When you think about impact, what comes to mind?… Hold that thought and walk with me.
The magnitude of our commitment to Impact as the Rotaract Club of Nairobi Central (RCNC) has always been deeply inscribed in our transformative community service projects. From our previous signature projects: “A-Girl-A-K” which sought to support menstrual sanitation of teenage girls in Kenya with annual supply of sanitary towels, to “Elimu Magerezani” which supported formal and vocational education in four borstal institutions in Kenya – RCNC has been leading the continent in leveraging the power of people coming together to unlock opportunities and drive progress through service above self. In 2025, RCNC went a notch higher to bring impact.
I’ve often wondered about the source of our communal uniqueness and audacity to do big things. If we were a football club, we would be Manchester City with the audacity of Manchester United fans, perhaps you can see why at the end of this article.On the 4th of January 2025, we were meeting for one of the last meetings (or so we thought) to plan the upcoming Medical Camp that would be happening in exactly T- 21 days on the 25th of January.
What began as a crazy idea between an Engineer, a communications expert and a lawyer ended up being brought to life by a Data Analyst/entrepreneur. I am sure you can see why the Rotary International President may have chosen her theme “The Magic of Rotary”. None of the above individuals have a medical background apart from their encounters with Doctor Google, and watching the popular medical drama series, “Greys Anatomy” (that series is 21 Seasons in Full. Completing all episodes should warrant the conferment of a Diploma in Medical Science and Surgery!). However, we all had a common denominator – hope and audacity that this would somehow work out.
Later, medical doctors and pharmacists joined the chat because like most people, we knew to sell the concept and not the idea to the real professionals. As soon as we did, we started to hear words like prognosis and long-lettered words, which to our surprise, were part of the modern medicine crusade. Just so you don’t think I’m pulling your leg, without nurse Google, can you tell what the following drugs treat? Flucloxacillin, Metronidazole, one last one so that you don’t say I didn’t give you a fighting chance, how you’re giving those worms in your tummy a chance because the last time you dewormed was when RCNC was being chartered. I digress; the last drug is Albendazole.
You see we have the privilege of having great Rotaract sisters. Parents we may not know, but sisters we know and ours is currently a thriving sisterhood. Our sister club, the Rotaract Club of Kampala Sesse Islands and our borrowed ones, the Rotaract Clubs of Kabarole, Kampala City (read Dr. Atulinda) and Kampala 7-Hills. All of them had geared up to take the long trip from Kampala to Nairobi and then to Maili Tisa (which is located approximately 15kms from the Namanga border in Kajiado County). Their project fees paid, bags packed and the pressure on the subcommittee kept ….creasing, that’s right.
The subcommittee may have been having the time of their lives under the leadership of our very able Entrepreneur/ Data analyst (read not Doctor). We were cruising nicely at an altitude of rejected proposals, missed calls, missed emails and “I wish you had told us earlier.” You see though this committee was made of the finest, I must say they ate rejection for breakfast and resilience for dinner because every new day they had to try again. Oh and try they did because we started getting big, chunky Yes’s (I’m not sure there is an English word like this but indulge me) for lunch. The biggest one yet being the approval of a District Grant, the money came through! I told you – this is an audacity of hope.
RCNC was among 6 Rotaract Clubs to be awarded a Rotaract District 9212 Community Service District Grant towards the Maili Tisa Medical Camp. This was another first for RCNC as a Rotaract Club which prides itself in being the premier Rotaract club in Sub-Saharan Africa. The financial resources came through just when we needed it; a week to the medical camp and the procurement process began. This may have played a major role in enhancing our procurement acumen because we have made great friends with some of the best wholesalers in and out of town. Pro-tip to anyone planning an event with a heavy procurement budget: Go to wholesales: it saves you a lot of time and money. Drugs, snacks, water and everything else needed secured.
