Dr. Andy Baldwin, Kenya
This is Tyler, the one-year-old son of one of the health clinic's nurse-midwives, Tireza.
The first baby I delivered at the Chebaiywa Clinic, healthy little Joy.
The next thing I knew, Joy's mom was standing up with her clothes on and carrying her new little girl down the dirt path toward home.
This one-month-old baby and his mother came into the Chebaiywa Clinic for immunizations.
These kids live next to my hosts Michelle Kerns Kiprop and William Kiprop. They were helping to herd cows. With smiles that beautiful, you almost don't notice her tattered clothes.
Another cow herder. He takes his job quite seriously!
This is my little buddy Brian. He's three, almost four, and I get to see him every day on my 1K hike to and from the health clinic. I pass through his family's farm.
Twins! Born just an hour before.
I met these really happy kids are on the way to Mt. Elgon National Park on the Uganda-Kenya border. They are most likely from the Louya tribe, known for being absolute fanatics for football (soccer).
Giving the BCG vaccine, for tuberculosis. It is one that we do not give in the USA but is critical in Africa. The vaccine makes a reaction on the forearm, which leaves a scar. At the borders of countries here in Africa they demand to see peoples' scars to show proof they have received the vaccine before entering into their country.
Ngenvilel Primary School. I run by it most days and the kids yell, "Muzungu." After talking with them this day, they agreed now to greet me in the mornings saying, "Jambo, Dahktari (Morning, doctor)."
These smiles are so precious. These kids are standing outside their homes, traditional mud hut homes of the Kalenjin people in Kenya.
Most of the health clinic staff traveled two hours by bus to the very rural town of Ziwa, where we set up operations in an unfinished church to offer medical treatment, optometry, and dental care. We saw almost 150 patients throughout the day, were able to get eyeglasses to almost 100 people, allowing them to see, and pulled close to 40 teeth. The adults and children were very happy. This is very similar to the humanitarian missions I have done in third world countries with Navy Medicine.
