End of a week

So everyone. I have finished a week of my diploma. This is an experimental first run of a course which has been truly remarkable.

Yesterday after our Swahili and epidemiology classes I came face to face with the side of my speciality which I don't deal with- children.

There are few conditions that affect me as much as children with AIDS. My 12 year old patient was admitted with TB, but was also thoroughly emaciated. 80% of people with TB in Africa are also HIV positive. A sobering statistic. Sadly for this young boy, on top of all his problems, he had some subtle signs in his mouth which we almost missed and rarely ever see these days in the UK - Kaposi's sarcoma.

His parents are both positive and on treatment. He has two siblings who his parents don't want to test just as yet. And for my patient, TB treatment and having to start ARVs wasn't enough. He will now probably also start chemotherapy.

Today, we learned how to model an epidemic and hopefully, how to best control one spreading.

At present i am just a bit overwhelmed and tired but will write more soon.