SAFE in Rwanda: Day one of the sim centre

Yesterday we made phenomenal progress on the simulation centre. This facility is being established so that a wide range of learners in the health profession can have a place to rehearse technical skills, such as suturing, and complex team dynamic, such as managing maternal hemorrhage, without practicing on patients. There will be capacity to teach nurses how to set up a table of surgical instruments, medical students how to insert IV lines, and residents how to manage a patient after severe trauma.

The centre is a free standing building with two bright, well-ventilated rooms. We had an important meeting yesterday with the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, the new Medical Director of the simulation centre, the Head of Anesthesia, and a staff anesthesiologist. Peter, Jon, Michelle and I wanted the place to look at good as possible before the meeting. We got up early and scurried around the centre unpacking the many bags of donated supplies Jon and Michelle had brought from Halifax and all the equipment from the SAFE Course. Then we ran to Nakumatt (the local Superstore plus) where Michelle bought a refrigerator with money donated by her soccer team for the sim centre. This will be essential for storing animal parts used in teaching skills. After a quick coffee at Bourbon Café we returned for the 10 AM meeting to a centre that looked remarkably transformed already.

We have been waiting a long time for the official appointment of Dr. Georges as the Medical Director of the Centre. This has delayed spending the money I received from the simulation grant. Therefore the space has not been painted and the cabinets have not been built. During our meeting the Dean got on his cell phone and in fifteen minutes we had a couple of workers taking measurements for all the renovations.

After a fabulously successful first day on the simulation program, Peter and I headed off to the market to load up on mangos, papayas, pineapples, passion fruits and cheese (all the essentials for life). There was a lively cooking session with four of us packing into our tiny kitchen. My good friend, Steven, joined us for dinner and shared many of his insights on justice and reconciliation. He will be taking many of our team to visit the church in Nyamata on Sunday.