Nairobi

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One word can best summarize my first impression of Nairobi: TRAFFIC!
After arriving at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport at 4pm (could the timing have been any worse), we inched our way through rush hour traffic to the Safari Park Hotel…a mere 25 kilometers took us 3 hours! Granted, I must say, I marveled over the ingenuity of the street vendors – who had a captive audience to sell their wares. One by one, people meandered through traffic holding up the most random objects for sale – from steering wheels, pillows, artwork, food, and drinks to the most obscure. The wheeling and dealing, literally, was a sight to see! My favorite were the people selling knives – who walked up and down the streets shaving off big heads of cabbage as proof of its utility.

Traffic in Nairobi

The hotel itself was a bit Disney-esque. Here’s a little blurb on the hotel, “Surrounded by sprawling 64-acre grounds, the Safari Park Hotel combines the intrigue of African architecture and art with an infrastructure on the cutting edge of technology. Only 15 minutes from downtown Nairobi, you will have the unique opportunity to experience the fast pace of the city and escape back to the expanse and serenity of the hotel.”
OK, now that 15 minutes from downtown is extremely misleading! One thing I did notice, within 15 minutes of driving from the hotel I witnessed several car accidents – but still, I was nowhere near downtown.
Sarafi Park Hotel

Aside from the hotel and the traffic, the primary reason for my trip to Nairobi was to attend a WHO conference on National Data Standards. I can honestly say this was the best conference I have ever attended. Just so we’re all on the same page, let me briefly explain the concept of national data standards. As countries continue to move towards Electronic Medical Records, it’s imperative to reach a consensus regarding standard vocabularies in order to achieve interoperability of systems. For example, Malawi is in the process of piloting two EDS systems for Antiretroviral Therapy that were developed using national standards. As such, the two systems can feed into a central database using HL7 messaging. Exciting stuff!

Safari Park Hotel

Anyway, I felt both honored and humbled to be invited to such an event. I was surrounded by brilliant leaders in the field of knowledge management, bio-informatics, and information communication technology, including the founders of OpenMRS. But the highlight was meeting Christopher Bailey, whose title alone is quite a mouthful: Coordinator of Knowledge Communities and Strategies, Knowledge Management and Sharing at World Health Organization.

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Seeing that my dissertation is on knowledge management (I know, I need to write those last two chapters!), I delighted in his uncanny ability to facilitate the conference while adhering to all the principles of knowledge management – as a complex adaptive system – always managing to seamlessly integrate whatever themes emerged into our dialogues.
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One bit of trivia that most people would never know, WHO’s knowledge management guru started off as an actor on Broadway! And he even dabbled in movies – landing a leading role in VAPMIRE VIXENS FROM VENUS! This fine review from Amazon.com probably sums it up best:
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VAMPIRE VIXENS FROM VENUS is an absolutely reprehensible movie. It has no redeeming qualities what-so-ever. From the (unbelievably) lame jokes, to the endless, pointless nudity, Vampire Vixens From Venus is absolutely terrible. There’s not much else to say! It’s just plain awful!

In all seriousness, I am elated about my new connections at WHO, and am even in the process of organizing a similar workshop in Malawi. WHO has agreed to assist us in this endeavor as we work towards integrating several of our national reporting systems.

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I hardly took any pictures on this trip (I literally was in sessions from 8am to 8pm every day – so I never left the hotel). But one morning we did go on safari at Nairobi’s Game Park. It’s amazing to see this wildlife reserve smack dab in the center of town (well, perhaps a little off-center…but still).

All the best,
Amy

1 comment to Nairobi

  • Janna

    Hi Amy – I love your photos! I found your blog, as we have been searching for information on Malawi (not always easy to find!!!) as we are moving there for a year in January.
    Wondering if you would mind emailing me? I have loads of questions about what it’s like, what we should bring etc…I am also an avid (though very amateur) photographer, so would love to find out more about the photo club you mentioned in one of your blogs.
    Many thanks!
    Janna
    (email: jarntzgr@uwaterloo.ca)

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