May 26th 2009

Dr. Denham, our chapter advisor, visited me this morning at my bedside. He flew from Accra to the north on the 6am flight. I was in good care before he arrived, but it’s still reassuring to have a friend nearby.

I can now join him in the “Triple Plus Club”. He knows what I’m going through because he also had Malaria(+++ ) during an EWB trip. Most cases of malaria are categorized as (+), which is the lowest concentration in the blood. (++) is severe. (+++) means you need to get to a hospital quickly.

Malaria does not cause excruciating pain as some might think. It’s more of a sustained discomfort, an inescapable agony. I was fortunate to receive medical attention as quickly as I did. Once they take the fever down, the condition becomes much more tolerable.

I already feel much better than I did yesterday (I should. My blood is half Quinine). I was released this evening and moved across the street to the Sand Garden Hotel. I will stay for at least two nights before I go north again. They gave me another set of medications and a checkup date next week.

It is difficult to imagine what someone from Yua would have done in a similar situation. Most people have no access to phones or vehicles, much less the money to pay for treatment. Even the ones who could make it to the clinic in Yua would not receive adequate medical treatment. They don’t even have a ward to admit sick patients. The extra room freed up by the nurses quarters will help, but it’s clear that further work is required to meet the need of the 4000 people in and around Yua.

-John Yatsko