This week, the CCC team is happy to be back in Kisii, Western Kenya, to establish 8 new “See and Treat” clinics with our vital partner International Medical Corps (IMC). CCC has already set up 15 clinics in Kenya during 3 previous programs and we are thrilled that we will end 2015 with a total of 23 sustainable clinics.We arrived in Kenya on the morning of Sunday, November 8th, and immediately took a 7 hour van ride to our central training site, the Kisii Level 6 Hospital. We were impressed to see that the training room had been set up to accommodate 8 training stations, and that many of the extra supplies needed for the week of training had been procured. All week long our trainees will spend their days at this site with us, perfecting there skills in VIA (visual inspection with acetic acid) and cryotherapy.On Monday morning, we awoke early and headed immediately to the hospital to begin what we knew would be a busy day. Upon our arrival, we were taken to the office of the Honorable Sara A. Omache, HSC, Minister of Health for Kisii County. Mrs. Omache expressed her gratitude and enthusiasm for our program, and welcomed CCC’s presence in the country.Next we moved into the clinic to begin the didactic portion of the training. Dr. Lang delivered the slideshow presentation to a room full of trainees who had travelled from several counties as far away as Nairobi to receive training. This was followed by our intern Yvonne who demonstrated the set-up and practical portion of cryotherapy. The group then broke into 2-3 person teams and spread out among the 8 screening stations. Patients had been pre-registered and the line quickly began to move as women were brought into the clinics.
The day of screening was a success with the identification of 1 case of invasive cancer in a 43 year old woman that would likely be operable if she is able to travel to Nairobi for evaluation and treatment. A biopsy of the tumor was performed and a referral given to the patient. 11 cases of precancerous changes were detected and all of these women received cryotherapy.We are excited to continue to work with this talented group of nurses, and feel confident that by the end of the week they will be experts in the “See and Treat” procedure. Authors: Jennifer Lang MD and Caitlin Cawley RN