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Summary

Angola, southern Africa, is a geographically beautiful country, yet scene to some of the greatest human needs on earth. The Lubango Evangelical Medical Center is one of the latest efforts to improve the lives of Angolans. Current services include a busy out patient clinic, ophthalmology care, and general surgery. The new 80-bed hospital features state of the art facilities for the developing world.

Students work under the direction of Steve Foster, a board-certified Canadian surgeon with thirty years experience in Angola. They participate in the full range of medical services at the Evangelical Medical Center, with additional work at the 200 bed Kalukembe Hospital. For full effectiveness in Angola, fluency in Portuguese or Spanish is essential.

Lubango is a city of 200,000 is located in the southwestern part of Angola, in southern Africa. Once a wealth colonial city of Portugal, Lubango today is rebuilding after a prolonged civil war that ended in 2001. The elevation is about 5,000 feet, and the climate is generally cool and dry in April through July, and warmer and rainy October through December.

International travelers should plan to first fly to enter Windhoek, the capital city of Namibia, on a Wednesday. Namibia is the nation that borders Angola to the south. The SIM mission operates a guesthouse in Windhoek called the Otjari House. Travelers can get a taxi for $70 Namibian dollars ($10 U.S.) from the airport to the Otjari House. The nightly rate for a room at the Otjari House is about $70 Namibian dollars.

The flight from Windhoek, Namibia to Lubango, Angola is on TAAG Airlines and is only on Thursdays. The SIM mission will purchase an airline ticket for the traveler, and the traveler will reimburse SIM while in Windhoek.

For the return trip, travelers will leave Lubango, Angola, on TAAG Airlines, which only flies to Windhoek on Thursdays. Travelers will normally spend the night at the Otjari House, and then depart Namibia the following day. Namibia has wonderful games parks and artesian shopping, however, and one may wish to spend a few additional days in Namibia.

A visa is not required for Americans visiting Namibia.

A visa is required for entry into Angola. Allow at least two months to complete the application process. To apply for a visa, you must down load the application from the Angola Embassy website: http://www.angola.org. You must submit a letter of invitation from the medical ministry (Obra Medica) in Angola along with your application in order to receive your visa. To obtain the letter of invitation, send the following information to INMED:

• Your full name
• Date and place of birth
• Full names of both parents
• Your nationality
• U.S. Passport No
• Place where your passport was issued
• Date of issue of your passport
• Date of expiration of your passport
• Your profession

Please check the CDC travel website for the most up-to-date health information: http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx

Visitors are advised to regularly check the U.S. State Department website for the most up-to-date information regarding country specific travel information and travel advisories: http://www.state.gov/travel/.

The Lubango Evangelical Medical Center is an entirely new facility opened in 2006 that provides outpatient clinic, inpatient care, obstetrics and general surgery, as well as ophthalmology and pediatric care. Surgical cases are performed by the medical director, Dr. Steve Foster, a Board Certified Canadian surgeon who has lived in Angola since 1975.

The second center is the Kalukembe Hospital. Located 80 miles outside of Lubango, this 100-bed hospital provides a full range of medical services to an extremely impoverished, isolated community.

Most people coming to the centers are extremely poor, and have virtually no other access to medical care. Many suffer from chronic diseases such as hypertension and rheumatic fever. Malaria is very common, as is TB and schistosomiasis, diarrhoeal disease, respiratory disease, parasitic infections, trauma, and nutritional deficiency disease.

Dr. Steve Foster and Dr. Steve Collins, a Canadian family physician also trained in ophthalmology, provide the majority of medical care at these centers, assisted by a variety of short-term personnel from the U.S. and Canada.

Portuguese is the daily language of Angola. Very few nationals speak English. Portuguese and Spanish have many similarities, so fluency in Spanish does provide some advantage. Medical students and residents will conduct most of their clinical work with Dr. Foster and Collins in English.

Many medical, nursing and undergraduate students have studied with Dr. Foster in recent years, assisting in clinic consultations and in the operating theatre. Opportunities may also be available for teaching English. Those capable of communicating in Portuguese or Spanish will have greater independence.

Visitors are normally housed either in the Foster's home or in a near by guesthouse. Groceries can be purchased locally, and meal at times taken with the staff.

Internet access is available for email at the Foster's home, or at Internet cafe's in Lubango. Postal mail is very slow.

Lubango has several natural wonders, including waterfalls and cliffs, that make for fascinating travel on weekends. Limited souvenir shopping is available, while Windhoek, Namibia, offers abundant African art at reasonable prices.

INMED invites all participants to consider raising extra funds to donate to support the facility. This is not required but allows INMED participants to become involved in every aspect of medical missions.

Clothing for clinical work is very casual. Slacks may be worn by women. Male physicians do not wear ties to work. A white coat may occasionally be useful.

Be sure to pack a carry-on bag that has your essentials just in case your luggage becomes lost. Also, it's usually best to bring two suit cases, each half full, so you will have a place to pack souvenirs for the return trip. Recent INMED students recommend:

• Water bottle or canteen
• Flashlight and batteries
• Books, Bible
• Film
• A good camera
• Battery powered alarm clock
• Bug spray

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