Have you ever started a trip and got lost along the way? Have you experienced a trip that ended up into an unexpected adventure as you tried to find your unknown destination? And you left a mark on Google maps to not only forever treasure those memories? Only to later check and find that you were not the only one having those work-trips-turned-adventures? I guess I often got lost so that one after me would find their way. Such trips have been my escapades whenever I headed out for remote field assignments over the past two years.
I started out as a local guide years ago while at university. Being a health science student, our Google club noticed that healthcare-related services did not feature so much on Google maps. So we set out to map hospitals, clinics, pharmacies and basically anything health-related and succeeded in Kampala. It was such a fulfilling experience knowing that I could take on a hobby using a very vital platform and free time to give back to society.
I however very soon graduated, got a job, moved on and forgot about mapping for a while. Life happened, I often got assigned field trips to rural and remote areas. Being a young health professional, I had not travelled much, especially to hard-to-reach districts of Uganda. Who would want to go there, if it’s not one’s ancestral home? No one. But it was work and I had to get on with it. I remembered how we had realised that health infrastructure did not feature as much as other amenities did on Google maps in Uganda. All health facility destinations were recognised points of care for those communities and had received numerous support supervision visits from the Ministry of Health and development partners but were nowhere on Google maps. Strange, isn’t it?
Trust me, to most, it is a relief heading to a remote destination which actually exists on Google maps. Yes, Google maps make route planning so efficient. The drivers prefer a tech-savvy passenger. Even then I take a picture and post every health facility I have been to since I can relate to the peace that comes from both having an idea of what the place will look like and knowing I am at the right destination.
To many more adventures! To exploring the pearl of Africa 