EC’s last trip home JANUARY 25, 2021 The healthcare journey, part 2: Young EC In 2004, EC’s father moved to Durban from Malawi, in search of a better life for his family; As he explained, “it is not like we have a war in Malawi, it is just that there is no opportunity to earn...
Dr Julia Ambler with Baby BB JANUARY 18, 2021 The journey of accessing healthcareL: Part 1-Baby BB Meet baby BB a 6-month old boy with bright yellow eyes. Sadly, he was born with a condition called biliary atresia. This is when the bile ducts don’t develop properly and the blockage of bile flow from the...
Ms I. waiting patiently without her mom. SEPTEMBER 3, 2020 I just want to see my child “I just want to see my child.” Mr K’s mother pleads on WhatsApp. I promise to do what I can, knowing that it will be nearly impossible to get her into to the intensive care unit where her...
JULY 13, 2020 4c Months is a very long time… As the nurse introduced him to the other children, this skinny boy stared hard at the floor, tears streaming down his cheeks. He was being admitted to the multi-drug resistant TB unit at King Dinizulu Hospital. A long way from home or anything familiar, the...
JULY 6, 2020 Goodbye Mr.N My heart broke as they walked away, knowing I would never see him again. This gentle, clever 9 year old boy with a devastating cancer. Born with a rare skin condition Mr N’s life has been hard. Living in rural South Africa with its harsh unforgiving heat, he has had...
Desperate Times… JULY 2, 2020 Our palliative care team works in many different hospitals and we have been horrified at how low the average health professional’s morale is right now. The unpredictable nature of the pandemic and the constant threat of infection, infecting others and having to cover for those off sick, is overwhelming. So...
JUNE 21, 2020 Mind the Gap I have just come off two different zoom meetings and am left with and overwhelming sense of ‘Mind the Gap’. If you have travelled on the underground train system in the UK you will be aware of the voice over the loud speaker on repeat, that reminds passengers to...
JUNE 21, 2020 #PALLIATIVECAREINCORONA What crazy times we are currently living in! The COVID-19 pandemic has touched everyone’s lives in some way and no-one is sure when “normality” will return. We can guarantee that whenever that is, it will be a normal like nothing we have ever seen before. As South Africans we went into...
Lockdown, Ubuntu and the birds APRIL 22, 2020 Written by Tracey Brand, Umduduzi Director and Palliative Care Medical Social Worker One of my favourite pastimes is feeding the wild birds in our garden. I love watching them waiting for the feeders to be filled and once I’ve stepped back they all come in to eat....
