I lived in Eldoret, Kenya for the last nine months as an MD/MPH student from Indiana University School of Medicine, conducting clinical and community-based research under the mentorship of Dr. Megan McHenry. One of the most meaningful parts of living in Eldoret was getting to meet students at Moi University School of Medicine – some of the most brilliant, compassionate, and hilarious people I have ever known. We would often stay up late talking and connecting over our experiences as medical students studying 7,821 miles apart. A few of my friends kindly allowed me to interview them and share parts of their stories here.
Day in the Life
Anthony Kibet, a sixth-year student from Eldoret, explained that medical school is six years and students can enroll directly from secondary school, the equivalent to high school in the United States. The first three years are mainly pre-clinical with lectures and exams, and the last three years are clinical and research-based rotations at Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital or nearby clinical sites.
Christine Jepkemboi, a fifth-year student from Kapsabet, shared “Every day as a medical student is different.” The day starts with class at 7 a.m., followed by morning ward rounds, break for lunch, and then back to the lecture halls for a tutorial, similar to our case-based learning at Indiana University School of Medicine. Lunch is typically a hot meal, including a base of ugali, rice, chips, or chapati with a protein, such as chicken, beef, fish, lentils, or beans.
Franklin Kemboi, a sixth-year student from Eldoret, explained that after tutorial, students will often relax, do housework, play football or meet up with friends. The rest of the night often includes making dinner and returning to the hospital to clerk, or admit a patient and read about them for the following day of rounds.
Challenging and Meaningful
Wendy Matendechele, a sixth-year student from Nairobi, shared that the most challenging part is “finding the balance between school and life” but that the best part about medical school is “learning new things every day.” When she is not studying, she enjoys spending time with friends, cooking, listening to music and swimming.
Immaculate Mwangi, a fifth-year student from Kiambu, shared, “No matter how much you read throughout the year, the end-of-year exam is challenging. You keep reading, you barely get any sleep, and then go through the torture of waiting for the pass list.” Immaculate also shared, “The best part of medical school is seeing a patient who was in bad health being discharged. It makes what I am studying feel worth it.” Outside of school, she loves watching movies, listening to music, playing board games, salsa dancing, traveling, and spending time with friends.
Sam Kioko, a sixth-year student from Nairobi, shared “Outside of school, the most meaningful moments for me are traveling the country and the world with my best friends.” Several students at Moi University School of Medicine have the opportunity to do rotations abroad during their fifth year. Anthony and Wendy rotated at Indiana University School of Medicine and Franklin and Sam rotated at Alexandria University Faculty of Medicine in Alexandria, Egypt.
Dreams For the Future
When asked what she hopes to do in the future, Wendy shared, “Ensuring that healthy outcomes are accessible to everyone, not just a privilege for those who can afford it.”
Christine explained, “My number one dream is making my family so proud by graduating. Such events just bring so much joy in families. I dream of being so good in my work that it speaks for me. I’m still on the lookout for a specialty, but radiology and internal medicine are standing out for me. I am looking into doing my fellowship or residency abroad to improve my skills. I want to open a hospital one day or be part of a group that does that. I also dream of inspiring my younger cousins. They are already so proud of me.”
Immaculate shared, “I have come to love medicine and I cannot see myself as anything else. Now I just want to be what my patient needs: a doctor who will take away their pain.”
Pamoja
A lot of people ask why I loved living in Kenya so deeply and I think it is because of the students I got to know, how they welcomed me into their daily lives, and how we did so much “pamoja” (Swahili for “together”). It started out as a joke because it was the only Swahili word I knew, and so I would use it at the end of every English sentence (i.e. “Let’s make dinner tonight, pamoja?”). But in reality, I think the reason I loved living in Kenya is because of “pamoja” – we lived so much of our lives together.
I think back to evenings making chai masala, watching football games, ordering twenty samosas from Maggie’s, walking back from the hospital to the student housing, learning how to dance, hiking through valleys and waterfalls, visiting the fish market, studying in the MECC (Medical Education Conference Center), seeing the most talented Kenyan artists perform live, going to AMPATH fireside chats, stargazing from rooftops, sharing stories about our homes, our families, our fears, and our dreams for the future. And then the next morning, rushing to the wards and research offices and learning how to improve care for our neighbors, our patients living across western Kenya. Everything was better pamoja. Even the most mundane, simple, and at times stressful moments in becoming doctors were more fun because we spent them together.
To the students at Moi University School of Medicine, it has been the greatest honor to share life with so many of you throughout the past year. I cannot wait to all become doctors, pamoja.
