The Pied Piper of Haydom

Lena Ward - Haydom Lutheran Hospital

 

It has been my great fortune to visit this hospital for a week every month for the last four months. Whilst Kirstein flies nurses and chanjo (vaccines) to remote villages in the area, I have been enjoying a kind of retreat; writing, researching and getting to know some of the people who are dedicating their time and expertise to this astonishing hospital. I was lucky enough to get a detailed tour of the hospital on my first visit, as it coincided with a visitor from a nearby health clinic who was eager to see if their patients could be referred here.

 

A friend suggested that I should take my violin to play for the patients, so on this last visit I managed to play for the children and their relatives. They have visiting hours between 2-4pm; the first afternoon I played in the main room where they have parties on weekends, and the second time I played in each room. A wonderful nurse called Sister Paulina was my escort to the different rooms and joined in singing with me as I played Swahili hymns and Christmas carols. It was great to hear relatives joining in (mostly the mamas) and clapping along.

 

There has been a lot of debate in the media recently about the well-intentioned Sir Bob and the re-release of 'Do they know its Christmas?' to raise money for the ebola crisis. It's hard to believe that the same tales of the woes of Africa are still being thrown out today - that the West hasn't moved on in their misconceptions and misjudgements after 30 years. Yes, the ebola crisis is horrific and requires external help, but it is only the crises that demand money that ever reach the wider attention of the West. I want to focus on the assets and the potential. The children and families in the Lena ward are receiving good care, they most definitely know it will soon be Christmas, and they most likely have a better idea of the true meaning of Christmas than their counterparts in the West. Mungu awabariki!