Hi Everyone,
Just wanted to post and let you know that Jeremy and I both made it home safe last night. Despite the long delays in Accra, we managed to get home safe and with all our luggage. We will likely post some final thoughts a little later.
Thanks for following and for your comments. It was a great experience and we are glad we could share it with you.
Love,
Steve
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Departure Take 2
Good Morning from Accra,
We are now scheduled to depart at 9:30 this morning. We had to go to the airport last night at 9PM to check in, get boarding passes, and check our luggage. Then we stayed overnight here in Accra, and Delta says we will depart at 9:30 this mroning, and arrive in Atlanta at 5:15PM. They told us the plane was en route when we left the airport, so hopefully everything will fall into place. We simply arrive at the airport, go through immigration and security, and then we should be all set.
As for the connecting flights in Atlanta, they say I will have to wait until we are there to sort that out, so who knows what time I will actually get home tonight!
We will talk to you all soon!
Steve
We are now scheduled to depart at 9:30 this morning. We had to go to the airport last night at 9PM to check in, get boarding passes, and check our luggage. Then we stayed overnight here in Accra, and Delta says we will depart at 9:30 this mroning, and arrive in Atlanta at 5:15PM. They told us the plane was en route when we left the airport, so hopefully everything will fall into place. We simply arrive at the airport, go through immigration and security, and then we should be all set.
As for the connecting flights in Atlanta, they say I will have to wait until we are there to sort that out, so who knows what time I will actually get home tonight!
We will talk to you all soon!
Steve
Friday, June 18, 2010
A Little Delay
Hi all,
We have made it safely to Accra. Our flight out at 1AM tonight has been delayed and we will be leaving at around 9:30 in the morning if all goes as is currently scheduled. We have placed a call to the local Delta office, who is checking on everything (or so they say) and they are supposed to call us back by the end of business hours today to confirm everything. This will hopefully put us back in Atlanta around 5:15 tomorrow evening, rather than 9AM as was previously scheduled.
We will keep you updated as we know more. We are well, staying at the guesthouse here in Accra. We were able to get out and walk around the town for a while today and experience a bit of the local culture, and a lot of vendors trying to sell us their goods.
Updates pending,
Steve
We have made it safely to Accra. Our flight out at 1AM tonight has been delayed and we will be leaving at around 9:30 in the morning if all goes as is currently scheduled. We have placed a call to the local Delta office, who is checking on everything (or so they say) and they are supposed to call us back by the end of business hours today to confirm everything. This will hopefully put us back in Atlanta around 5:15 tomorrow evening, rather than 9AM as was previously scheduled.
We will keep you updated as we know more. We are well, staying at the guesthouse here in Accra. We were able to get out and walk around the town for a while today and experience a bit of the local culture, and a lot of vendors trying to sell us their goods.
Updates pending,
Steve
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Coming to an end!
Hello Everyone,
It is Thursday afternoon, and we are sad to write and say that our time here is quickly coming to an end. Today was our last day at the hospital, and we have said a lot of good-byes. Many of the local staff have asked, "When are you coming back," as if we are coming back on a schedule. I would say that we have both had a great experience, and would both be honored to have the opportunity to serve here again in the future, if that is indeed what is in store for us. We will just have to wait and see.
Just to sum things up a bit, this week has been busy at the hospital. We have seen a large volume of patients, especially since the surgeon has arrived. We have seen both very joyous outcomes, and unfortunately have continued to have many more deaths than we are accustomed to at home, however we have maximized the care to the best of our abilities in the system which is in place here.
Outside of the hospital setting, we had the opportunity to return to the orphanage today. Greg and Wendy, who are missionaries here, had obtained mosquito nets for the children. We were able to go help hang those in the rooms. Hopefully they will be used, and the children will be protected. While there I noticed that 8 of the 18 children have ringworm on their head, and only a few are being treated. The local public health will give treatment for 2 weeks, which is certainly not enough. I talked with one of the volunteers from there, a young lady from Germany, and I am going to calculate the dosages for the children and leave the money with her to see to it that all of them get the full 6-8 weeks treatment that they need. I will also leave a little extra for any of the others who may get ringworm and for the few who need treatment on their skin as well. It is a very minimal price (less than $10) to treat all of them for the full course.
