was praying last Summer about what I was to do this year, I received for months on end Isaiah chapter 58, to the point of it even getting annoining! :) but reading the history of the school I noticed it was one of the founding verses It's such an encouragement to know God wanted me here all along.
We also received our squedule and the study plan which seems so fascinating! It got me really excited. The teaching extends from addictions to patient assessments, God's heart for the poor and needy, (mal)nutrition, wound care, burns, dental care, first aid, community development, listening skills, spiritual mapping, pharmacology, injections, malaria, dengue fever, AIDS, child health, pregnancy, and all the systems and diseases...
We have had time to get to know each other a bit which has been great! Hope you are all well!

Thursday 3rd April 2008

So here I am in England (Warickshire, Nuneaton) at a Youth With A Mission base called the King's Lodge. It 's a large red-brick house in the center of green English country side. Spring is just pointing it's nose out and I can't wait for it to burst!
Arriving here, I was able to meet my team mates and staff. I was surprised to find out we were only 4 students at the moment (2 still need visas)! I can't wait to get to know them!
It's always hard to start a new season and I miss family and friends a lot but unpacking my stuff and decorating my room helps me feel more at home. Now it looks all nice and Keldaesque! :)
Anyhow the school starts tomorrow: it will be nice to get busy!