Today was my last day in Kawete. I saw several more children today.  I also saw some women and men before we packed up the clinic and headed back to Kampala.  It was a great trip.  We saw between 160 and 170 people. The majority were children.  The ten year old boy with the ifection of his leg came back today for follow-up and his fever was gone and the knee was no longer hot and red.  It was still swollen but much improved.  I saw a father with his 2 daughters today who had just lost their mother.  It was so sad.  The younger daughter was 13 months old and weighed only 11 pounds.  We treated both of the girls for malaria, parasitic diarrhea and worms.  I also gave them a hard boiled egg from the restaurant at the hotel we stayed at in Jinja, Uganda.  I hope the egg gives them some strength.  I was sad to leave the children but know they are in good hands and learning well at CCLS-Uganda.  The future looks promising.  Charles Bameka and Violet Nanono are great people and doing good work here.  I look forward to continuing my efforts to support the children of Kawete through their hands.  As I leave I thank God for sharing His people of Kawete, Uganda with me and allowing me to be a part of their community.  As I said before, as I worked with the children and their parents, I saw God among them.  Their spirit, patience, joy and love are amazing.  I can't wait to return again next year!

It is midnight now.  I thank you for following along.  I thank you for all of your support and prayers for my visit to Kawete, Uganda. 

Yesterday we had a very good day in Kawete.  It was a warm sunny day!  In the medical clinic we were very busy.  We saw 47 children and 15 adults.  There was everything from Malaria to Eczema. I saw some sicker children, too.  A 3 year old boy who only weighed 22 pounds who had malaria and intestinal parasites. I gave him the malaria therapy, deworming medicine and anti-diarrheal antibiotic.  I also saw a 10 year old boy with a fever, swollen, red knee and upper leg.  I diagnosed him with cellulitis.  In the US I would have admitted him to the hospital for IV antibiotics.  Since I can't here in Kawete, I gave him an antibiotic shot in his leg muscle and gave him antibiotic by mouth.  I asked him to stop by to see me today.  I Skyped with my family from the clinic yesterday and it was fun.  The signal was ok but not crystal clear.  Someday it will be.  Today will be my last visit to the clinic.  I feel sad.  The children are so wonderful and so grateful for our help.  I feel that although they have a challenging life they are joyful and that God is walking with the children of CCLS-Uganda everyday!

Some of the girls have developed near-sightedness and courtesy of donations we were able to give some corrective glasses.

                                  Johnnie with a 5 month old boy with bronchitis.

                         Matayo has bad allergies.  I saw him each year.

                         This little girl is in P4.  She had allergies and a sinus infection.

                        Some of the children have dry skin.  I gave a large bottle of Aveeno Lotion to her and did this first application to her arms.

Today we had a long and busy day at CCLS-Uganda in Kawete.  We were warmly greeted again by the students, teachers and parents.  I went to work quickly at the medical clinic.  I started with the children in the 6th and 7th grade.  The 7th grade is called P7 for Primary School Year 7.  They have final exams in 3 weeks.  Most of the children are 12 to 16 years old.  Some of them live at the school during the school week in a converted multipurpose room.  They had mainly minor issues although I could have used a dentist on a couple of them.  I am going to leave some money behind for their dental care (a filling costs about $18).  I treated them for malaria, parasites, allergies, sore throats, sinus infections, eczema and fungal infections of the scalp and body (Ringworm).  I also handed out a lot of toothbrushes and toothpaste (donated by my brother Kevin Killian DDS-dentist in St. Peters, MO).  We were fed lunch again.  It was the same as yesterday (potatoes, chicken, beef, rice, turnip greens, beans).  It was filling and tasty.  It is not real spicy in case you were wondering.  I continued seeing patients til just after sunset.  I was there until I saw the lights of the school come on.  They have inside and outside lights now.  They are powered by a battery that is charged during the day by solar panels.  They work pretty good.  You can see well enough to study at night which is important for the P7 children with upcoming exams.  The children and their parents are very thankful again for all we do for them.  They are such beautiful people.  I will post again.

                               The children running along the bus welcoming us to Kawete!

                                Teaching a young girl with Asthma to use an inhaler.

                               This mother lost 2 sons to Malaria and Sickle Cell last month.

                                 A caring father who was ill brings his 2 sick children to see us.

                             This little boy was not happy to see me until I gave him a lollipop.

                             Jonnie has been assisting me in the clinic and making my day go easier!

I just returned from our second visit to Kawete and CCLS-Uganda.  We were greeted by the children again-singing, cheering, waving branches and so excited and joyful that we had arrived.  They gave us a welcoming song and dance by their Junior Dance Team-AMAZING! After that we went right to work in the Medical Clinic.  I saw 28 patients today.  A variety of illnesses much like we see in St. Louis like allergies, asthma, Strep Throat, eczema, Reflux Disease with heartburn, bronchitis and pneumonia.  I also saw illness specific to Uganda-malaria and parasites.  The children were very thankful and joyful.  The mothers were also glad that we had come again.  I was fed by the community again-beef, chicken, irish potatoes, beans, rice and cassava.  It was tasty.  The Senior Youth Goup also made some pastries similar to donuts.  I drank a lot of water today, too.  Hot and humid on the equator.  I will add some photos later.  Another blessed day serving the children of Kawete!

Today was a great day in Uganda!  After a good night of sleep, I ate breakfast and then we headed to Kawete.  It was exciting to be there again.  We went to the Sunday church service.  It was full of singing, praying and a total of 4 baptisms and 5 confirmations.  Pastor Schaser gave a great sermon on how we are all one in the family of God.  After church I set up the medical clinic in one of the classrooms.  This will be my office for the next 4 days.  I saw about 20 patients between 2 and 6 PM.  6 were adults and the rest children.  The most difficult was a boy with Sicle Cell Anemia.  I talked to them about how to help him.  We gave him a supply of daily Multivitamins, Folic Acid and daily Amoxicillin to prevent infection.  Unfortunately, we can't give him emergency (IV fluids or blood transfusions) or pain control when he has sickle cell crisis.  The vitamins and Folic acid help him to build new red blood cells.  I saw a couple cases of presumed malaria. I say presumed because the exam does not show other cause for fever and I can't test for it like we do for Strep Throat in the USA.  There is a rapid test but it is very expensive ($25 each).  I expect to be busy tomorrow but I am looking forward to seeing the children of Kawete!  I am posting some photos from the clinic today.  One is of a girl named Zitunia.  Her family is very poor.  She has hardly any clothes.  I was able to give her 2 skirts and a new shirt which my niece, Danielle Burns, gave to me to deliver.  Zitunia was overwhelmed with happiness!  She ran out of the clinic to try the skirt on and loved it so much she left it on as you can see in the picture.  It was great to be a part of that today!

                                            It is no fun to have malaria!

                                            Talkimg to his mother about his medicine

                                                Zitunia with her new outfit!