Monkey Brain Musings

 Hello dear friends! I can't possibly be the only one who is gob smacked by the fact that we are nearing the end of November already, days from December. I have been working more than planned, as the hospitals continue to be overbooked and understaffed, which may also explain the rapid passing of time. You will have to forgive my rambling, but I am not only exhausted but long overdue for a blogpost, and I miss the connection I feel when I get a chance to share my plans and goals with you.  Today would have been my parents wedding anniversary and I am about to get through my first holiday season without them both. My mother loved this time of year, whereas my father was fondly referred to as the Grinch of the family. Mom and I would drive around looking at Christmas lights, find a local Tea House to have Holiday Tea, decorate the house together, and I was often in charge of helping mom choose the photos for their Christmas cards. I am doing my best to embrace the holidays in their h

 Welcome back, friends...or just plain "Welcome" for those of you who are here for the first time. 😊 Let's jump right in, shall we? It's almost unbelievable that 2 months have flown by since I last checked in, and what a 2-months it has been. Shortly after returning from Africa, I flew back to the Midwest to bring my aunt back for my father's funeral. On June 20, Military Funeral Honors were held for my father, a retired Lt. Col. in the USMC. Taps were played, there was a gun salute, and the U.S. burial flag was folded and presented to me. My parents' ashes were finally laid to rest at the Fort Worden National Cemetary in Port Townsend, WA. It was an emotionally exhausting day, a relief to have my parents' ashes finally buried together and also a horrible reminder that both of my parents are truly gone. That's how my days have been, moments of overwhelming grief juxtaposed with the feeling of having a huge weight lifted off my shoulders, allowing me t

 Saturday, June 3, 2023 Good morning...and I do mean "morning"! My morning started at 3am, for crying out loud. I arrived home on Tuesday afternoon and have spent the past few days forcing myself back into my time zone. Pure exhaustion and an 11-hour time difference helped me get a solid 6 hours of sleep for the past few nights... which is good for me...but last night I could only manage 4 hours, so here we are.  I think I'll work backwards, filling you in on my last day in Dubai. I woke up early and started writing to you folks. :) Housekeeping forced me down to the pool for a bit (very sad, I know!) and by 10am it was already close to 100 degrees F and very humid. Nada had sent me a message Sunday night, inviting me to join her at a Secret Supper Club dinner Monday night, so I decided to spend the day in my room packing my bags and staying cool.  Now let's talk about the Supper Club dinner...WOW! I'm going to quote myself, from my Instagram post... I cannot reme

 Monday, May 29, 2023 Yes, I'm still here! :) Good morning from Dubai, my final day here. I made it to my hotel sometime after 11pm on Friday, exhausted and longing for a hot shower. Still feeling wiped out the next day, I decided I would take some time to NOT think about future plans and projects with ITW, work, upcoming responsibilities and appointments, writing, etc... You get the idea, my Monkey Brain needed a break, even if it was forced! I have a lot of plans and ideas to share, regarding my next trip with ITW, but I will wait until I get home. Saturday morning, I met my dear friend, Nada, for breakfast. Nada and I met on my first trip to Dubai years ago. She owns her own tour business, and I took one of her Historical Walking Tours of Old Dubai on my first day in town.  wanderwithnada.com When I returned to Dubai, on my return flight from Uganda in 2018, we spent more time together and have remained friends ever since. We had a wonderful long breakfast (3 hours!) at this lov

 Thursday, May 25, 2023 I have spent the last two days as a guest lecturer/trainer at the Consortium for Health, LTD (CHI). Through funding from the Philips Foundation, ITWA successfully started up an ultrasound training entity that is currently accommodated at the Women's hospital of the Bannabikira Sisters of  Bwanda at Kyengera on the outskirts of Kampala City. The institution currently serves as a training arm of ITWA and is also envisioned as a long-term income generating entity for the organization.  The school offers our basic Ultrasound training program, but also offers advanced courses to Physicians and practitioners. I worked with a physician who had a special interest in Women's Health. I provided hands-on training, as well as lectures focusing on fetal biometry and OB pathology. She was an enthusiastic student and a real pleasure to work with. CHI also employs a Radiographer, Gingo, who joined in on my lectures and was very helpful during the hands-on training. If t

 Here is an extra post to introduce a few more of the training team, as posted on the Imaging the World Instagram account... I would like to introduce Elizabeth (Liz) Akinyi Odour, the Program Coordinator for ITWA Kenya. This is her first year with ITW and she loves it very much. Liz holds a BS in Communication, majoring in Electronic Media from Daystar University, Nairobi, Kenya. She also holds an AA degree in Culinary Arts from Grand Rapids Community College and has completed a course in Project Management. She is originally from and continues living in Kenya with her husband and child. Liz: “I love working with ITW because I share in the dream of improving people’s lives by increasing access to modern medical imaging technology in the most rural and resource limited areas in my country.” Liz is a dynamic, organized and charismatic addition to the ITW team, and we are lucky to have her. Sister Mary Angela Njeri is a Midwife, Sonographer, Medical Technologist and Trainer for ITW. This

 Monday, May 22, 2023 I'm back in Uganda, exhausted, but happy to see Uganda team. I have so much to catch you up on! Saturday was the graduation ceremony, which went very well. One of the many challenges to offering this type of training, expecting trainees to spend an extended amount of time in a remote location, is that the clinics must have staffing at all times, so we cannot train everyone from the same clinic at the same time. For that same reason, only the most recent trainees were able to attend the ceremony, the previous group having to stay at their prospective clinics to work. Every attendee receives a certificate of completion, and the current trainees were presented with the Ultrasound machine and equipment. The presenting of the equipment was ceremonial, because all of the equipment will be registered with the Community Health Program (CHP) before going to the designated clinic. The responsibility of using and caring for the equipment is heavily stressed by the traine