Internship abroad as a midwife in Ghana - Field report from a hospital in Accra

I spent 4 weeks traveling in Ghana, my project was a midwifery internship in the Lekma Hospital.

Accommodation
My accommodation was a Student House where I was immediately welcomed by the other volunteers. In the beginning, I had to ask many questions, but after about 3 days I felt very comfortable and well taken care of for the next 4 weeks. Even if sometimes we had to live without running water or electricity.
There was always a rich breakfast and also the dinner, which was very different from the European dinner but it tasted very good to me. I already miss some dishes very much, for example Red Red.

The internship
On my first day at Lekma Hospital, I got my "duty roster", a different ward every week, and I even got to watch surgeries. I was looking forward to the opportunity to learn about so many different areas.
My duties consisted of noting things down, taking vital signs, bathing babies, and otherwise looking around a lot and having work procedures explained to me by the midwives and nurses.
The hygiene and general condition in the hospital is of course not comparable to what we know from our home country. But I think that this is clear to anyone who travels to a developing country and works so closely with the people there. And you really get used to everything, that became clear to me in Ghana.

My free time
There are so many options for day or weekend trips that I couldn't possibly do them all in 4 weeks. Boti Falls, Ada Foah, Cape Coast, Mole National Park are just a few of many destinations. Nearby beaches and markets are also not to be missed. There is so much to see, so much food to try and you are always guaranteed to find at least one other volunteer who is happy to accompany you. And you are also guaranteed to always find a Trotro that will take you to your desired destination.

Conclusion
My four weeks in Ghana gave me a lot of new impressions and showed me that you can survive without luxury, running water & Co. You could say that you get grounded again.
It was a great experience to get close to a completely different culture, the people, their life and work.