Tonight dinner will involve all of the volunteers here as we are preparing to leave. It is a traditional Ghanaian dish, groundnut soup (peanut soup) served with rice. It is very common here because it is inexpensive and there is a good supply of peanuts. Afterwards will be station meeting, and then we will all say our good-byes. Jeremy and I will leave here at 4AM in the morning, travel by car about 2 1/2 hours to Tamale and then catch our 1 hour flight to Accra. We will be in Accra for the entire day, then leave on a 1AM flight, arriving back in Atlanta between 8 and 9 Saturday morning. Please pray for our safe travels and our continued health as we return home.
Talk to you all soon,
Steve
It is Thursday afternoon, and we are sad to write and say that our time here is quickly coming to an end. Today was our last day at the hospital, and we have said a lot of good-byes. Many of the local staff have asked, "When are you coming back," as if we are coming back on a schedule. I would say that we have both had a great experience, and would both be honored to have the opportunity to serve here again in the future, if that is indeed what is in store for us. We will just have to wait and see.
Just to sum things up a bit, this week has been busy at the hospital. We have seen a large volume of patients, especially since the surgeon has arrived. We have seen both very joyous outcomes, and unfortunately have continued to have many more deaths than we are accustomed to at home, however we have maximized the care to the best of our abilities in the system which is in place here.
Outside of the hospital setting, we had the opportunity to return to the orphanage today. Greg and Wendy, who are missionaries here, had obtained mosquito nets for the children. We were able to go help hang those in the rooms. Hopefully they will be used, and the children will be protected. While there I noticed that 8 of the 18 children have ringworm on their head, and only a few are being treated. The local public health will give treatment for 2 weeks, which is certainly not enough. I talked with one of the volunteers from there, a young lady from Germany, and I am going to calculate the dosages for the children and leave the money with her to see to it that all of them get the full 6-8 weeks treatment that they need. I will also leave a little extra for any of the others who may get ringworm and for the few who need treatment on their skin as well. It is a very minimal price (less than $10) to treat all of them for the full course.
Tonight dinner will involve all of the volunteers here as we are preparing to leave. It is a traditional Ghanaian dish, groundnut soup (peanut soup) served with rice. It is very common here because it is inexpensive and there is a good supply of peanuts. Afterwards will be station meeting, and then we will all say our good-byes. Jeremy and I will leave here at 4AM in the morning, travel by car about 2 1/2 hours to Tamale and then catch our 1 hour flight to Accra. We will be in Accra for the entire day, then leave on a 1AM flight, arriving back in Atlanta between 8 and 9 Saturday morning. Please pray for our safe travels and our continued health as we return home.
Talk to you all soon,
Steve
Monday, June 14, 2010
Steve Gets a Wife!
Good Monday Evening Everyone,
It is time for a celebration, Steve has landed a Ghanaian wife. Or so was the story at the hospital today. We had some clothing made by a local tailor, and I had a suit made like was worn by one of the previous long term docs here, basically an oversized set of scrubs that keep you very cool because they let plenty of air flow through. When I showed up at the hospital today, one of the translators said I should marry Lamisi, one of our other translators. She patted my stomach and Lamisi's shoulder and said, "the two fat ones." She thought this was hilarious as did everyone else, considering Lamisi has children who are over 18, and we are two of the more heavyset people here. It was a good laugh, and I hope you will think so, too. There are photos below.
Aside from some good laughs, we are doing well. Today was one of our busiest clinics. Jeremy and Jim saw a total of 130 patients in clinic today, and Michelle and I saw 98. I think this was probably the busiest day we have had so far. A surgeon arrived today, so we now have a little more capability to help patients, but only so far as we can use spinal or local anesthesia, unless you or anyone else really thinks biting a bullet is a true form of pain tolerance.
