Malawi Visit Update

Hello friends,

So, here's a little update on our Malawi visit.

Tuesday, we saw our good friend Marjorie Ngaunje, and had dinner at her house in lilongwe, the capital of Malawi, our home base in Malawi. She told us about the recent elections, and her disappointment that they seemed to have been rigged. According to Marjorie, and another friend of ours, this election had many folks convinced that things were rigged. Marjorie was a member of Parliament up for reelection, and while she had the support of her hometown region (which should have meant she would be reelected), and unknown outsider came in and supposedly "won" the election. Marjorie is going to fight it in court, but doesn't think she will get anywhere with it. She is doing it as a matter of principle.

Wednesday, we went to a government sponsored hospital in Lilongwe. Our 15 year old daughter Giovanna was with us, prepared to take pictures if the opportunity presented itself. The system in the hospitals here is radically different in many ways from ours. One of the most noticeable ways is that here in Malawi, when you check into a hospital, you must have a "guardian" check in with you. The guardian will be responsible for many of the things we expect our hospitals to provide for us: she will wash you, change your bedsheets, clothes, bandages, cook for and feed you, and alert the nurse if you have a medical need. Since one nurse may be responsible for 50 to 100 patients, the guardians take over the basic caregiving needs for the patient. The guardians have their own area where they live, do laundry, cook, etc. Laundry is done by hand, and hung out to dry in the air. Food is cooked over wood fires, with the wood being carted in on the women's backs or heads. When our friend took us to see the guardians quarters, Giovanna was hesitant to take any pictures, afraid to bother the women. Speaking from experience, I assured her they would love it, especially once she showed them the photos she was taking. This proved to be true, with the women and children laughing and posing for pictures as we went through their quarters.

While the guardian system is so unlike ours, it actually has some benefits when you think about it. The patient has a friend or family member readily available at all times, and they don't have to feel like they are alone in facing a difficult and stressful situation. They get to eat food that is familiar to them, and have a caring face wash and tend them. So many people are uneasy in the hospital, and it is the same way in Malawi, if not more so. The guardians make a difficult situation a bit easier to handle for the patients.

That's all for now! Hope you enjoy the photos that Giovanna took.
Mary