Update: 5/22/07

Bwindi Community Health Clinic (BCHC), Buhoma, Uganda

The scope of human suffering has no greater range than in this beautiful green corner of the world, yet I encountered more caring and joyous people here than anywhere else on my travels.  Tucked into a verdant valley adjacent to the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest in Southwest Uganda, the BCHC is a thriving health clinic with big aspirations. Each work day starts with drumming and singing, a catalyst for the enthusiasm and drive I saw during the three days I was there.

In 2003, medical doctor Scott Kellermann and his wife Carol went to the area and began a very modest medical outpost, conducted under a tree. In particular need were the Batwa pygmy tribe, recently and ironically “evicted” from the Impenetrable Forest when the official protection program for the endangered Mountain Gorillas went into effect.  Members of this ancient hunter/gatherer community, who had existed in the forest with the gorillas, suddenly were forced out into the open, and given no compensation or resettlement plan. Stripped of their way of life, the Batwa suffer the most on all levels.

It is not an easy situation to understand and initially I thought that the transition wouldn’t be so hard, that the Batwa could learn to find a new way of life (and perhaps even prefer it, to my ‘civilized’ way of thinking).  But then I reversed the circumstances, and wondered if I were suddenly forced to live in the dark forest, how well would I cope, not knowing a thing about hunting OR gathering, or making some kind of shelter? I would probably curl up into a wet and miserable ball and daydream about a big steak dinner!  The Batwa are not agriculturalists; they do not eat the types of food one would plant and grow; they do not make permanent settlements; they have the highest rate of infant mortality.  They are also considered a ‘backward’ group by other tribes, and so, heaped upon their troubles, they also suffer from poor self-worth issues.

From these humble beginnings under the tree, the BCHC has grown into a full-fledged medical clinic, providing health care to 25,000 people.  Just since my last visit in July, 2005, there have been some big changes—new buildings, additional personnel, new funding sources.  The staff now includes a second medical doctor, as well as more nursing, vision and dental professionals.  Dr. Kellerman and staff also make routine visits to outlying areas and transport (via the very rough roads) sick people to the clinic for treatment.  Although I know very little about medical systems, it was obvious to me that operating a medical facility under these circumstances requires an intuitive approach.  First, the staff must work closely with traditional healers, who sometimes convince people that they should not follow the clinic’s advice.  When the clinic does receive patients, there is only the most rudimentary framework of diagnostic testing. Electricity comes and goes.  The only reliable presence is death, available 24-7.  Yet the clinic staff remain resolute in their calling and champion each life saved, as they move toward bettering the lives of so many people here. 

The growth of the clinic has created a real staff housing shortage.  Presently the staff of twenty five professionals is housed in a hodge-podge array of rented rooms (most without running water or electricity) in the surrounding villages.  All these health care providers must then walk some distance over the rocky roads or trails to the clinic.  The Ripple Effect Foundation has provided funding to purchase an existing building compound adjacent to the clinic, thereby bringing all staff under one non-leaky roof.  The compound has a dedicated electrical source and running water, and will bring a higher degree of job satisfaction to the entire workforce.