Due to the nature of the project we did not even have time to savour Njaanuary (Kindly consult a Kenyan to explain) it flew by fast and it was time to start calling the individuals who would be the true superheroes of the day; the medical practitioners and thankfully there were no missed calls here. They got on a bus which may have tried to threaten the happening of the medical camp by getting stuck on a small rift but as a famous politician once said nobody could stop reggae. The medics graciously walked the rest of the way to come to meet their patients who had come from far and wide. If that’s not the making of superheroes I’m not sure what it is.
You see on the other side at the medical camp site the patients had started streaming in. First, the women, girls and children because in this part of the country, the community practices pastoralism. The famous Maa people, better known as the Maasai, their animals are their most prized possessions which boys and men take for grazing before they attend to anything else. In theory, it seems impossible to believe but having witnessed the boys and older men coming in a bit later than the women and realizing that what we were witnessing was culture at play; was truly phenomenal. Most, if not all, came adorned in their traditional Maa regalia; from their beautiful Shukas to the ever-stunning beads. This was a sight to behold.
How I know about Cefixime is because the doctors, pharmacists and nurses who had travelled with us the previous day, put everyone to work setting up the Pharmacy. The knowledge exchanged at the pharmacy may not have been understood but it was appreciated. Some of us had so much fun they didn’t leave the pharmacy and ended up helping there all day.
An Accountant used their Excel sheets to register and account for every patient and their kin at the medical camp. A Communication Expert used their expertise in baby talk to calm the babies down in triage as their weights were being taken. A Tax Specialist specialized in crowd control to make sure everyone stood where they were supposed to. A Structural Engineer’s building skills were leveraged in helping direct patients to the appropriate room, all in a straight line. An actuary prepared food minimizing any risk of a hunger strike. A prominent procurement officer inverted his role and specialized in storage and delivery of the all drugs procured. A young design student balanced between documenting the medical camp all while helping guide the old perhaps to borrow some wisdom. Our local physicist was moonlighting as the head of logistics ensuring everyone traveled in style and on time. The doctors, pharmacists, nurses and nutritionists looked so at home. Like in their natural habitat, some of whom we never thought could be that serious. I think this is the true meaning of Rotary bringing people together, from diverse professional backgrounds, all in efforts to achieve a common goal.
The day went by so fast that what had begun with so much difficulty and hiccups, was working like a very well-oiled machine. The subcommittee was now seeing the fruits of their endless labour. The labour was anchored by various midwives (please read partners) who supported us throughout our journey as a club, to birth a successful medical camp, believing in the Impact that We the young professionals of the Rotaract Club of Nairobi Central had. Some having read our proposal once and others having knocked on their door more than once until they finally decided to answer. We would like to sincerely thank all the companies and individuals who donated to this impactful project. The star and true legend of the show is the Founder of Enkolili CBO operating in Maili Tisa, Mr. Leonard Mopel, who not only held our hand but welcomed us to his community with a warm embrace.
With your support, the Rotaract Club of Nairobi Central was able to allow 321 patients to access quality and free medical care. 207 patients received essential care. 70 Infants were immunized for the first time in their lives. 70 Mothers received post-natal care and attention. 11 families received family planning consultations. 43 patients received lab checkups. 10 patients received their first HTS visit. Overall, we made the whole community smile with gratitude and appreciation.
To our volunteer, medical practitioners, you were the heart of our project, and you made the whole project a resounding success. To our sisters from Uganda, you are as precious as pearls. Webale nnyo!! To our Daytime Data Analyst, the 24-hour Entrepreneur doubling as the head of the planning Subcommittee; hats off to you for leading us to our Inaugural Medical Camp at Maili Tisa Kajiado County!!!
Perhaps one of the tear-jerking moments was this 60-year-old man who made us struggle to balance our emotions. After a successful visit to the doctor and a free prescription, he came to us and said a statement which we will carry with us for the rest of our lives. Allow me to report it verbatim.
“…I have never gone to a hospital for 60 years but today, I received free medical attention. Thank you, my children. I have blessed you…”
Now that, ladies and gentlemen, is the true definition of impact. This is the reason why we the Rotaract Club of Nairobi Central are indeed Champions of Impact.
See you on the next one !!
Written by: Susan Maina
