Sunday 21 May 2017

The police protection

Dr. Etonu Joseph 

It was a usual afternoon at Kapelebyong Health center 4,in Uganda, like everyday during my work I see all patients with different conditions.Some of them are brought by a policeman and this would be because of assault or even rape sometimes.But this day had i saw a police officer,a gentleman well built and strong sitting in the waiting area waiting to see me. As usual because I knew he had other day duties. I allowed him into my doctor's room. I expected him to be accompanying the usual cases of rape or violence but was I wrong.

Entering the room he closes the door behind him and he sat down. So i asked him "What can I do for you?" He replied it is I who needs help, "yesterday night I was attacked by my wife and she was bitting me with her teeth" He showed me all the bite marks on the hands and the back. I felt for him because 1st of all he is a Man! And also a police man. And being in the village many men usually beat their wives and sometimes they injure them so badly. But it was very humbling to notice this policeman keeping himself calm. And he did not beat his wife(Being physically strong He didnot even fight back). I advised him to get help for his wife because he was not safe living with her.

But it got me suprised that if a policeman can seek for help on the abusive nature of his wife.Then that means he loves her and it could also mean that he respects the rule of law.But it also got me thinking as we call police for help, who helps the police when they are in trouble..?

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I am Dr. Etonu Joseph, Junior medical doctor from Uganda 29 years of age, I've been practicing for 2 years in a rural area in Uganda in a county called Kapelebyong county. I Started my work when I was 26 years old in the facility. Iam the only doctor there covering the health of 89,000 people. Being a very rural area very few doctors attempted to work there but so far i am the one who has lasted the longest in the facility..The people I serve are the humble indigenous rural people of Karamoja and also Kapelebyong county..I graduated in 2012 at the University of St. Petersburg Pavlov,the Russian Federation. But i started working in this rural area in late 2014. I ride a motorcycle to work because the roads are soo bad in the rains that sometimes it rains on me!  BUT I LOVE MY WORK and I have learnt a lot from the people I serve. 

Sunday 14 May 2017

Isolation


Caruaru - Mayara Floss @ruralices

Mayara Floss

I need to call Emergency.
There is an emergency in the rural unit.
"But doctor, there's no phone."

Caruaru 02/17

Mayara Floss 
Undergraduate student of medicine at Federal University of Rio Grande (FURG) - Brazil. She Co-creator of project 'Health Education League'.  She is the creator of the Rural Family Medicine CafĂ© to provide a forum to discuss Rural Health – a forum for students, young doctors and experienced professors and GPs from all world. She is the student representative of the WONCA Working Party on Rural Practice. She also co-created with Pratyush Kumar the project 'Rural Health Success Stories' and writes a weekly blog of Popular Education, Arts and Health - the Ferry Street of 10.