Rural Medicine in Namibia:The story of Frans at Opuwo

Abstract

During the school holiday of June/July 2002, we were touring in Kaokoland, Namibia. On the morning we were to leave Epupa Falls my son, Frans (21) sat down clutching his head. He had a terrible headache which started as a severe shooting pain whilst he was loading the vehicle. He lay down for a while. After 15 minutes he was shivering violently and clutching his head. By then we knew something was seriously wrong.The camp manager told us that the nearest town where we would find a doctor was Opuwo - and then only at the State Hospital. We started a harrowing trip. My husband drove like a madman on roads that were hardly more than track, while our son lay writhing on the backseat, clutching his head desperately, mouthing silent words of pain.