In the week before Christmas 2013 these are the things I learnt from Jeremy;


a, Be thrilled when your patient's CD4 count goes up. This should be a no brainer – many of our AIDS patients are on ARV drugs which help for a time and when the ARV stops working and the CD4 count falls again they can be put on a new ARV which might keep the count up for another year or two but at some stage the ARV's run out, the CD4 count plummets and they are in treatment failure and nothing more can be done for them by conventional medicine. So when their CD4 count rises again after they get a homoeopathic remedy it means that their life has literally turned around – well worth being thrilled about. But I, being a bit of a grinch, tend to be disappointed and self critical when someone does not improve instead of being thrilled when they do. Most people do get better on their remedy and it is quite normal to see CD4 counts going up so being thrilled when they do could bring whole days of delight!

Also it is quite difficult to choose a good remedy for someone, it can require intense concentration, observation and insight so a moment of self congratulation when you do get it right can't be so bad for the soul?

b, Keep taking the case until you know what remedy to give. When I first arrived here it was daunting to know that there was a queue of people waiting outside the door and that I had to prescribe fast. I did realise that managing to give 8 people a good remedy is better than giving 16 people a remedy that is chosen in a hurry and may not help, but the pressure of the people waiting and the translator getting tired and fed up is tough. At first I wanted to emulate Jeremy's speed but soon I realised that I should emulate his method instead. Jeremy can prescribe fast because he knows what remedy to give fast but it is never a question of time it is only a question of what remedy? What remedy? So the answer to how long does it take to take a case? Is; don't do anything until you know what to do! It is so simple, it takes time out of the equation and leaves only the engrossing detective work. And in the end it takes less time when you are fully immersed anyway.

c, The remedy Selenium has sex issues; especially weakness after sex, lack of erection and inability to finish. Typifying this it has; dreams, unsuccessful effforts. It is an AIDS remedy partly because AIDS is linked to low incidence of Selenium in the soil of Africa. So for an AIDS patient, where the case has a sexual element and there is weakness, Selenium may be a good remedy.

d, Paragraph 31 of the Organon is the paragraph about inimical influences. We were driving up to Kibosho on dirt road through banana farms, the sun was bright and the banana trees very green after the December rain. Roger, sitting in the back of the car, had questions for Jeremy on homoeopathic philosophy which Jeremy answered beautifully then threw a quick test my way – “which paragraph of the Organon?” of course I didn't know. I know now but I also learnt again the symmetry and beauty of homoeopathic philosophy on a beautiful green and sparkling morning, our last day's work before Christmas with no hurry and plenty of time for questions. I suppose I also learnt not to mind failing Jeremy's test, I work in a different way and that's ok. We get to the same place in the end.

A random and eclectic week as always!

We are here for three more weeks but Davy and Jane and I go to Malawi to teach again on the 6^th of January and only get back to Moshi in time for Davy and me to pack and head home to Ireland so the last few weeks before Christmas saw me visiting many of the outreach clinics for the very last time with lots of sadness and many goodbyes. I would like to stay here forever but I also can't wait to get back home and back to work again.