The Report Card : OneSight Visit for Unit 1 by Siya Mavuso
If you disagree with the following report feel free to write your own. I also welcome all comments (Negative and Positive).
At the end of a term or any program there has to be some kind of a report on the performances of everyone. I hope someone writes a report card on the guys from Unit 2.
The general feeling is that Unit 2 was more “organized” than Unit 1. I think they were always going to be more organized anyway.
These are the reasons why:
1. Unit 1 had to pack & unpack eye glasses everyday. This is at least 100 large boxes(maybe 20) every morning and afternoon. Unit 2 did not have to do this. Why? They had NO GLASSES!
2. Unit 1 went to Mkhaliphi , Inkosibonga and Ezifundeni the first 3 days. Can anyone from Unit 2 give me just one place that came close in distance & gravel road travel to the 3 places we went to?
3. The age difference was also a factor. Is there anyone from Unit 2 that is in the same age group as +- 50? Just mention 1 from Unit 2. They were younger and fitter than us! e.g. Khethiwe, Swazi, Andile, Thuli, Swazi, Delly, Sakho, Mpi did I mention Swazi! Oh they also had Swazi!
4. We had 4 Units to move and setup everyday, the other unit only had 2 units to move. I do not have to elaborate further.
5. Unit 2 had Nathi Xhakaza. Any unit that has this guy is bound to do well. He is calm under pressure & talks a lot of sense. When in trouble I always say “What would Nathi do?.” Tip: Management should listen to this guy when he speaks. He is MVP Most Valuable Player(Person)
Lets Analyze each persons contribution and performances over the 8 days:
Quinton and Sbusiso : 10/10
These two guys get a perfect score. They were the first ones at work and the last ones to leave. Making sure that all the glasses were packed away and that nothing is lost or left behind. Moving 4 units with only 2 landrovers is hard work enough. They also had to deliver the staff to the different homes at night.
Day 3 : Ezifundeni. The learners in this school will never forget Quinton. They were trying to steal the t-shirts from community members. I just said “Quinton I need you to clear out these learners.” He only talked once and they ran out the gate.
Siyabonga Mavuso and Sfiso Zulu : 10/10
These are just some of the duties Siyabonga and Sfiso did everyday:
1. Electricians : They had to make sure all the rooms that needed power got power.
2. Registrations : Siya would then go to register learners in the different classes. Day 1 Mkhaliphi : Grade 9 & 10, Day 4 Masibonisane : Grade 9
3. Interpreter & Zulu Teacher : They had to help doctors communicating with the community members and learners. They also taught some of the OneSight doctors a few Zulu words to help them when they were not around.
4. IT : They had to print prescriptions for the other team.
5. Deputy Team Leader : When Gugu and Christine were not around Siyabonga had to take charge of the team. Make sure everything was going well.
6. VCT : No I am joking Siya wanted to also do VCT, thankfully someone stopped him.
Siyabonga did shout at people on day 4 maybe the stress just got to him. Plus half the time he was sick. A good combination that worked. They understand each other.
Sne, Mam Lungi and Mam Dudu : 7/10
Community Registrations and Health Education. Great job under terrible conditions. Most of the time they were short staffed as they lost Sthe Miya after Day 1. I had to minus a point as they did not contribute much after registrations for the day were done (Ushering or just packing away things).
Gugu and Christine : 7/10
They had to make sure everything went well. The leadership of the team. They did a wonderful job throughout. The amount of pressure they were under was just unbearable. I did not think they would last 2 days in the field BUT THEY DID. Even when sick with flu they were there with us.
Memorable moments 1 : Christine doing the Zulu dance at Bonga High School. She was keeping the people entertained while waiting for the t-shirts.
Memorable moment 2 : Gugu sprinting towards Mayor, Principal of Masibonisane, Melissa. They were taking a picture and she wanted to also be in it. She broke some sprint record! Watch out Usain Bolt here comes Gugu.
I had to take away 2 points for some mistakes. People wait in the sun for long periods of time. Not having enough volunteers present. But all in all a great job.
Sbahle and Mbhekeni : 7/10
The number of clients they had to see was tripled each day. They did not have enough medication to work with.
PS : These two worked well together. I would not pick a fight with the “Terrible Twosome” anyday.
Anna Ngidi : 8/10
LOC : Local Organising Committee
The reason community members came was because of her. She did a great job of mobilizing the community, informing the tribal authority. Some people did not like the closing ceremony in the end, this was where t-shirts were handed out including oranges. They felt it wasted time. I differ. This helped keep them occupied sometimes when the t-shirts arrived late. She kept the people entertained and calm.
Overall a job well done.
Sthe Miya : 5/10
He is a good friend of mine and I love him to bits. He was there on Day 1 and then went missing for a few days. Reason : He had flu. Well guess what WE ALL GOT FLU. Imagine what could have happened if all the people with flu stayed home eg. Christine, Siyabonga, Quinton, Sbahle etc. When he was sick it meant Sne was short-staffed. Guess I wont be getting Christmas card from Sthe this year.
Themba, Sabelo, Sma, Khanya, Vanessa, Slie 1, Slie 2 and Rebecca : 8/10
They were part of the “Smelling chart”(snelling) and VCT. We did not always get a room for them to work in. This meant standing in the sun for long hours. You cannot do this job sitting down. Everyone went through these guys. I never had them complain even once. Everyday they came to work & did their job. The conditions were tough and the hours were long.
Great job guys!
Guest Appearances: Rajesh and Glenn : 8/10
The system written by Glenn for the iPods during OneSight visit is phenomenal. I am also a programmer but what Glenn did is unbelievable at such short notice. This kind of application takes months and weeks to develop, implement and test. Only a few programmers in the world could have done this. Rajesh made sure that the printer would connect with the server out in the field and the two servers worked well. Although it worked well in the last day!
Bheki, Mngomezulu and Mthembu: 8/10
No matter how fast they drove the Corsa, people kept saying “Where are you, drive faster?”. I hope you will help them pay for all the tickets they got for speeding during these 2 weeks. Their job was particularly difficult as they had to deliver t-shirts and fetch people from the airport. Sometimes going home at 01h30 am and having to wake up at 05h00 am to be at work by 07h00. They were also part of the “shuttle”. This was moving eye glasses and prescription forms between the 2 sites.
I would not change places with these guys anytime.
Anele Mkhwanazi : 6/10
When the team was down on morale he should have picked us up with his humour and jokes but he did not. Why? Not a good performance from this guy. I expected a lot from him in terms of leadership. He has all the right leadership qualities and potential but he lacks confidence to display them. I am still waiting for Anele The Great to show up. I believe in this guy.
Overall Team Score : 8/10
Next time I would like to see Slie and Andrea in the field with us, away from the air-conditioned office and the takeaway lunches. The good thing about these 2 weeks is that everyone knows how tough it is out there now. You are lucky if you get a toilet that flushes and a sink that has running water. There are no comfortable seats in the field or blinds for the sun.
This is why when field workers get back to the office in the afternoon they just want to go straight home!
