Proud to support the next generation of medical professionals – Lucy heads out to Busua, Ghana (3/3)
On June the 17th 2023, Lucy, a medical student studying locally to the Alexandra head office, travelled out to Busua, Ghana, to offer her time, skills, and efforts, supporting Dixcove hospital, a local hospital and childcare teaching program. In this final instalment, we showcase some of what Lucy got up to, during her time on her medical placement in Busua, Ghana….
Lucy found her time working in Ghana “...such a surreal experience. I worked quite closely with the maternity, obstetrics, and gynaecology team as this was the ward which was the most action-packed 24/7! Whilst there, I worked night shifts, working long days into the late hours of the evenings, just to ensure I got the most out of my short time there. I was able to assist in deliveries - both natural births and caesarean sections. I was able to witness many emergency surgeries, support with pre- and post-operative care as well as supporting doctors with ward rounds etc.”
This placement was truly life changing, and as can be expected filled with the highs and lows of the medical profession, sadly, Lucy also experienced ”…some really traumatising events. Having patients becoming severely ill with malaria but having no blood pressure monitoring equipment reliable enough to confidently monitor and guide care for patients was one of the worst times. Without access to basic monitoring equipment, patients, particularly those who were pregnant, were at serious risk.” As we have seen with Lucy, she doesn’t wait around and with her passion to help and facilitate change, Lucy set about raising money to help fund the much-needed equipment the local hospital was struggling without.
Lucy wanted to do all she could and set about collecting small donations from those around her, and within 48 hours Lucy had raised a total of £1,000 to help fund urgent supplies needed. Lucy wanted to act fast to help those in need of the urgent and vital care and support the hospital and their local teams provided, So, armed with a list of the much needed, essential medical equipment the hospital required, Lucy and a small team of her fellow medical students headed off and travelled to the next, larger city and purchased the equipment for the A&E and Maternity wards – some of which you can see in the pictures we’ve shared. This vital equipment went on to help the teams assess and treat their patients with improved awareness of symptoms and were able to help the medical team better monitor those in need. The local team were astounded by what they saw! With one of her local colleagues commenting 'Since I took charge of the maternity ward 4 years ago, I have had an encounter with a lot of volunteers who honestly, I won't even remember when asked of their names. This year a lot came with different names, but Lucy will remain with me forever.'
The Scrub sets that Alexandra donated, also went down a treat and were welcomed by both the fellow medical students and the medical professionals at Dixcove hospital. Lucy commented “Many individuals I was volunteering with, didn't bring enough scrubs for themselves as they were thought that they could be purchased in the hospital… but due to the rural location, sadly this wasn’t the case. This meant that they didn't have enough for themselves, so thanks to Alexandra’s kind donation, I was able to lend some of them the sets from Alexandra to my fellow medical volunteers”.
During Lucy’s time based out in Ghana, Lucy “…soon found out from the staff there that it is very, very rare for staff to ever get brand new scrub sets, and instead, they're often given pre-worn, old scrub sets that are sent over from England or the USA. On hearing this, I got extremely excited knowing I would be able to really help cheer some of the staff up after watching them experience a very challenging few weeks. Handing them over to the staff was such an unforgettable experience - they were so excited over something which we simply take for granted in the UK. You and your company got sent lots of love and blessings that day.”
Alexandra are so thrilled to not only be able to help support Lucy on her medical journey but to also make a small contribution to those working in the local community hospital in Busua, we LOVED seeing the smiles on the faces of the medical teams working in such challenging times and that we (albeit small) and more importantly Lucy and her fellow students were able to make such a lasting and positive difference to their day to day lives of those living in Busua.
We were touched to hear the kind feedback from one of the local midwives at Dixcove hospital commenting on Lucy and the Alexandra scrubs we provided “Your appearance to work is always on point, especially the first day you came in when I asked you to get into the labour room. The dark blue scrubs really look good on you. Big thanks to Alexandra for that and you were nice to make us get the rest of them. From all the midwives in Dixcove Hospital, we say thank you to Alexandra for our new scrubs.'
From all at Alexandra, Dixcove Hospital, it truly was our pleasure and a massive thank you goes to Lucy too, for making all of this happen! We truly wish you all the very best in your medical journey and we look forward to seeing where your career takes you!
If you were wondering how Lucy found her adventure in Ghana, we’ll leave the final words to her…
“I hope you can see the pure happiness in both my smile and the other staff, and in doing so realise that the tiny impact you feel Alexandra have made, has had a humongous impact on me as an individual! I truly believe this trip has changed my life and I look forward to seeing how it positively impacts my training and medical practice going forward.”
Have you or your fellow healthcare professionals been on your own adventure wearing your Alexandra Scrubs? We’d love to see pictures of your own adventures, helping those in need, and further developing your medical skills in extraordinary places, share your stories with us, email us here: customercare@alexandra.co.uk or DM your pictures to us via Instagram: Alexandra Workwear Facebook: Alexandra Workwear
#AfricanAdventure #MedicalDonations #Scrubs #GivingBack #LucysAdventure #SupportingTheNextGen #Voluteering