We finally had a day without a death on the peds ward last night. However, the same may not hold true tonight. Jeremy admitted a 6 yo girl with a snake bite (remember we have no anti-snake venom) 3 days ago, was taken to a local healer who made many cuts on her ankles and arms to let the toxins out. Now, however, she is here with bleeding from all these sites, because the snake venom inhibits your clotting system. She will probably be needing a tetanus shot, too if she survives. In discussing snake bites, we have also learned there is a black market for snake venom. Apparently if you know the right people, and have the correct cash amount, you can get anti-snake venom. The translator would not ask how much it cost for us, but we hope to find out tomorrow. There is word we may get a few vials in the next few days from Accra, but that is still pending.
We have taken several photos in the past few days, so a few of those are below. We just haven't really had time to edit them and post them. We included 10 of the best below. No worries, no gross medical pictures are on here.
We hope everyone is well at home, and ask for your continued prayer as we work through this final week here. The hospital is in a real time of stress and need, and we just hope our efforts will be a blessing to them. We look forward to talking to everyone soon.
Love,
Steve
Steve with Lamisi. She always smiles, except when she is in front of the camera. She is an excellent translator and has been a blessing to work with.
Steve, Jeremy and Enabong (an OB resident from Canada) with their attire made from the Ghana Health Service fabric. This took a little effort, but it was worth it.
Steve rounding on the peds ward.
Jeremy rounding on the men's ward.
Steve resuscitating a 34-week old child in the OR following a C-section. Although we had a lot of concern prior to the surgery, the baby did very well after a few minutes of support, and went home a few days ago after she learned to suck well enough to gain weight.
Steve with a 3-year-old who had a head laceration after falling into a concrete ditch. His parents own the local gas station where we buy soda and fruit juice. Although he was numbed very well, while being held down for the sutures (all 7 of them) he screamed, "You are killing me!" in the local dialect. The father found it very funny.
Steve with Majeed. This is the young man was fell off the truck and required the many hours of suturing. He has just finished getting his sutures out. With the exception of a little wound ont he side of his forhead, everything has healed very well.
Jeremy eats some charcoal cooked corn at the local market. Cost less than 50 cents.
Jeremy eats peas. We have them quite often, so he gave them a try, and didn't have any major
breakdowns or flashbacks to childhood.
The tiny Falani (one of the local tribes) Church we attended on Sunday. It was so small I hit my head on the doorway. There were probably 10 local people, plus 8 or 9 of us there, and it filled the building. There was a church next door (not sure what type) whose members were having some fun with their speakers and amplifiers.
That's all for tonight!
It is time for a celebration, Steve has landed a Ghanaian wife. Or so was the story at the hospital today. We had some clothing made by a local tailor, and I had a suit made like was worn by one of the previous long term docs here, basically an oversized set of scrubs that keep you very cool because they let plenty of air flow through. When I showed up at the hospital today, one of the translators said I should marry Lamisi, one of our other translators. She patted my stomach and Lamisi's shoulder and said, "the two fat ones." She thought this was hilarious as did everyone else, considering Lamisi has children who are over 18, and we are two of the more heavyset people here. It was a good laugh, and I hope you will think so, too. There are photos below.
Aside from some good laughs, we are doing well. Today was one of our busiest clinics. Jeremy and Jim saw a total of 130 patients in clinic today, and Michelle and I saw 98. I think this was probably the busiest day we have had so far. A surgeon arrived today, so we now have a little more capability to help patients, but only so far as we can use spinal or local anesthesia, unless you or anyone else really thinks biting a bullet is a true form of pain tolerance.
We finally had a day without a death on the peds ward last night. However, the same may not hold true tonight. Jeremy admitted a 6 yo girl with a snake bite (remember we have no anti-snake venom) 3 days ago, was taken to a local healer who made many cuts on her ankles and arms to let the toxins out. Now, however, she is here with bleeding from all these sites, because the snake venom inhibits your clotting system. She will probably be needing a tetanus shot, too if she survives. In discussing snake bites, we have also learned there is a black market for snake venom. Apparently if you know the right people, and have the correct cash amount, you can get anti-snake venom. The translator would not ask how much it cost for us, but we hope to find out tomorrow. There is word we may get a few vials in the next few days from Accra, but that is still pending.
