Preparing for your trip to Uganda

As I am making final preparations to depart for Uganda tomorrow, I thought I would add a quick post to let you know what is involved in preparing to travel to Uganda. Our preparations started in December when timing and duration of the current trip was being negotiated. Here are a few things that took place between December and now to plan our trip to Uganda.

-Obtain entrance Visa from http://www.ugandahighcommission.com/consular-services/visa-application
-Obtain vaccinations (keep documentation for entry into Uganda): Yellow Fever, Meningococcus, Typhoid, Polio, MMR, Hepatitis A & B, Tetanus-diphtheria.
-Obtain and fill prescriptions for traveler’s diarrhea and anti-malaria medication.
-Renew passport if needed.
-Book flights (our route is Toronto – Amsterdam – Entebbe), transportation and accommodations.
-Obtain travel and health insurance.
-Register travel itinerary online with the Canadian Government office.
-Anticipate financial needs and obtain local currency. (USD is the best currency to use in Uganda. Recent, large and new/crisp US bills will get the best exchange rates).
-Get documentation to verify that any medical supplies being brought into the country are solely for donation and not for resale.
-Obtain letter of permission from our hosts in Uganda outlining the purpose of our visit.
-Make careful choice of clothing that is culturally sensitive and also appropriate for warm weather, sun, prevention of mosquito bites, and functional enough for very full and active days of work.
-Gathering of information: I have reserved almost every book from the Hamilton Public Library on Uganda and Africa. One favorite is a Lonely Planet publication called The Africa Book. While it only gives a high level synopsis of each country (and I am not sure if it the authors are African), it is a large hard cover book that shows amazing pictures and provides a taste of the varied cultures, regions and landscapes in Africa. http://shop.lonelyplanet.com/Primary/Product/General_Travel/Pictorials/PRD_PRD_1996/The+Africa+Book+Pictorial.jsp I’m sure there are plenty of other great books too! And tons of great websites too.
-And finally, create blog and learn how to ‘blog’!

Along with the usual packing list for any international trip, here are a few of the additional items that are recommended:
-Mosquito net (depending on accommodations and nature of travel)
-Scarves to wear as shawls
-Flashlight in case power goes out briefly
-Towel Tabs (These little beauties look like Rolaids, but when you run them under water, they conveniently turn into a cloth for wiping hands and face! Available at Shopper’s Drug Mart).
-Plenty of antibacterial hand wipes and hand wash
-Malarone
-Rehydration salts
-Ciprofloxacin
-Multivitamins as we might possibly be eating fewer fresh fruits and vegetables
-Immodium

For someone like myself who comes from a long line of list makers, double checkers and over packers, preparation for this trip has been no small task! :) But worth every second spent planning!

Now back to the suitcases! Have a great long weekend and thanks for checking in!

Please note that the views expressed in this blog are those of the author and not necessarily those of the St. Joseph’s Health System or the St. Joseph’s Health System International Outreach Program.

Two more sleeps!!

I would like to begin our ‘Uganda Blogumentary’ with a brief introduction of the team travelling to Uganda as part of the St. Joseph's Health System (SJHS) International Outreach Program (IOP), as well as a bit about the IOP history, accomplishments and ongoing objectives.

The team soon to depart for Mbarara, Uganda from July 31st to August 8th, 2010 is made up of Dr. Saramin Galinski, Ms. Marnie Buchanan, and myself, Jessica Fry. Here is a quick bio of our team!

Dr. Galinski can be found in the Operating Rooms at the Brantford General looking after patients as a staff anaesthesiologist. She also works in Hamilton as an associate clinical professor at McMaster University. Dr. Galinski has been a key member of previous trips to Uganda and this year she is the team lead of our trip to Mbarara. We are lucky to have her steering the ship!

Marnie Buchanan is the Manager of the Labour & Delivery as well as the Triage and Assessment departments in the Women’s and Infants’ Health Program at St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton. Marnie has been on one previous trip to Uganda and brings a wealth of clinical and management experience to our team. Marnie will be working hard on the current trip to further relationships and nursing initiatives that were started during her last visit to Uganda.

Last but not least, I am Jessica Fry. I also work at St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton as a Performance Improvement Consultant in the Quality, Planning and Performance Improvement Program (QPPIP). My objectives are to provide training and information exchange in the areas of Quality and Process Improvement, as well as Measurement and Analysis. This is my first trip with the SJHS IOP - and my first time to Africa! I am honoured to be a part of this team and this program, and am SO excited to begin this journey!!

To provide you with some context for the current trip and our blog (which I hope you continue to follow!), here is a bit of background information about the SJHS IOP:

The St. Joseph’s Health System has proudly engaged in international outreach to global communities since 1986. The primary programs at this time are in Haiti and Uganda, though prior programs include Russia, Yemen, Romania, Domenica and others. International Outreach is funded by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Hamilton, Canada and supported by member organizations and friends of St. Joseph's Health System. Projects complement sustainable work already underway in our partner countries, and outreach teams include the Sisters of St. Joseph, doctors and nurses, biomedical engineers, and lay people. SJHS has also trained 50 doctors from Uganda and Haiti at hospitals in Canada, including St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton.

Uganda is a country with a population nearly the size of Canada (nearly 28 million) in an area less than a quarter of the size of Ontario. The country is ranked 144th in the Human Development Index of the United Nations. A previous British colony, its medical schools retain the structure of the British model. Like other countries in the region, Uganda faces many health challenges including Malaria and AIDS. Basic medical equipment, training and supplies can have a dramatic and immediate impact on the people of this nation.

What St. Joseph’s Does In Uganda:

The SJHS IOP focus was initially the provision of medical equipment and supplies but now includes education and training of medical residents and fellows.
-St. Joseph’s sends needed medical equipment to medical and teaching centres in Kampala and Mbarara. Previous shipments have included thousands of items including medical equipment like ultrasound and anaesthesia machines, medical supplies including gauze, stretchers, syringes, and lab supplies, and oxygen and pharmaceuticals.
-St. Joseph’s provides education opportunities in Canada for Ugandan Doctors
-St. Joseph’s brings biomedical engineering expertise to these communities to repair donated equipment, and teach equipment maintenance to Ugandan colleagues
-St. Joseph’s supports research activities through a pool of PhDs in Canada who review and advises on Ugandan colleagues’ work. At the present time the focus of research in Uganda is: HIV, Malaria and Tuberculosis.
-St. Joseph’s investigates potential sources of funding for research in Uganda
-St. Joseph’s supports an international outreach coordinator in Mbarara and Kampala, Uganda
-St. Joseph’s sponsors internet access at medical education sites

In closing, I would like to thank all those who made this trip possible and helped us in the preparations for this endeavor.

And thank YOU for reading our blog! I will try to update twice each day!



Please note that the views expressed in this blog are those of the author and not necessarily those of the St. Joseph’s Health System or the St. Joseph’s Health System International Outreach Program.