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This morning everyone was engaging in our usual debriefing of the previous night before we headed onto the bus to begin our new day. Unfortunately, many students experienced stomach issues, nausea and vomiting overnight and into the early hours of the morning. Many of us speculated that we had some type of food poisoning from the food we ate yesterday at dinner. No one was able to pinpoint the exact item that caused our sickness, because we all tried different food items. Many of us felt a bit of relief from our symptoms in the morning; however, we had to leave one of us behind, because she did not feel any better.
This morning we enjoyed a traditional Kenyan breakfast on campus at the KUCC, including boiled eggs, mandazi, sausage, watermelon, and milk tea. Shortly after, we went on a nature walk in the arboretum down the road. While we were walking to the arboretum, Dr. Irene, Caro, and Winters raced Faith until we arrived. An arboretum is a botanical garden or living museum that is dedicated solely to trees and woody plants. At Kenyatta University, the students use the arboretum as a place to have conversations, sit and relax on benches, lay in the grass, reflect on their thoughts, and simply to take in the beautiful scenery. The space was very open and it smelled very fresh and earthy.
As we entered, we met a herd of goats who were enjoying their morning breakfast. Within the trees, there were a few small canals that had some overgrown weeds. Further into our nature walk we encountered some cows feasting on their version of a five star meal which is grass. There was also an insane amount of beautiful flowers present throughout the area. Our professors and other students wore some of the flowers on the sides of their hair, which made everyone even more beautiful.
After our photoshoot of nature, we headed to The Kenyatta University Health Clinic, specifically Ghana 2 and Ghana 4 Clinics on campus. At Kenyatta University their streets are named after various African countries, hence why the clinic is called Ghana. The Ghana 2 clinic focuses on reproductive health, maternal health, and family planning. The Ghana 4 clinic focuses on STD/STI testing, prevention and treatment of diseases, counseling, and screenings for persons who are victims of sexual assault. The other areas Ghana 1, Ghana 3, Ghana 5 and Ghana 6 are hostels for professors.
At first we had a group discussion with some of the students from Kenyatta university. Our conversation started with the students expressing the main issues surrounding female health in Kenya. They mentioned abortion, use of contraceptives, misuse of the morning after pill, and stigma around sex and menstruation. They also mentioned that at this clinic on campus all services are free. At Hollins, all services are not completely free at the health center however, we get cheaper prices and we are able to use our health insurance if we are unable to pay. At Kenyatta University, many students don’t visit the health centers despite them being free because they aren’t aware of the clinics. They are scared to learn about their bodies, and they have a fear of stigma. For example, a person mentioned that students may not want to go to the HIV center for testing because students who see you there will automatically assume you are HIV positive even if you are negative.
At Hollins, we have an all-inclusive clinic meaning that they deal with all issues from a common cold to doing basic screenings. This can mask our confidentiality as only the patient and care providers know the purpose of their visit, whereas in Kenyatta the clinics are focused on certain areas. We have also noticed that there is a larger number of young mothers at Kenyatta University than at Hollins. The high rates of young pregnancy in Kenyatta University are not from a lack of access to resources but simply because of their fear of being judged by adults and their peers. In the USA abstinence is encouraged more than the use of contraceptives whereas in Kenya it is the opposite.
In Kenya every month the government sends disposable pads/tampons to the high schools. They are currently advocating for the government to start sending disposable pads/tampons to primary schools and to universities for use also. A student from Tanzania mentioned that there is not good awareness about menstruation. She said that many students stay at home while on their period because of their lack of access to period products. Due to their lack of access it results in unsafe materials like mattresses, rags, and cloth being used when they are menstruating.
In the USA most women have access to products for menstruation, however it is difficult for them to obtain due to affordability. In the USA there are also more options such as disposable pads/tampons, menstrual cups, reusable pads, and period diapers.
After our visit in Ghana 2, we headed over to Ghana 4 which is next door to Ghana 2. Again, this clinic mostly focuses on STD/STI testing, prevention and treatment of diseases, counseling, and screenings for persons who are victims of sexual assault. This part of the clinic also offers voluntary male circumcision every Thursday. In Ghana 4, they gave us a tour of the facility and brief rundown of how the check in process and documentation work. We got to see counseling rooms, STD testing rooms, and TB (tuberculosis) testing rooms.
The company responsible for supplying all medication in Kenya is called KEMSA (Kenya Medical Supplies Authority). We also got to see some of the medicines prescribed to people who suffer from HIV, hepatitis B and tuberculosis. What was interesting was that despite someone being Hepatitis B negative, they will still be prescribed the same type of medicine a Hepatitis B positive person would take. It is usually given to men engaging in sexual activity with other men and community sex workers as a preventative measure in case there were any false negatives.
Kenyan culture is very slow and laid back. This has been a substantial learning curve for us, as we are used to a go-go-go culture in America. During the downtime at lunch, students built a tower of objects from the table. Once the tower fell over, we were on our way to the library. We loaded into our “assigned” seats on the bus. While we don't have assigned seats, we all sit in the same spot every time.
After lunch, we went on a tour of the Kenyatta University Library. Upon entering the Library, we had to go through metal detectors and have our bags checked; this is a stark difference compared to Hollins, where students just walk into the library.
Afterwards, we were given a guided tour by one of the library staff members. She highlighted all the facilities and services that students are able to access. They have a large library book inventory spanning across disciplines. Students also have access to their online database. We also were able to interact with a couple of the librarians here. They shared that the library can seat 6,000 people and has almost a million publications. Compared to the average American library, that's crazy! On this trip, we have noticed that in every room we entered there are pictures of the school’s Chancellor and Kenya's President. This seems to show how prideful Kenyans are about their educational institutions and leaders.
After the library we headed back to our accommodation for a quick rest, and to pack for tomorrow's trip. Tonight our hosts have planned for us to see Nairobi by night. Those that are interested spent part of yesterday getting outfits and headed out after dinner, the rest of the group that preferred to rest stayed at the accommodation and relaxed. We have an early start to tomorrow as we are leaving at 8:00 am to head to Maasai Mara.
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