We have taken several photos in the past few days, so a few of those are below. We just haven't really had time to edit them and post them. We included 10 of the best below. No worries, no gross medical pictures are on here.
We hope everyone is well at home, and ask for your continued prayer as we work through this final week here. The hospital is in a real time of stress and need, and we just hope our efforts will be a blessing to them. We look forward to talking to everyone soon.
Love,
Steve
Steve with Lamisi. She always smiles, except when she is in front of the camera. She is an excellent translator and has been a blessing to work with.
Steve, Jeremy and Enabong (an OB resident from Canada) with their attire made from the Ghana Health Service fabric. This took a little effort, but it was worth it.
Steve rounding on the peds ward.
Jeremy rounding on the men's ward.
Steve resuscitating a 34-week old child in the OR following a C-section. Although we had a lot of concern prior to the surgery, the baby did very well after a few minutes of support, and went home a few days ago after she learned to suck well enough to gain weight.
Steve with a 3-year-old who had a head laceration after falling into a concrete ditch. His parents own the local gas station where we buy soda and fruit juice. Although he was numbed very well, while being held down for the sutures (all 7 of them) he screamed, "You are killing me!" in the local dialect. The father found it very funny.
Steve with Majeed. This is the young man was fell off the truck and required the many hours of suturing. He has just finished getting his sutures out. With the exception of a little wound ont he side of his forhead, everything has healed very well.
Jeremy eats some charcoal cooked corn at the local market. Cost less than 50 cents.
Jeremy eats peas. We have them quite often, so he gave them a try, and didn't have any major
breakdowns or flashbacks to childhood.
The tiny Falani (one of the local tribes) Church we attended on Sunday. It was so small I hit my head on the doorway. There were probably 10 local people, plus 8 or 9 of us there, and it filled the building. There was a church next door (not sure what type) whose members were having some fun with their speakers and amplifiers.
That's all for tonight!
Steve
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Saturday, Saturday....
Good Morning everyone,
It is Saturday morning, and we are already finished for the day (it is just before 11AM here). Quick updates: Still no snake venom available and still no x-ray film available. We are not sure when any of either will be available, but this certainly limits some of our treatment options.
At the hospital it has been a difficult week on the pediatric ward. We have had at least 1 death each day, and several days had 2 deaths each. It seems that several of the children with GI problems, whether they were gastroenteritis or typhoid related were all unable to overcome their illness. A couple of them I really had thought were improving, but then quickly passed away. We had 2 malnourished children with multiple problems also pass and last night we lost a little boy with what was likely bronchiolitis and pneumonia, who we just didn't have anything more than bulb suction to help with his secretions and mucus. He had looked in less distress yesterday on rounds, but I wasn't sure if he was truly less distressed or becoming more sick and just unable to mount an appropriate response. Meanwhile, there are two children (a newborn, and a 2 year old) on the ward who may have Hirschprung's disease (where the nerves of the colon do not develop normally so they cannot pass stool). The newborn presented with a very large, hard abdomen, having never passed stool in the first few days of life. We were able to find on exam that his anus is not completely open and he has formed a fistula tract where stool leaks from just under his scrotum. He is passing stool through the fistula, however, his belly is much softer, and he is eating well. We are going to let this continue until monday when a new surgeon arrives and let him help us determine the best course for the child. He will ultimately need some kind of anal surgery to help him, but since he is OK for now, we felt it best to do no more harm than already exists. The 2 year old is a child who also presented with a hard abdomen and having difficulty passing stool. it was very difficult to get a good history from the mother with the language barrier. Initially she reported the child had normal stools until recently. While the child has been in the hospital, he has not had a single stool in several days. On further questioning with a different nurse doing the interpreting, I was able to learn that the child has never had a stool on his own since birth. They have always "mixed up" enemas to give him when is belly became hard to help him stool. So, I think this child may for sure have Hirschprung's. We are doing small enemas daily now to help him stool and the surgeon will also evaluate him on Monday. Otherwise he is doing well. One last child to talk about is a little 2 year old boy who came in overnight with a femur fracture. The parents took him home today because they wanted "Local treatment" not casting or traction. Local treatment here varies by illness or problem, but usually is not a very good option from a medical standpoint. For skin wounds, the medicine man creates some liquid, which contains who knows what, some have said snake parts among other things, and then pours it on the skin. usually we see them a week or so later because the solution causes the skin to peel off and then it gets infected. They also have a similar concoction for internal problems that the people drink, and many others for a variety of different illnesses.
