Howdy from Luanda, Angola! It's been a crazy journey to get to this point in my life, and I couldn't be more excited. Since starting med school, I knew that I wanted to work with underserved populations; somewhere along the way, I decided Africa is where I needed to be. Nine years, 7 cities, and 2 graduate degrees later, I am an official Americano-Angolano. :)
I have always loved traveling, so getting the opportunity to move to a country where I can (hopefully!) have the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of children helps make me feel like all of those years spent in school were worth it! Angola has some of the highest childhood mortality rates in the world - 8 out of every 100 babies born alive here dies in the first year of life, and 16 out of 100 will die by age 5 years. For comparison, less than 1 child in 100 dies by in the first year of life, or by age 5, in the US. The numbers are staggering, and heartbreaking. Just yesterday we toured the Hospital Pediatrica David Bernadino, the national children's hospital here in Luanda, and were interrupted by the wails and cries of a family indicating that another child had died here. On average, 7-8 children die per day in the hospital; on my worst week ever during residency in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit in Little Rock, Arkansas we had 8 children die in a whole week. Usually, not even that many die in a whole month in that children's hospital, yet here it is an every day occurrence.
Angola is a large country in southwestern Africa on the Atlantic coast, south of the equator, bordered by Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, and Namibia. It suffered through a long civil war for over 20 years which left the country destroyed and covered in land mines. Though there are no official numbers, more amputees are estimated to live in Angola than any other country in the world due to the extensive years of violence. However, there has been stability and relative peace since 2002, and the country's second ever presedential elections are to be held in 2 weeks.
Due to poverty, lack of access to medical care and vaccines, poor nutrition, and many other factors, children here in Angola die of many preventable causes. Organizations and campaigns addressing many of these are in progress currently; however, sickle cell disease is rarely tested for, very common, and often fatal before the 5th year of life. Through the Texas Children's Hospital and Baylor College of Medicine's Center for Global Health, we are beginning the first true sickle cell screening AND treatment/follow-up program in Africa. Children have been screened at some of the major maternity centers in Luanda for 1 year now, with follow up at the pediatric hospital where they receive life-saving vaccines and antibiotics. We will now be working to expand access to this care throughout the city and to the northern province of Cabinda.
Since the moment we landed at the spotless 4 de Feverero Airport, I've been surprised in many ways by the level of development here in Luanda. There are crosswalks on the main streets with functioning lights and signals in many areas; shops and vendors selling anything and everything you could ever need; all brand-new cars on the roads; and signs of new construction everywhere you look. The country is rich in oil and diamonds, and has had one of the fastest growing economies in the world in recent years. There is definitely the possibility and resources available to make a lasting change; I know that my work here will be challenging, but I look forward to sharing all that I see and learn here!
