A Trip to the Dispensary

I will never again complain about waiting at the doctor's office!
My stomach had been bothering me for a few days, so I decided it would be best to go to the dispensary (clinic) to make sure I didn't have amoeba or something of that nature. It was quite a different experience from going in the U.S.
When you first arrive, you wait in line to see the doctor/nurse. Because I live with the Sisters I did not have to wait in this line. I felt bad going ahead of people, but the workers were the ones who brought me to the front. It is "first come first served." When the person in front of you comes out of the office, you go in. The doctor/nurse asks you about your problem, and writes this in a notepad that you bring containing your medical records, basically (for me they used a piece of paper). There is no form about history or anything like that. The doctor/nurse then gives you your notebook to take to the lab. You wait until the lab techs are handing out testing equipment. For sample that are "self-collected" you take the container, and then bring it back. Then you wait for the test to be finished. The lab techs write the result in your notebook, and then you wait in line again to see the doctor/nurse. When you see the doctor/nurse, they write in your notepad the medicine you are to get. You then pay and wait in line at the pharmacy window. As you can tell, it takes a long time to go through this entire process, and when most people go to the doctor here they are quite sick. Also, the total cost of my visit, including the lab test, was about $3. Cheap by U.S. standards, but quite difficult for many of the people here. You do not pay to see the doctor, just for tests or medicines. Some families who cannot afford medicine come to the Sisters for assistance, but the medical care you receive, especially in Nairobi, really depends on how much you can pay.