Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Our First Sensibilisation- June 29th

It only took us a year of being in country, but finally we planned our first sensibilisation.  Sensibilisation doesn’t really translate into English, the Peace Corps calls them awareness campaigns, but it’s more of a short lecture or lesson.  Basically, it’s speaking to a group or an individual on a specific, usually health related, topic- sharing sensible information-and it’s one of the main things volunteers do.  We had a ready made audience- after weeks of attending baby weighings three days a week I was well aware that these mothers arrive around 8 am, or before, and that nothings gets started until 8:30 or so.  It seemed like the perfect platform to give a sensibilisation and get my feet wet in projects in village.  We were a bit in limbo project wise, waiting for grants to come in or the school year to start, but this we could easily do now.  And the maternity offered an easy topic- infant nutrition.  Recently at a dinner with Antoinette she had told us how she would go around village with Jamie, an old volunteer in our village, and talk to people about family planning and other health topics.  She practically offered to be our translator and help us do the same.  Perfect, we had a Bissa translator.  Now we just needed to coordinate with the CSPS staff and pick a date.  We went to talk to them on a Monday, hoping to do the sensibilisation on Wednesday.  Wednesday baby weighings are the day they give vaccinations, so there are always more ladies on Wednesday.  When we arrived at the CSPS there were quite a few people in the waiting room, rainy season had started and therefore malaria season had started.  We wanted to run the idea by the Major first, following the chain of command, but when we went into the office only the midwife was there.  Both the head nurse and nurse were away this week leaving only the midwife to hold down the fort.  There were no baby weighings this week.  This news made a small part of me sad- why didn’t they let us know? We should have been called in to help.  Josh and I had had discussions with the midwife before about baby weighings and all had agreed that the two of us could do them on our own.  We knew the drill and how the books worked, we just couldn’t give any vaccines.  But, alas, we were not asked to help.  She agreed that a Wednesday would be best for a sensibilisation and we agreed on the following week. 

When Wednesday rolled around we arrived at the CSPS early and waited for Antoinette and everyone to arrive. That Wednesday also happened to be an inventory day at the pharmacy, so all the COGES members were suppose to come to help.  The CSPS staff leisurely motoed up to the clinic around 8:30, all of them taking their motos a grand total of 100 yards from their house to the dispensaire.  Ganga, the COGES president and Josh’s counterpart, biked in and started preparing for taking inventory.  Finally, just before 9, Antoinette arrived.  We had arranged for the sensibilisation to start at 8, so it would not interfere with the midwife’s usual routine.  Furthermore, inventory was to start at 8, and as treasure of the COGES Antoinette was a necessary component to keeping inventory and making sure all moneys were accounted for and medicines restocked, so her lateness was, well, annoying to say the least.  Antoinette tells us she is ready to give the sensibilisation, but first must real quick say hello to the pharmacist and check in on inventory.  We wait another 15 minutes for her, then walk to the maternity together.  As soon as we get there she says she must real quick go get Ganga.  We wait another 10 to 15 minutes.  Meanwhile, the midwife is solely waiting on us to start baby weighings and 60 or more women are sitting/standing around with crying babies waiting to get weighed.  Finally she comes back, this time with Ganga.  Sib, a nurse, arranges us in a corner and I pull out the nutrition poster I brought for a visual aid.  Sib places a stepping stool behind me and I think wants me to sit, but instead I stand on it so more women can see the poster.  Antoinette is standing beside me, then sneaks out of the room right before we start.  Guess she didn’t want to translate for us.  But Ganga was there and he understands us better anyways, so it worked out.  Josh gave the lecture in French and Ganga translated, while I made sure key points were remembered and repeated and held up the 3 food groups poster.  Sib and the Major, who joined us half-way through, threw in things here and there and reinforced what we were saying.  We briefly went through exclusive breastfeeding, proper weaning and complementary foods, and the 3 food groups and basic nutrition.  The whole time most of the women looked bored or as if they didn’t understand what was going on, and only a handful were interactive when we asked questions.  The actual sensibilisation didn’t take more then 15 or 20 minutes, or so, and I’m not sure I’d call it a huge success, but at least we did it.  If just one woman out of the 60+ there learned one thing it would be worth it, but there is no way to know that.                                       

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