Well we’ve arrived, a bit muddled and tired but all the hold luggage is safely with us which was one of my worries.   We’ve been tested for Ebola (passed!) had our fingerprints and iris recognition taken so clearly we won’t be able to get away with any mischief! The guesthouse at the Beit Cure Hospital is very basic and rather reminds me of when I was a student.   Everyone staying is very friendly but the kitchen cupboards need reorganising, the fridge badly needs sorting and cleaning and there are loads of empty beer bottles that need returning!   Would I seem too bossy / motherly if I tidy it up over the weekend? There are 3 large plastic dustbins in the kitchen which I assumed was for recycling but no, they are full of tap water in case the supply goes again. Apparently recycling

It’s taken 9 months since conception of this Madventure in January, developing and forming its shape, to hopefully successful delivery.    We’ve packed every inch of hold luggage full of medical equipment, colourful clothing and toys.   Dave and I have proved that it’s certainly feasible to start two weeks in Malawi with just 7kg of cabin luggage plus my biggest handbag and his small rucksack.   However I have a big ‘but’.   It’s all very well taking out all the thermometers, urine testing strips, minor ops stuff, antibiotics and antiviral medicines – but if there are no nurses with the skills to care for sick children then it won’t have the impact on child mortality that it could. With the best will in the world, neither of us have any nursing skills, we are both pharmacists.    Only training more Malawians to be nurses with this specialist expertise to care

Well one of us is happy.   Dave is in his element working out how to fit all the medical supplies we’ve collected into the smallest space possible.   I, who have no spatial awareness, and can’t do a jigsaw to save my life, take on the role of chief tea maker, cook and bottle washer.   Team work! Surprisingly we can easily stay within the bag weight of 23kg, what is causing the most headaches is the sheer volume to pack.   I even contact Ethiopian Airlines to ask if we could possibly be allowed an extra piece of luggage but as their normal allowance is already more generous than most airlines, sadly to no avail.  Oh well, it doesn’t hurt to ask, thankfully Dave is a master at getting a quart into a pint sized pot. and we’ve still got to fit this into the 4 bags!

We go in less than 2 weeks time and I am surrounded by endless ‘to do’ lists.   This is hilarious for as my husband will vouch, I HATE LISTS!   However in order to keep my Madventure under control whilst holding down the day job I succumb. My lists are many and varied and include – personal lists; GPs to chase; lists of what other people have promised; contacts; provisional Malawi timetable; questions to ask when I’m there – I practically need a list of my lists. Just to impress my husband I’m keeping them altogether in one notebook instead of a flurry of scrappy bits of papers. Dave, to my mind, cheats with his lists by including things he’s already done – so on the grounds of what is good enough for him here goes! Flights booked Accommodation confirmed and yes they do provide towels

When I planned my day shadowing pharmacy staff at Birmingham Children’s Hospital I was worried about my lack of knowledge about hospital pharmacy systems and my clinical skills regarding paediatric medication.   What I don’t anticipate is my emotional reactions, especially as a Mum confronted by these seriously sick children and their families. The day is a real roller coaster of an experience.   I meet a very mature teenager who knows all his medication and when his next injections are due, a couple with a baby of only a few months old that has never spent a day outside hospital.   I see siblings play around the beds of very very sick children including those awaiting transplants.   I can see those that have had transplants in isolation rooms. I suppose the children on the wards in Blantyre will be surrounded by family too but I know the

Happily Club seem really keen on the T towel idea and I get the go ahead to do this.   This gets husband Dave and me thinking about other fun ways my Club could raise money to support the training of paediatric nurses in Malawi. But we are not a fund raising organisation I hear you cry!   True, but when I’ve discussed this before with longer standing members of my Club, I accept that it’s not all about lobbying and service.   In order to make a difference, and educate, empower and enable, we sometimes will need to raise funds.   And we do have the reassurance that 99.7 pence in every pound will get to this project via Friends of Sick Children in Malawi.   So – ideas all based on raising £2 per person.   Show and tell evening – pay £2 to bring an

I don’t have any sisters (or brothers for that matter) but what I love about the Soroptimists in my Club is the wisdom and advice that they are always so willing to share with me and the positive way they direct my over-enthusiasm on occasion. I eagerly outline some of the plans for when I’m in Malawi including husband Dave taking photos of the children to send back to Club, and keep them updated.   Fortunately for me, two Soroptimists with a lot of experiences in child safeguarding and mistreatment point out the dangers of posting photos of young children on the internet.   I feel immensely saddened by this; the internet is such a useful tool but clearly open to abuse.   These children are vulnerable enough and Friends of Sick Children in Malawi supports a One Stop Centre for Victims of Abuse. (See item in their

Ok so some of my friends think I should be committed.   Husband Dave tells me that he has finally booked the flights, just as well as we are due to fly in 8 weeks.   As he says ‘we have to go now’!    I’m a bit worried about the luggage allowance, we still have 2 x 23kg each of hold luggage but the cabin allowance is now only 7kg.   Hmmm, this is going to require some imaginative packing; either that or we go native and buy our clothes when we are out there. My magnificent Medicines Management Team is the best in the world.   At the last team meeting before the summer break, as I’ve promised not to spend the money on my flight, they ‘sponsor’ digital thermometers, urine testing strips, syringes and needles to the tune of £120. They also bring in piles of good

Well they say that in every cloud there is a silver lining.   Before the end of flaming June we have deluge Saturday.   Our plant sale to raise funds for Friends of Sick Children in Malawi at the Lion’s Show is a complete wash out in every sense of the word; sadly it rains all day so only the hardy brave it to Abbey Fields. I take a large boot full of plants into work to sell on the Monday, and as they are such fantastic quality and value courtesy of the generosity of the nursery one our Soroptimists works for, they sell very easily. Someone in the office buys an African daisy as a gift for a consultant she is working with. Another amazing co-incidence, the consultant has worked at the Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital supporting the training of paediatric medics!   And knows some of