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Nurses’ health mission

Tari JeffersManjimup-Bridgetown Times
Manjimup nurses Imagele Fischer and Katrina Kammerer will travel to Kenya for a month from May to volunteer for a variety medical projects in healthcare.
Camera IconManjimup nurses Imagele Fischer and Katrina Kammerer will travel to Kenya for a month from May to volunteer for a variety medical projects in healthcare. Credit: Manjimup-Bridgetown Times

Two Manjimup nurses are taking their urge to provide care to an international scale when they travel to Kenya in May.

For one month starting May 19, Katrina Kammerer and Imagele Fischer will travel to Kenya as part of World Youth International.

The not-for-profit development organisation offers people the opportunity to volunteer on medical projects.

“We’ll be assisting the doctors and the nurses that are already there in holistic care for the patients,” Katrina said.

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“So paediatrics, maternity, elderly, and critically ill people.”

Imagele said most days they would be set up in the main hospital, but then one day a week, they would go out into the smaller communities and set up medic camps.

“People over there are looking at if they want to go to hospital because the villages are so spread out, they’re talking about walking 20km to just get to the hospital,” she said.

“It’s just not something they do.

“So all the doctors go out and set up medic camps and see about 300 people in one day alone.”

During those medic camps, injuries and illnesses could range from anything from a cut finger to tumours.

“The more hands, the easier the work,” Imagele said.

Imagele has been a nurse for five years and Katrina graduated almost two years ago.

Imagele said she was looking forward to seeing how they practised medicine differently in Kenya.

“Without having everything at your fingertips, they don’t have the simple machines we have over here, let alone the really complex things that really help you in critical situations,” she said.

Katrina said she would also be interested in learning how people live.

“Being able to help people with little things that may be something small to us, but a big difference to them,” she said.

HIV and malaria are also much more prevalent in Kenya and the ladies said they would be interested in learning how to treat or manage these conditions.

Katrina and Imagele are two volunteers from a team of 12 going across in March and, with another nurse from Bunbury, are the only participants from WA.

In the lead-up to their trip over to Kenya, the young women will hold several fundraisers to raise money for medical equipment.

“We’re going to do a few wood raffles, garage sales and a few other things,” Katrina said.

“Everyone has things you can sell, so garage sales are good.”

Money raised will go towards to the hospital they will be volunteering at.

“It goes towards making sure the hospital keeps running, all medical equipment and supplies,” Imagele said.

“The hospital was set up by World Youth International.”

Katrina and Imagele had been keen to participate in a program like this for a while now and sought the advice of nurse and Manjimup local, Barbara Hunter.

Barbara had participated in the World Youth International program about five years ago and suggested the organisation to Katrina and Imagele.

The women will return on June 17 and said they both look forward to sharing their experience with people upon their return.

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