Below you will find our scholar blog posts – they cover a variety of topics, from arriving in the U.S. to interning with a stellar company to post-graduation dreams.
 | Back in February 2017, I was offered an opportunity by SHE-CAN to take the lead and impact someone’s life in my own way. I dreamed of painting houses for the families in my community that needed dust protection and would benefit from a colorful house. I’m happy to say, I made that dream a reality. |
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| SHE-CAN: Can you describe how you felt waking up on your first day of school? Anxious, excited, nervous?Aidy: I was so excited, and I had such mixed feelings on that day. It marked the beginning of my journey as a Lafayette student. I thought of when my mentors had sent me off to school and how it was very hard to say goodbye. I cannot believe I’ll be using English as the means of my daily communication and academic purposes. I wondered how it feels to have classmates whose cultures are different from mine. I was curious about what the classrooms are like and how lectures are conducted. Filled with both anxiety and excitement, I walked out of my dorm with a bunch of questions in my head! |  |
 | SHE-CAN: What was your favorite memory from your first day? Aidy: I remember my FYS professor asked me where I am from. He was surprised to learn that I’m from Cambodia, and he asked me what it’s like in Cambodia compared to the States. I felt so happy telling people about my country. It helps me take a step back and appreciate my culture and origin and how people here, in the United States, value diversity. |
| I reached Ukwala on Friday, July 7 and I didn’t have to wait until Monday to start having the life-changing experience I was hoping to have. The following day I had the pleasure of meeting with Daniel (Dan) Ogola the Director! It didn’t take long to realize that we had so much in common and shared similar views on a wide range of topics. We spent the entire afternoon until sunset sitting under a tree outside the hospital working out the details of my internship, talking about the history of Matibabu Foundation and Dan’s vision for better healthcare for his community. I pitched to him what I wanted my internship to look like and Dan put me in contact with everyone at the hospital who would be able to help once he returned to Nairobi. |  |
| At the hospital I divided my time between public health and medicine. I conducted a mini study in the Maternal and Child Health Clinic assessing factors that affect mothers’ decisions to seek antenatal care services at Matibabu. This study showed that it was evident that Matibabu Foundation Hospital was doing a phenomenal job of reaching these women considering that nurses in government hospitals had been on strike on and off since December 2016. After wrapping up my study, I started my medical part of the internship, which involved spending approximately 10 hours a day in the wards. Each day started off with rounds led by clinical officers and sometimes a doctor. After a few days in the wards, I claimed the role of taking vital signs of all the patients throughout the day, getting medication from the pharmacy as per nurse’s orders and shadowing whoever had an interesting case. I got used to being asked medical questions during rounds and eventually got in the habit of prepping before rounds by Googling as much as I could before being put on the spot. My favorite part of rounds was when the doctor or clinical officer handed me the stethoscope to listen to someone’s heart and lungs. I also enjoyed spending hours at the nursing station discussing cases and asking questions, which were always answered with the level of detail given to someone already in medical school. |  Kenya MOH’s Antenatal Care Register used to collect data for Jocelyn’s mini study on qualitative and quantitative factors that affect seeking antenatal care services by mothers at Matibabu Foundation. |
 | My first few weeks in the United States were nothing less than extraordinary!I spent two weeks with my mentors, Robyn, Liza, Melinda, Stefanie and Jenn, in New York and Los Angeles. We cooked, ate, traveled, shared stories and had lots of fun together. The warm welcoming from them helped me to settle down confidently in my “New Home.” I don’t feel scared, lonely or homesick because my mentors are here for me. |
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| The SHE-CAN staff chatted with Scholar Peninah Ingabire, rising junior at Muhlenberg College, about her summer internship with the Rwanda Biomedical Center (RBC) in Kigali. This was her first time interning with the RBC and although it has multiple divisions she worked within the maternal, child and community health division. Peninah’s internship was full-time, and she generally worked 5 days a week, 9 hours a day. Originally, she had applied to work for two months (June-July). However, she ended up working through August because she wanted to be involved in a couple more programs and really liked the Center. SHE-CAN: |