Joe's Final Reflection

Post by Joe Corbino, PD4

            It’s hard to believe that I only have two nights left in Kampala before I begin the journey back to Minnesota for the remainder of my APPE rotations. These past four weeks have been full of exciting new experiences that both humbled and challenged me mentally, emotionally and physically.

            Over the past several days I have been able to conclude my clinical experience by attending a variety of rounds at Nakasero Hospital. As both An and Melanie have mentioned previously, Nakasero is a private hospital that resembles what we see in America much more than average healthcare throughout Uganda. I have been surprised by the shear number of malaria cases involving individuals from foreign countries. This reiterates a very important point, always remember to take your daily prophylaxis while in an endemic area! It has also been interesting to see the types of bacterial infections that have infected individuals in the intensive care unit. During my time three individuals developed blood infections with a bacterium named Acinetobacter baumannii, which was resistant to about every antibiotic available in the hospital. As medical professionals, especially future pharmacists interested in infectious diseases, we were worried about what that meant for antibiotic resistant infections in the near future! Nakasero has also given me the opportunity to converse with a variety of healthcare specialists, such as a cardiologist, nephrologist, and geriatrician. Both the clinical and personal conversations with these individuals has led me to have a greater appreciation for the compassionate care that they give to patients and the passion they have for their careers.

            Our final Saturday was spent relaxing at Speke Resort on the edge of Lake Victoria. Even with the overcast sky for most of the late morning and early afternoon, we enjoyed an Olympic size swimming pool mostly to ourselves in what felt like a totally different part of the world. The sun finally decided to come out in the late afternoon, which made a walk on the shores of Lake Victoria a perfect end to a lazy day. An added bonus to remember this great day was that we all are currently sporting some major sun burns.

An, Joe, and Melanie at Lake Victoria

            Due to this being a rotation with research emphasis, we were all assigned the task  to perform a literature review and design a research study on a particular topic. My topic was investigating the effect of an antiretroviral drug, dolutegravir, and the consequences it may pose to individuals initiating treatment during various stages of HIV/AIDS. If this is something that sounds interesting to you, I would be more than happy to talk your ear off as it is all I have been reading about for the past four weeks. Our final presentations were given this afternoon and we all feel a huge weight lifted off our shoulders!

            I feel extremely fortunate that the University of Minnesota has connections here in Uganda. The plethora of clinical and research activities that I have been able to witness firsthand have truly been life changing. I feel that my experiences over the past five weeks will impact my career for the rest of my life. I learned to have greater appreciation for all of the resources that we have available to use in America, not just medical. All of the institutions I have been immersed in have been able to provide comprehensive care even with limited resources.

            I am still surprised with how quickly I became comfortable in Uganda. I was expecting there to be an adjustment period where I would feel like a complete outsider. With the help of both individuals at the Minnesota House and healthcare professionals, I was able to quickly overcome any uncertainties about my place in this country. With only a few days left I am not ready to leave. I still find myself constantly surprised by the circumstances that people find themselves dealing with. Even with so little they find ways to live their lives to the fullest while rarely complaining. If anything, this is the lesson that I want to share with people when I return. We need to appreciate what we have in front of us and try to make the most out of it rather than wishing for more.

           

Kampala neighborhood

This rotation has constantly been making me question where my future in pharmacy is headed. I entered the rotation set on completing two years of residency specializing in infectious diseases and becoming a practitioner. Two weeks into the rotation I realized how much I enjoyed the process of research and thought that pursuing a PhD or fellowship may be a better option. Over the past few days my thoughts have changed once again! I have now even began to consider the possibility of completing additional public health degrees and working at a more global level to impact as many lives as possible through policy, research and public health campaigns. The bottom line is that this rotation has made me appreciate that there is so much more to healthcare than what I have been exposed to in the United States. I have a passion for improving the lives of people, especially thus suffering from infectious disease such as HIV/AIDS. I am more confident than ever that this passion and drive will allow me to find careers that work best for me in the future.

Lake Victoria

            We have several activities planned over our final two days, which is sure to make the time pass at lighting speed. With a presentation scheduled for early Wednesday morning and a last-minute info sheet added to our schedule the learning never ends! I look forward to the moments of reflection over the next several days and weeks. Thank you to everyone that has been following my journey in Uganda for the past month as it has been truly life changing.