Photo: Agatha (research assistant), Dr. Omobola Mudasiru (UC Berkeley post-doctoral fellow), and myself en route to conduct a survey at a participant's home
It’s hard to believe I’ve already been in Shinyanga for two months! This summer has been a wonderful opportunity to expand my professional/leadership skills and to gain experience working in a resource-limited setting. I’ve really enjoyed living and working in Shinyanga. The people are so warm, but it is clear that significant barriers prevent people in Shinyanga from receiving medical care, and in particular, HIV care. A huge stigma still surrounds HIV, and this stigma deters people from getting tested, sharing their status with their partners, or seeking HIV care. Additionally, we are conducting our study at a large regional hospital, and many people avoid the hospital because it is rumored to be a death sentence. Even if people can find the money, transport, and time to receive HIV care at the hospital, they spend an entire day with 300 others waiting to see a provider. These are just a few of the barriers people in Shinyanga face, and the surveys we’ve been conducting have highlighted many more. Since I'm not working on primary data collection (due to language limitations) but rather focusing on management and data analysis, it's tempting to occasionally disconnect from what I'm studying and feel like I have a regular office job. However, I'll be working on the survey and code a question about whether you can't make it to the clinic because your partner hasn't given you permission or if you ate less food this month because you didn't have enough money or if you've been beaten by your partner recently. In this moment I am instantly reminded of where I am and what I'm doing. On top of that, our office is located within the Regional Hospital, and every couple of days I hear heartbreaking screaming from family members who are devastated when a loved one dies. It can be a lot, but I’m so thankful to have worked in Shinyanga this summer and to now better understand these barriers to HIV care.
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September 2018
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