Nele Grapentin
On assignment as a nurse in Uganda
Name
Nele Grapentin
Age
29 years old
Profession
Nurse
Country of operation
Uganda
Duration of mission
6 months
My everyday life in the project
In the project, you become an all-rounder pretty quickly. In the emergency room (and other wards as needed) at the hospital in Kiryandongo, I was able to support the team with my expertise as a nurse. It was especially important to also work with the national physicians and the nursing team. In addition, there were also some management tasks such as organizing medications for the hospital.
In addition, the hospital has to provide capacities in case of outbreaks or epidemics (such as the current measles epidemic), and has to organize the necessary equipment for isolation wards in cooperation with the responsible health authorities.
My spare time at the project:
In my free time I read a lot (preferably by Herman Hesse), wrote by myself or listened to music (the music of Aretha Franklin and Sam Smith were my constant companions). I also enjoyed walking and going to the market in Kiryandongo. One can move relatively freely in Uganda and thus get to know the people, country and culture better.
I also enjoyed sitting together with my colleagues. It is nice to exchange ideas, to reflect together on what we have experienced after an exhausting day and also to be able to laugh together.
I particularly appreciated:
The openness, goodwill and gratitude of people towards you.
The laughter of mothers and children and especially the curiosity of children!
Being as a community with Cap Anamur and national colleagues. The solidarity in difficult situations and to know that you are not alone.
Sometimes the silence of Kiryandongo and the chirping of birds. The flora and fauna of Uganda. Everything is beautiful and green, here.
I especcially missed:
I can’t really say that I missed much, here. Uganda is wonderful, the food is great and I get along well with my colleagues. Of course, I miss my family and friends, but I had frequent contact with home and that was incredibly good for me. In fact, I also miss my home Berlin from time to time. Then I think “longingly” of my favorite cafe or my favorite place.
My plans for the future:
I would love to do more outreach for Cap Anamur and make a much bigger impact. Other than that, I could also see myself doing my Master’s in Public Health.
My best memories of my time on the project:
There are many wonderful memories but what always gets me emotional and makes me realize the reason I’m doing this is when a patient is recovering from a serious illness. Especially when these brave little children get better. You try to do the best you can with the few resources you have. And then to see a little child who has malaria, pneumonia, malnutrition or measles start to laugh again are the most beautiful moments for me.
I am also always moved by the strength of the women. They are the pillar of any family and most of the responsibility lies on their shoulders. I would like to see women in Uganda get more respect and become more aware of their strong voice, and also get the chance to use it. What I take away from my experiences is that gender equality is not a given right and much more needs to be done for women and girls in Africa.
Team members in portrait
Thorsten Kirsch works as a nurse for Cap Anamur in Somaliland. His most important piece of luggage for the trip: His guitar. Being involved in areas where his strengths lie and having an incredible number of opportunities for further training - Thorsten has taken a lot away for himself from his assignment.
Pediatric nurse Simone Ross had great experiences in both Sierra Leone and Uganda. Working in the emergency room, in the infant and pediatric wards, training local staff, organizing materials for the laboratory - the varied and diverse tasks were what she appreciated most about her work in the project.
As project coordinator, Shabbir Ahmed takes care of the health care facilities in Bangladesh with which Cap Anamur has cooperation agreements.
Midwife Sarah Schütz worked for six months in the Central African Republic at our hospital in Bossembélé. There she helped deliver many children including twins and premature babies.
Nurse Nele Grapentin's first mission took her to Uganda, but it is by no means to be her last mission for Cap Anamur. The curiosity of the children, the incredible strength of the Ugandan women and such a diverse country - when Nele Grapentin talks about her mission, she quickly goes into raptures.
Mathias Voss, a nurse, spent more than a year working in our hospital in Sudan. His duties included ward, emergency room or maternal-child clinic rounds and continuing education for local staff members.
Above all, the strong women impressed nurse Karina Busemann in Somaliland. If she had to list all the fond memories she has of her time on the project, it would probably make an entire book. The laughing children will remain in her memory for a long time.
Pediatrician Dorothea Kumpf was in Somalia for Cap Anamur. For six months, the young woman worked in a hospital in Somalialand, an area in the north of the country. Especially the open nature of the population remained in her lasting memory.
The nurse Anika Wentz talks about her 6 month assignment in our hospital in the Nuba Mountains in the south of Sudan. There, she experienced many things that impress her to this day.
Andreas Tsukalas works as an architect for Cap Anamur in Somaliland. This is already his sixth deployment.
Afghan-born Faisal Haidari works as a project coordinator for Cap Anamur in Afghanistan. Since 2001, the Afghan, of Tajik descent, has been taking care of the progress of Cap Anamur projects in troubled Afghanistan.