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Student stories
The first batch of IBT applicants have now returned from their electives and the IBT committee would like to share with you what they’ve been up to.
The Trust managed to help 11 individuals and groups fund projects or to take equipment with them. As the stories below reveal, the students have been all over the globe and have managed to contribute in more than just financial ways to the hospitals they have visited. Just over £2000 was granted in 2008 in total.
Planning is now underway for the 2009-2010 elective period, so if the stories you read inspire you, please get in touch by visiting the 'Contact' page for more details about the application procedure and funding availability.
For now, please sit back and enjoy reading the student stories.
Laura Jarvis went to the Accra Regional Hospital in Ghana and wrote the following:
"I went on elective with my two housemates to Ghana, and spent 4 weeks at the Central Regional Hospital, 2 weeks at Ewim Clinic, an urban clinic in the centre of Cape Coast, the town where we were staying, and a week in a rural village practice.
My colleague, Bethan James, and I combined our donation from the Ian Burnell Trust, to buy lots of different medical equipment for the hospital. We took with us a sphygmomanometer, which we gave to the maternity ward at Ewim clinic as theirs had broken and they had no other; two laryngoscopes – one adult and one paediatric with a number of different sized blades, which we gave to the intensive card ward at the hospital; a diagnostic kit consisting of a sphygmomanometer, tourniquet, stethoscope and tendon hammer, which we gave to the obstetric ward; and an oroscope and two stethoscopes which we gave to the paediatric ward.
All of the departments were really grateful for the equipment as a lot of their current resources were old and did not work. I had a really enjoyable time whilst there, and so was glad to be able to give a little back to the hospital as a thank you for all the time and support they gave me whilst on placement.
I thank you again for the generous donation from the Ian Burnell Trust, and I hope you continue to be able to offer this opportunity to future medical students to allow them to take medical equipment to countries that are in desperate need of it".
Rachel Haines went to Santa Cruz Island, 'Hospital republica del Euador', and wrote with the following testimony:
"The hospital was as under funded and poorly staffed as I thought it would be... and I know that the bits I took out to them were very gratefully received. Because of a lack of equipment the only things that they can really do in the hospital is deliver babies and treat diarrhoea and vomiting. They can't even fix a broken bone - people have to wait till the next day to catch the next commercial flight to Quito on the mainland - if they can afford it that is. Those that can't afford it either suffer or allow the inexperienced doctors to try to treat them. Since there are only paediatricians and obstetricians on the islands you can imagine what fracture repairs turn out like. Even if the 'step-in' surgeon manages to fix the fracture there is no Xray anyway so they can't confirm the position of the bones.
Everyday I was astonished to find out what the hospital didn't have. They don’t even have blankets for the 6 ward beds! The paediatrician said to me that the only thing that they could treat were intestinal infections and even then it depended on the pharmacy stocking the drugs...
I definitely have an interest in medicine on island communities now and I would love to do further research into the impact of large tourist communities on the health systems of small islands.
Thank you for your support for the hospital and for your interest in my elective. If I can ever do anything to help please don't hesitate to contact me. Some people might think that small grants like the ones you give won't make any difference, but when you literally have next to nothing £250 worth of equipment goes a long way!"
Miranda Ashton worked at Zomba Central Hospital, Malawi, and writes:
"I chose to undertake my elective here because I was keen to experience medicine in an environment which does not have as many resources as the UK and thus where the challenges and solutions are different.
Zomba is a town of 100 000 people in Southern Malawi, about 1 hour from the city of Blantyre. Its hospital holds 600 beds and is has 4 main departments: surgery, obs and gynae, general medicine and paediatrics. There is also a malnutrition unit. Malnutrition is endemic in Malawi; 50% of children under 5 are chronically malnourished and a large proportion of these have HIV/AIDS...
...With the grant money which I received from the Ian Burnell Trust I bought a variety of small equipment for the hospital. This included needles, syringes, fluid giving sets, disposable thermometers, urine testing sticks, bandages, gloves, dressings, analgesia, rehydration salts, sterilising fluid, stethescopes and eye drops. On my arrival at the hospital the consultant with whom I was working went through the equipment with me and told me which wards would benefit the most from it. I was able distribute the equipment throughout the hospital myself, so saw first hand the reactions of the staff to the donations. They were hugely grateful for these items as their supplies of basic medical equipment were often low/non-existent. For my own part, I witnessed on several occasions the treament of patients with the equipment I had brought out. One incident which stands out in my mind was the diagnosis of nephrotic syndrome in a young boy with the urine testing strips. We were able to start appropriate treatment promptly which was particularly important in this case because he was suffering respiratory distress due to his grossly enlarged abdomen. I found this experience very rewarding because I was aware that without the strips it would have been more difficult to definitively diagnose and treat his condition".
Edward Rawstorne wrote with his experiences in Gondar, Ethiopia:
"Myself, Tecwyn and Catrin spent our elective at a teaching hospital in the city of Gondar, Northern Ethiopia. It is one of approx. 5 teaching hospitals in the country and provides healthcare for millions of people. As teaching hospitals go this was pretty basic, and severly lacking most types of equipment reflecting the economic status of the country (Ethiopia is one of the 20th poorest countries in the world).
We contacted the hospital in advance and they told us they needed basic items like sphygmomanometers, glucometers needles and syringes and an otoscope. These were gladly taken and used through out the hospital. We had also managed to get our hands on some alcohol gel for the doctors - which was needed because wards and consultation rooms did not have any sinks. We initially spent time in internal medicine and then split off to emergency medicine, surgery and paediatrics.
We all felt that we learnt a huge amount during our stay, improving our clinical skills and our knowledge of infectious disease. It was fantastic to be able to take some equipment there to go some way to thank the staff for the learning experience. Without the Ian Burnell Trust this would have not been possible. Thank you!"
The equipment bought for all of the 2008 projects came directly from IBT supporters. Thank you so much to everyone who contributes- your involvement is extremely worthwhile.
If you are interested in supporting the IBT, please get in touch through the 'Contact' page.
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