Projected Projects and Activities

• I'm trying to get a sense of the different kinds of available latrines.

Until last week, the only latrine I had seen in the village was my own. My latrine is outdoors, in the open-air of my backyard. It had a reed fence built around it for privacy. It’s a simple concrete slab with a deep hole in the middle, with foot holds on either side on either side of the hole.

Alassane showed me the Case de Santé’s latrine, built by Pharmacie sans Frontieres; this is the kind of latrine he would like each compound to have.

Then, he showed me a typical village latrine, which is also a simple concrete slab with a hole in the middle. But these latrines aren’t built as well: the hole is not so deep, the concrete slab is not so stable. With the rains, latrines tend to collapse, because they’re dug in sandy earth. And even if they don’t, human waste floats back up the hole whenever it rains. Obviously, this is a huge health hazard. For my work partners, this project is a definite priority, especially with the oncoming rainy season.

My work partner Ben said that there are two possible options for village latrines. The first kind would allow human waste to be used as fertilizer in the fields. The second kind has a removable container, which would be picked up every so often by trucks and disposed of safely. My community originally migrated from a nearby village to take advantage of Dassilami Socé’s fertile fields; everyone here works in the fields during the rainy season. So perhaps the first option would be a good fit for the village. Hopefully, Ben and I will go take a look at these two prototypes soon.

•   My village has also expressed an interest in robinets. As of now, women must make many trips to and from the village wells every day. Their ability to perch these basins full of water on their heads never ceases to amaze me. My village has four functional wells. Boutilimite has three, but two don’t have potable water. Saroudia has four, but two also don’t have potable water. I don’t know what is wrong with the water in those wells; I’ve been told that it is not “sweet”. Instead, they use it to make concrete bricks or to wash laundry. I've been told that robinet water should be sourced from a nearby forage. The price will vary depending on how far the forage is from the village. The first step is to visit the closest forage; Ben and I will probably go together soon.

•       The government conducts countrywide campaigns every 6 months to distribute Vitamin A and anti-parasitic medication to children. It also organizes tourneys intended to assess and address malnutrition in children under 5 years of age.

      Yesterday, I met the new Infermier Chef de Post of Karang. He told me that the anti-parasitic tournée will probably take place between the 10^th and the 13^th of June. The staff at the Post de Santé in Karang works closely with all the Case de Santés under its jurisdiction for efficient and effective distribution. This group of people is called “Fagarou of Karang”.

·      The PNT (Programme National de lutte contre la Tuberculose) wants each Case de Santé to conduct 14 VAD’s (Visites à Domicile) by the 20^th of June. With the help of the village relais, Alassane will visit 14 random village compounds, and look for signs of tuberculosis among their inhabitants. He’ll collect mucus samples as needed, and will send them for analysis in Sokone.

I’m not sure whether tuberculosis is still a problem in Senegal. The new ICP mentioned that each newborn gets vaccinated against tuberculosis within the 1^st month of life. I think it is still prevalent among HIV+ individuals, who are more susceptible to it. According to Alassane, there aren’t many cases of HIV+ individuals in the village, but it’s hard to tell: sexuality in general is a difficult subject to bring up, and we don’t have any hard numbers at this point. Alassane did mention that he had found one case of tuberculosis recently, an older man, who was not able to overcome the disease.

•       Students at the French school will be taking their middle school college entrance exams soon. Yesterday, I visited the French school and offered to help the students study. One of the teachers there warned me that talking with the students might be challenging. Many of them are hesitant to speak in French, because they do not speak so well and are not confident.  I hope that my own struggles with Mandinka will help them feel less intimidated. I’m thinking of also working with smaller groups of children; it’s so easy to get lost when you’re one of 30 students.