My October seemed dominated by health issues. I don’t want to dwell on them but will give a short update, as it has taken time for me to process the events. The first day in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) was bleak. The man in the bed opposite was hooked up to machines that beeped steadily, and constantly. Additionally, there was a nurse aide sitting watching over him. Over the course of the day the beeps slowed down and eventually stopped. There were no interventions, other than to finally draw the curtains round the bed. Not something anyone would want to witness. I was, I think, the least in need of intensive care and the most conscious of my surroundings. The main reason for my inpatient status was so antibiotics could be administered intravenously.
Tag Archives: Health
Touring and Health
It has been some weeks since I last posted. They have been busy weeks though, and not all entirely in a good way. Let me begin with the good stuff, and, unusually, I was able to upload photographs this month, they are at the end!
After the success of the Cape Town to Durban drive last year, my friend Tim and I planned a road trip for the end of August. I flew down to Cape Town and Tim drove in from Riviersondereind. We stayed in Derek and Lynn’s house for a couple of nights, and then set off. The reason for the slight delay was that I had a rotten cold. It turned out there was a lot more going on with my health than that though.
Health, Hearts, and Hope
At the end of July, I drove up to Eswatini to participate in the events marking the 60th anniversary of my school, Waterford Kamhlaba United World College. It is at least a seven-hour drive, so I stopped overnight at the Ghost Mountain Inn in the little Zululand town of Mkuze. The town lies at the foot of the Lebombo mountains – they are part of a chain of low volcanic hills that run for 800 km in the east of southern Africa. There was conflict between two Zulu factions and a battle on one of the hills. Hundreds died, according to Rider Haggard (famous for King Solomon’s Mines, partly set in Swaziland), and the souls manifest as flickering lights, hence the name.
Hearts, Plays and Passports
The Yiddish proverb, “Der mentsh trakht un got lakht” translates as “Man plans, and God laughs”. A couple of months ago I became aware of an intermittent pain in my left shoulder. On a few occasions it was severe enough to wake me. I decided it was indigestion, and chewed a few Rennie’s tablets. This seemed to do the trick for a while but, towards the end of the month, it was happening more regularly, and the pain extended into my arm and up to my jaw. I probably would have ignored it but I was advised to have it checked out.
Teeth and travel
At the beginning of October I developed a toothache. It persisted and got steadily worse. The dentist saw me immediately, for which I am very grateful, x-rayed the teeth, identified two abscesses, and gave me two antibiotics. One was anti-alcohol which meant I had a dry two weeks. The following week I was scheduled to fly to Johannesburg and drive to Eswatini (Swaziland). On the Monday there was a lump in my gum, and it was still very painful. I had an emergency appointment, the abscess was lanced, and the relief was immediate!
Surgery and Sunshine
I was offline for a few days in March, an interesting experience especially during the time of crisis in the UK. It was my birthday on the 18th and I celebrated by returning to South Africa on the 16th for a series of elective medical procedures. I took the 06h15 KLM flight from Norwich to Amsterdam where I connected on the 10h15 flight to Johannesburg. The journey takes nearly 11 hours. My case was one of the first to be unloaded and appear on the carousel, these little things matter.
There are no connecting flights to Durban that late. My standard operating procedure is to stay in a hotel at the airport and connect the next day. Normally the travel agent’s opening proposal for the connection is a plane at an absurdly early hour, 07h00 for example. On this trip I was sensible and got a flight a little after 13h00. It allowed me ample time to sort myself out, and have a leisurely breakfast.
A Response to ‘Experts want African aid funds channelled away from HIV’
I was quoted in a recent article which appeared in the Observer and published on guardian.co.uk However, the news article bears little resemblance to the headline, which I find sensational and does not reflect my views as I emphasised that AIDS spending is crucial “for those already on or requiring treatment”.
Click here to read the news story and here for my official response.
AIDS, Security And Conflict Initiative
Alan Whiteside, will be a discussant at the HIV/AIDS Security and Conflict Initiative: A Briefing and Discussion, to be held 21 September, 2009 at the Hague.
The event marks the release of the new report, “HIV/AIDS, Security and Conflict: New Realities, New Responses.” The results of 29 global research studies on HIV/AIDS and fragile states, uniformed services, humanitarian crises and post-conflict transitions will be presented and discussed.
When: September 21, 2009, 11:30 – 16:00
Where: Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bezuidenhoutseweg 67, The Hague De Oude Perszaal 00C 33
Presenters and Discussants: Alex De Waal, Georg Frerks, Charlotte Watts, Manuel Carballo, Anyieth D’Awol, and Pamela De Largy
Contact: Georg Frerks, + 31 (0) 30 253 6549, g.frerks@uu.nl
Alan Whiteside 