On a more positive note, Majeed, the young boy whose pictures you saw a few days back after all the suturing, returned yesterday for suture removal. After multiple attempts to be sure we had them all out, he looks great. He has a little area from the wound next to his right eye that is still healing, but otherwise all the other areas have healed very well and hopefully won't scar too badly. He is a very polite young man, very loving and grateful, and just makes your heart bleed for the suffering he has endured the past week and a half. I really pray for blessings for he and his family as they are all very loving and compassionate. I am surprised how attached to him I became in just a few days, but there is definnitely a special bond there. I guess he is just one of those patients who touches your heart in a special way, a blessing sent from Heaven.
Outside the hospital, the past few days have also been fun. We bought some fabric from the local market and are having some African clothes made. The wife of one of the caretakers of our guesthouse is making them for us, for a very cheap price. She tailored everything on Thursday, and Friday we tried them on, but let's just say that my butt is a little bigger than she perceived or measured. She came by in the evening yesterday and is going to alter them with the extra fabric to make it possible for me to get the pants above my lower thighs! Jeremy and I also got some of the Ghana Health Service fabric from the hospital, and are having shirts made from this. Hopefully they will be done in time for us to wear them to the hospital and get some pictures made before we leave. The clothing here is very colorful, and very simple in they way it is tailored, but seems to be very durable. Michelle (the pediatrician from Kansas City) has made the observation that it is amazing how many layers of clothing some of the people wear, even in this hot weather. It reminds me a lot of our experience in South America with some of the women wearing many layers and bundling their babies in many layers also.
As you are probably aware, the World Cup competition is officially underway. The Ghana National television is carrying every game, so we are hoping to see the US play tonight. Yesterday, as we were returning from the local market I saw a few groups of people gathered around TVs watching very intently. I can't wait to see the local energy and activities when Ghana plays tomorrow!
As most of you know, my sister Danielle graduated from high school last night. I hated to miss the ceremony, but I did have the chance to call and talk to her for a while yesterday before the graduation. I am very proud of her and excited she is going to attend Northern Kentucky University, which is only about 5 miles from my house in Fort Thomas. I am sure there will be plenty of photo and video coverage from our family. Pray for her as she goes through this big period of transition in her life.
It is hard to believe this time in 1 week we will be getting back into the USA. Jim one of the other docs here reminded me today. Our time is going by so quickly. I just hope our work and efforts are a good example to the local people. We know the hospital is going through transition and some serious financial struggles currently for multiple reasons (not being paid by the goverment insurance for 6 months now, having difficulty purchasing medications, searching for more long-term physicians to help staff the hospital). I just hope God blesses them to be able to continue the good work that is happening here so the local people can continue to receive good care and spiritual nourishment. A large part of the community's life is due in part to the hospital at some point, past or present.
My goal for the coming week is to begin putting together some of our photos into a slide show, or a printable format, so that we can have them ready pretty quickly to share with everyone when we are back. It is always frustrating to try to tell people about the trip and not have the pictures ready to show when we return. Pray that I would get this done or at least a good start. We have a lot of pictures to sort through, and many more we will acquire/share with some of the others here with us.
I will stop for now. I hope you are all having a great weekend. We will post again soon, and maybe even try to get a few more pictures on here in the next couple of days.
Love always,
Steve
It is Saturday morning, and we are already finished for the day (it is just before 11AM here). Quick updates: Still no snake venom available and still no x-ray film available. We are not sure when any of either will be available, but this certainly limits some of our treatment options.
