On my way

I am en route to Malawi right now where I will arrive in Lilongwe after approximately 36 hours of traveling. I was encouraged to write a blog about my time there this summer by my sister-in-law Kendra, and I think it will be a good way to share stories and pictures. As a disclainer though, I am not nearly as web-savvy as she is so please be patient!

When I arrive in Lilongwe I'll be leading a study of drug resistance in the STD-clinic at Kamuzu Central Hospital. This is especially important since they clinic does very little diagnostic testing (with the exception of HIV); everything else is treated syndromically. Antimicrobial resistance in STIs is a global problem, with extensive surveillance in the U.S., Western Europe, and other developed countries. However, there is very little data from developing countries. Concurrent STIs facilitate HIV transmission, thus adequately treating STIs is critical to HIV prevention efforts. I not only hope to contribute information to the field in an area where data is very sparse, but also help the Ministry of Health make appropriate treatment recommendations.

A little about the name of my blog...Muli bwanji (how are you?) is the basic greeting. Ndili bwino (I'm good) is the standard way to respond. Mazungu is a white person. There is a fairly active Ex-Pat community and every Monday evening is a hash run. For those who haven't been on a hash, it involves running around in a big group looking for the trail. Invariably the group of predominantly British and a few Americans would be chased by children shreaking "Azungu! Azungu!".

Tionnana for now...