Volunteer Reflection: Anne and Don Hartman
Anne Hartman - retired Assistant professor of nursing, Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Nurse Anne Hartman (middle) poses with Nurse Salama Kawaga (left) and Nurse Digna Kiwia (right).
Nurse Hartman (left) during the COVID-19 vaccination drive at Karatu market. She’s pictured with (From left) Elibariki, Head Nurse Kizito Kileu, Social Worker Angel Obeid and Volunteer Diane Berthel.
Nurse Hartman joins the FAME blood donation drive!
I heard about FAME in 2018 on my first trip to Tanzania. I was teaching nursing at a university and brought a group of nursing students to volunteer at schools and health clinics in Tanzania.
We toured FAME, and from that day, I knew I wanted to be involved. We met Dr. Frank on that tour, and he invited the nursing faculty to come back and work with the nursing staff. I volunteered at FAME for the first time in 2019 for one month.
I was invited to come for a longer volunteer stay in 2020 and planned to come for six months as soon as I was done teaching for the year. Then COVID hit, and all travel plans were on hold. I came back in April 2021 for three months and again in January 2022 for another three-month stay.
During my volunteer stays, I have worked with the nurses in every patient care department at FAME. I loved the opportunity to know how each department operates and then to work on quality improvement projects in each area. I taught education sessions with all of the nurses, including Patient Assessment and Nursing Care Plans. I also taught education sessions with the Nursing Supervisors, including Time Management, Communication, Data Collection and Using Resources Efficiently.
My husband, Don, came to stay with me for a week at FAME during my first three-month assignment and then we went on a safari for a week. While there, he saw the value of volunteering at FAME and returned to volunteer for five weeks with me in 2022. He will be sharing his volunteer reflection next. We continue to stay in touch with FAME staff and do monthly coaching sessions via Zoom calls. We plan to come back and volunteer for a month again in 2023 and for many years after that!
Every time I go to Karatu, I see friends from previous trips and make new ones. When I walk through the hospital, I am greeted like family; I’m called Dada (sister) and Mama and everyone knows about my two grandsons, so I am also now called Bibi–Grandma!
From Left: Head Nurse Kizito Kileu, Anaesthetist Theresia Mollel, Don Hartman, Anne Hartman, Volunteer Coordinator Prosper Mbelwa and Volunteer Darcey Rosenblum.
It is hard to describe the impact of a volunteer experience like this. I am incredibly fortunate to be able to volunteer at a place like FAME and to go back several times so that I know the area and the people. It is so rewarding to experience another culture, much more profound than what tourists experience. Tanzanians can teach us so much about community, hospitality, resilience and being joyful even in challenging circumstances. When I traveled with students, I encouraged them to jump in with both feet to take advantage of every opportunity to experience the culture. I try to do the same. And even though I go to do volunteer work, nearly everyone who has taken this kind of trip agrees that we receive so much more than we give.
For people who are interested in volunteering at FAME, come and do it! FAME makes it so easy with a volunteer coordinator to work with, excellent housing and food. It allows the volunteer to focus on their work without worrying about anything else. Family and friends worry about my safety and always ask, “Do you feel safe there?” The answer is Yes! I have always felt safe at FAME and walking around Karatu. Come with an open mind and be ready to learn as much from the Tanzanian staff as you share your skills.
*Anne runs a blog https://annehartmancom.wordpress.com/ where she documents her experiences as a volunteer at FAME.
Don Hartman - Sr. Engineering Manager at Collins Aerospace in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Don and Anne Hartman
Don training the housekeeping team. He’s joined by the HR Manager, Emmanuel Tarimo.
When I was a child, I had a recurring dream I still remember. In my dream, I travel a long distance in an airplane and finally land in a savanna with one runway. I exit the aircraft and feel warmth and familiarity in a place I’ve never been. Africa. Many years later, when I was 48 years old, I traveled to Africa for the first time. I went to Nigeria as part of a medical team led by my wife, Anne. It was an incredible experience in a place where I felt the same warmth and familiarity from my dreams as a child. That feeling has grown in my role as a FAME volunteer.
Again, my wife, Anne, led me to Africa. This time to go on a safari and saw where she had been volunteering for the prior two years. Anne was finishing up a three-month assignment when I first visited FAME. I was on the FAME campus for only a few hours before one of the nurses called me “shemeji,” which is “brother-in-law” in Kiswahili. She called me shemeji because she and many nurses consider Anne, their sister. Anne had grown so close to this community of people that I felt welcomed as family because I was her husband.
Don training the doctors. From Left: Dr. Julius Kebola, Dr.Josephat Mtuwa, Dr. Anne Ghati and Dr. Frank Artress.
Immediately I wanted to help. But I’m not a medical person; I’m an Engineering Manager. Within a day of arriving to visit Anne, I was asked to develop a spreadsheet for data collection and Dr. Frank asked me to draft a plan for a temporary COVID unit. I was hooked. This year I returned to volunteer at FAME for five weeks while Anne finished her second three-month assignment volunteering with the Nursing department.
Because FAME is a growing organization committed to education, patient care and continuous improvement, I found a niche where I can help. I have utilized my engineering leadership background and recently earned MBA to support the FAME Senior Leadership team and staff. This year FAME completed a 5-year strategic planning process. I spent most of my time working on Planning for the Unexpected strategic priority area. FAME did an incredible job dealing with the COVID crisis, so we decided to conduct a “Lessons Learned” session with every FAME department. We would build on these Lessons Learned while developing plans for the unexpected. I met with the doctors, nurses, senior leadership, housekeeping, security, pharmacy, lab, and kitchen staff. We talked about each department’s role in responding to COVID and their ideas on how best to prepare for a future crisis. This was an amazing experience for me. I met with 124 FAME staff in 10 departments in a few short weeks and compiled 428 responses. The results went into developing an implementation plan for FAME’s new Contingency Response Team (CRT). FAME’s CRT will monitor local and global data sources such as the WHO and CDC and look for events that could potentially impact FAME. The CRT will develop contingency plans in response to direct threats and unexpected events, such as major accidents that could simultaneously bring many patients to FAME.
Through the Lessons Learned sessions, I understand the people and mission of FAME. I am impressed by the innovation, creativity, and commitment to improving patient care. Everyone from all departments cares deeply about the patients they serve. If I were to describe FAME in one word, it would be “Caring.”
I am proud of the mission of FAME and the daily work the staff does to care for patients. Because I have met so many staff at FAME, when I walk through the hospital campus, I am often greeted with, “Shemeji!” The feeling of warmth and familiarity has evolved into warmth and family. We continue volunteering at FAME back home in the United States by providing coaching, mentoring, and training via Zoom. I have been asked to come back next year as a volunteer and continue working with FAME staff on leadership development activities and plans to progress the strategic priorities.
I look forward to returning next year to help where I can and to refresh relationships with people we consider family.
*Don is also the proud father of three daughters and his sons-in-law. Don is also babu (grandfather) to two grandsons, Alexander and Raymond.