With the goal of strengthening RHCI’s work in Tikonko Chiefdom of Sierra Leone, the nine travelers safely traveled to and from Sierra Leone via air, sea and land, spanning the end of December through January 18th. They were warmly received in Tikonko by the community, the expectant and post-partum mothers and RHCI staff. The mission of RHCI was furthered through the travelers’ participation in the operations of the Mbaomi Mothers’ Home and their involvement in other aspects of health care and education.
As an Epidemiologist at the Minnesota Department of Health, Julie Hoffer brought much needed skills to RHCI’s work in Tikonko. Reviewing all the patient information from Mbao-mi Mothers’ Home and the motorbike clinics, Julie designed a system to capture all the key information and indicators needed for surveillance and reporting. Her efforts will improve RHCI’s understanding of its work and impact as well as provide better information for donors and other stakeholders such as the Bo District Medical Office.
Assisted by her daughter, Alexa, Julie spend many long hours in this endeavor, and followed it with training for the staff. Julie and Alexa are a great team and accomplished a huge job in a short time. They both created strong relationships with the staff members through technical trainings and visits at the Mbaomi Mothers’ Home.
Embracing the local culture, Alexa Hoffer wore a lappa skirt like the women of Tikonko. She was involved in a variety of roles during her two weeks in Tikonko. Spending time at Bo Children’s Hospital, she learned how to recognize, diagnose and treat malaria in children. Alexa also participated in clinic work at Gondama and Tikonko Health Centers and interacted with the expectant mothers at Mbao-mi. Many days she assisted her Mom, Julie, in compiling 2 years of data on over 400 Mbao-mi patients into the new monitoring system.
While in Sierra Leone, she received the exciting news that she had been admitted to the Physician’s Assistant program at St. Scholastica in Duluth! Ever popular with village children of all ages, Alexa was the recipient of a live chicken brought to her by her new friends. Much laughter could be heard from far away, and the chicken was released after being named Alexa.
Maggie Pilacinski, communications director for RHCI, kept very busy throughout her time in Tikonko with a variety of activities. With a major focus on understanding the agriculture community, she met with many farmers and the director of the Agriculture Business Center. She coordinated meetings with Njala University Agriculture Program, and RHCI hosted 12 people including professors and students. Traveling with them to distant villages, Maggie facilitated the interactions between farmers, farm leaders and the Agriculture specialists from Njala, and University of Illinois (Dr. Paul McNamara). RHCI is hopeful these relationships will continue, leading to improved agriculture practices and better crop yields to ensure proper nutrition for families in the chiefdom.
At the Mbao-mi Mthers’ Home, Maggie made it her mission to get the grinders working properly. She spent hours with staff instructing them in how to properly clean and keep up the two grinders from Bountifield, a Minnesota NGO. Towards the end of the trip, a cassava leaf grinder was purchased and Maggie provided the essential teaching for the staff to use it correctly. While at Mbao-mi, she also assisted in major storage reorganization. Not to be left out, the babies and children were a major focus for Maggie. Many times she would be found holding newborns, or singing and dancing with children. She left a very warm and positive impression on everyone.