Day 12: Jetlag Who?

Thursday, August 19th 2021

Good morning from Accra! There was no chance for jetlag to catch us as we woke up at a crisp 7:30am to get ready for our big day with introductions to both the President's Malaria Initiative (PMI) and the National Malaria Control Program (NMCP). Much to my own food-loving delight, breakfast is complimentary and I was greeted with sweet croissant rolls stuffed with chocolate. There were also omelets, Ghanaian donut holes called Bofrot, and a wide assortment of fruits, which to our dismay, we could not eat thanks to warnings from the travel advisory center about horrible bathroom experiences. I am pretty sure I ate at least 3 croissants before calling my conscious back into check.

Soon after, we took off to the PMI VectorLink office with some of us riding in a van with our driver, and new friend, Ishmael. Regrettably, we all thought his name was Ishmo for a large majority of the trip because I misheard him and he was too polite to correct my mispronunciation. He is somewhat quiet, but he played some fun Ghanaian music for us on the way. We probed him with questions and he shared that he likes to listen to rap music. After about 15 min, we arrived at the PMI headquarters, and finally got to meet our collaborators. We were met there by Sylvester and Lena, and Sylvester gave us the rundown on what the PMI team does. We learned about the training they do with people to catch mosquitos, and about the entomology teams that work to identify the mosquitos. Based on the types of mosquitos being caught, PMI will help deploy different types of interventions to try to prevent the spread of malaria. One method is called IRS, or indoor residual spraying. This seems to be the most popular method of vector control used in these areas. Then we demoed our device to Sylvester and Lena. Overall, the demo went well and the PMI team seemed optimistic about it's potential. However, we still have many questions which I am sure will be addressed when we travel north to Tamale in a few days to observe the entomologists at work.

After our meeting, we took a short drive to a local eatery called Sub Box. I got a chicken sandwich with some type of garlic sauce that was delicious. We chatted some more with Sylvester and Lena and then took off to the National Malaria Control Program. Our meeting with the NMCP was quite brief. It seems they are a bit removed from the process of vector surveillance themselves, however, it was still very important to get this high level handshake and get some feedback from their team. We asked a few questions and then headed back to our hotel with Ishmael as our leader.

Back at the hotel, we enjoyed some free time swimming in the hotel pool. It was nice to get some sun and relax for a bit. Then we changed and walked a short distance to the mall where we exchanged currency and grabbed some dinner: Chinese food style. I got a giant platter of fried rice and dumplings, all for $8 USD. And since I spent more than $7.50, they gave me a free ice cream too!! What a meal! We enjoyed our dinner out on the rooftop terrace of the mall.

When we arrived back at the hotel, we heard loud music from downstairs. We wandered in and there was a massive church worship going on. The people were kind enough to let us join in and I stood and soaked in the wonderful singing and praising of the people. At one point, their voices gave me such chills and my eyes filled with tears. To see the faith of these people and they way they all came together in their belief moved me.

The day was so jammed packed with excitement that the jetlag didn't seem to have a chance to catch up. But, by the end of the day, we were all crashing into bed. Let's see what tomorrow brings....

-Christina