Muraho Rwanda!

Murakaza neza! - Welcome to my blog, where I will be updating with news from my project here in Ruli, Rwanda. Like most of my WDI colleagues, I'll be working on a project in the field for the next 12 weeks. In my case, I'll be working with a district hospital and network of health centers to try to understand the complex chain of information flowing between clinicians and administrators and between different levels of the Rwandan health care system.

But first, a little background. I'm working with The Ihangane Project, a non-profit organization dedicated to making sustainable improvements in the lives of Rwandans through community-based projects in nutrition, sustainable energy, economic development, and patient-centered health care. As part of its continuing mission, in March and April of 2012, The Ihangane Project sponsored a team of students from the Ross School of Business to study ways to improve the flow and usage of data at Ruli District Hospital.

This summer, I will be building upon the base of analysis they have provided, and extending the scope to consider the flow of information and patients in the larger context of the hospital and a number of its affiliated health centers in the surrounding villages. In understanding the “big picture”, we will be able to characterize specific processes – the path of diagnosis and treatment of diabetes, or malnutrition, for example – and will be able to make recommendations and implement improvements that are congruent with and sustainable within the existing health care system.

I've been on the ground for about two weeks now, and have gotten off to a great start on the project. At the same time, I've also experienced a warm initiation into Rwandan culture. Everyone has been remarkably welcoming; the faces in Ruli are always friendly and everyone makes time to stop and chat. My skills in the native language, Kinyarwanda, are rapidly improving from dozens of these informal lessons each day. From sampling brochette, (the delicious local goat kebabs), to participating in 5-hour-long church services (at least 3 hours of which seem to be devoted to dancing), I'm learning a lot about how this community works and what makes it special. I already know that this will be a great summer living in Ruli, learning, and working for better delivery of health care in this amazing part of the world. I'll be posting here with updates and insights through the rest of the project, but for now, murabeho – goodbye until next time!