Nica Time

I think I may have been vaccinated for almost every disease one can be vaccinated for. Hep A, Hep B, MMR, Tetanus, Rabies . . . It just gets better and better. That being said I don’t want any of those so I am relatively happy it’s happening. This week in Managua there was an outbreak of Dengue. Thousands of people are sick. It has shut down entire portions of Managua and prompted NicaSalud, a group of health organizations in Nicaragua, to do a city wide fumigation. All I can say is PC has prepared me. Yeah mosquito net.

Last Friday I went to Peace Corps Headquarters in Managua for the first time, (no mosquito bites so it looks like I’ll be dengue free for the time being). Oddly enough the best part about headquarters was the parking lot full of white jeeps with PC emblems. They looked like UN vehicles you would see racing through the Sudan. It was pretty awesome. If only each PCV was issued one, we would be so cool.

In Managua we were briefed on our responsibilities as health sector trainees. In our language groups we are to organize a local youth group. With this group we will give charlas (30 min presentations) on health, lead group dinamicas (ice breaks but way more fun), and provide our kiddos with the tools to continue educating their local community on health after we have left. Individually each volunteer will begin giving charlas at the local elementary schools and health centers each week. And lastly, each group of trainees will be conducting a city wide survey about a prominent health issue. And I thought training was just about learning the language!

Speaking of language, my Jinotepe group is pretty fabulous. We are all incredibly driven and have strengths in different areas. Already we have identified a group of youth we hope to work with, written our survey, and observed a charla at the Centro de Salud. Of all of these I’m pretty excited about our youth group. We hopefully will be working with a group of young women who are local brigadistas. They are between the ages of 15-20, not attending school, and may or may not be literate. But, they are all interested in being community leaders in health. We meet with their leader tonight. Hopefully all will go well. Because Nicaragua is still developing and less than 30% of the population has a permanent job time is abundant. If we make a meeting for 5 pm, people usually will turn up around 6 pm, 7 pm, 7:30 pm . . . or the next day. Nica time is not USA time. Like I said, hopefully all will go well.



As for my mental state after two weeks in Nicaragua there is a lot to be said. I have moments when all I can do is sit down, listen to Gloria speak to us in Spanish, and hope that I don’t start crying. But, I also have moments when I am sitting with my host mother at lunch, explaining to her how VIH/SIDA (HIV/AIDS) spreads, and I realize two hours have gone by and I’m late for my afternoon class. It’s hard but I know it is worth it. In the second poorest developing country on this side of the globe, help is needed. I realize I will not change the world or Nicaragua. But, I hope that sometime in the next few years I may be able to give a little something to a local community in need of care.