Who would have thought a great way to get to know people is meeting them in the dark. With a 24 hour blackout we found ourselves sat in a cult like circle suffering from heat stroke (the air conditioning stopped), no ways of communication (2 bars of service) surrounding a singular torch that had half dead batteries. A dire situation. These circumstances set the tone for a week of challenge that would bind us together as a group.

Sensitive cases

Throughout the week we facilitated group counselling sessions with children on sensitive topics such as sexual harassment. We found this difficult due to the differences in the normalisation and frequency of harassment acts in Ghana in comparison to the UK. We had to adapt and think on our feet when the children asked unexpected questions, in order to give appropriate responses that apply to both cultures of the UK and Ghana. Despite how heavy the topic was, the kids really enjoyed the session asking and answering questions (with the motivation of sweets).

During our hospital placement we carried out a mental capacity and ADL assessment on an epileptic patient. Although we gained great clinical experience it was a difficult case, as the patient was just a teenage girl. We had to go over her past progression reports and it showed extensive cognitive decline that she had suffered from due to her epileptic seizures damaging her brain. She went from doing sports and going to school to unable to live without support and having mental retardation. But due to the health facilities here her quality of life was just none existent, which was a hard pill to swallow for us.

Miscommunication

In Ghana we found ourselves doing a lot of waiting… and some waiting and more waiting. We have named this “Ghana time” meaning any time someone says they will be there add 30 minutes to an hour on that. Punctuality isn’t a thing here, and Ghanaians tend to be so relaxed and feel no sense of urgency (can’t relate).

At the weekend we decided we wanted to go to a nature reserve known as Shai hill, which initially went smoothly but due to the miscommunication with the driver instead of ticking off all the sights and places we wanted to visit we found ourselves in a car for 10 hours. People may not think it’s that bad, but with no air con, lungs full of dirt when opening the window and worst of all I was in the middle seat with the driver fully reclined back. Despite the leg numbness, as a group we entertained ourselves with intense games of eye spy and Ghanaian karaoke in the car (we were slowly losing our minds). But in a bad situation we stayed positive, and it taught me it’s not the situation it’s how you react to it.

(Our happy faces before the 10 hour car drive)

Being white?

In Ghana white people are rare and seen as a sign of wealth and so as a group of young white females we have had to be cautious. We are consistently being asked for our phone numbers from individuals who work in the markets to people in the military. Because of this I have become very good at judging character, evaluating situations and how to handle them. Being able to firmly say no is something I am not use to in leadership  roles or the UK, instead I am use to compromise or reasoning, but here that isn’t an option and have had to learn that.

Additionally the amount of people that record and take photos of us without our consent is uncomfortable. Many days we have been swarmed with hundreds of children that point and shout “Broni” (white), which is sometimes innocent but other times we have been followed home.

I have had to come to terms with this and be able to take the discomfort and deal with very difficult situations where people are asking me to pay their debts or ask for marriage due to my skin colour. I have to act as a character who is Christian, already married and is planning on having children soon (fyi none of these things are true) in order to fit in with the cultural expectations and avoid conflict.

Finishing the week on a high

We thought after all the challenges we would get to relax with the kids for the last day of our placement. But no. They handed us tools and put us to work. Free manual labour, as we hacked away at the weeds of their garden. Being the most exercise we had done in a week, as you can imagine we were covered in dirt and sweat.

Overall this week I’ve learnt how important the people you surround yourself are, whether that is in life generally or within a team. They can truly make or break experiences, and create an atmosphere that completely counters negative situations.