At the hospital it has been a difficult week on the pediatric ward. We have had at least 1 death each day, and several days had 2 deaths each. It seems that several of the children with GI problems, whether they were gastroenteritis or typhoid related were all unable to overcome their illness. A couple of them I really had thought were improving, but then quickly passed away. We had 2 malnourished children with multiple problems also pass and last night we lost a little boy with what was likely bronchiolitis and pneumonia, who we just didn't have anything more than bulb suction to help with his secretions and mucus. He had looked in less distress yesterday on rounds, but I wasn't sure if he was truly less distressed or becoming more sick and just unable to mount an appropriate response. Meanwhile, there are two children (a newborn, and a 2 year old) on the ward who may have Hirschprung's disease (where the nerves of the colon do not develop normally so they cannot pass stool). The newborn presented with a very large, hard abdomen, having never passed stool in the first few days of life. We were able to find on exam that his anus is not completely open and he has formed a fistula tract where stool leaks from just under his scrotum. He is passing stool through the fistula, however, his belly is much softer, and he is eating well. We are going to let this continue until monday when a new surgeon arrives and let him help us determine the best course for the child. He will ultimately need some kind of anal surgery to help him, but since he is OK for now, we felt it best to do no more harm than already exists. The 2 year old is a child who also presented with a hard abdomen and having difficulty passing stool. it was very difficult to get a good history from the mother with the language barrier. Initially she reported the child had normal stools until recently. While the child has been in the hospital, he has not had a single stool in several days. On further questioning with a different nurse doing the interpreting, I was able to learn that the child has never had a stool on his own since birth. They have always "mixed up" enemas to give him when is belly became hard to help him stool. So, I think this child may for sure have Hirschprung's. We are doing small enemas daily now to help him stool and the surgeon will also evaluate him on Monday. Otherwise he is doing well. One last child to talk about is a little 2 year old boy who came in overnight with a femur fracture. The parents took him home today because they wanted "Local treatment" not casting or traction. Local treatment here varies by illness or problem, but usually is not a very good option from a medical standpoint. For skin wounds, the medicine man creates some liquid, which contains who knows what, some have said snake parts among other things, and then pours it on the skin. usually we see them a week or so later because the solution causes the skin to peel off and then it gets infected. They also have a similar concoction for internal problems that the people drink, and many others for a variety of different illnesses.
On a more positive note, Majeed, the young boy whose pictures you saw a few days back after all the suturing, returned yesterday for suture removal. After multiple attempts to be sure we had them all out, he looks great. He has a little area from the wound next to his right eye that is still healing, but otherwise all the other areas have healed very well and hopefully won't scar too badly. He is a very polite young man, very loving and grateful, and just makes your heart bleed for the suffering he has endured the past week and a half. I really pray for blessings for he and his family as they are all very loving and compassionate. I am surprised how attached to him I became in just a few days, but there is definnitely a special bond there. I guess he is just one of those patients who touches your heart in a special way, a blessing sent from Heaven.
Outside the hospital, the past few days have also been fun. We bought some fabric from the local market and are having some African clothes made. The wife of one of the caretakers of our guesthouse is making them for us, for a very cheap price. She tailored everything on Thursday, and Friday we tried them on, but let's just say that my butt is a little bigger than she perceived or measured. She came by in the evening yesterday and is going to alter them with the extra fabric to make it possible for me to get the pants above my lower thighs! Jeremy and I also got some of the Ghana Health Service fabric from the hospital, and are having shirts made from this. Hopefully they will be done in time for us to wear them to the hospital and get some pictures made before we leave. The clothing here is very colorful, and very simple in they way it is tailored, but seems to be very durable. Michelle (the pediatrician from Kansas City) has made the observation that it is amazing how many layers of clothing some of the people wear, even in this hot weather. It reminds me a lot of our experience in South America with some of the women wearing many layers and bundling their babies in many layers also.
As you are probably aware, the World Cup competition is officially underway. The Ghana National television is carrying every game, so we are hoping to see the US play tonight. Yesterday, as we were returning from the local market I saw a few groups of people gathered around TVs watching very intently. I can't wait to see the local energy and activities when Ghana plays tomorrow!
As most of you know, my sister Danielle graduated from high school last night. I hated to miss the ceremony, but I did have the chance to call and talk to her for a while yesterday before the graduation. I am very proud of her and excited she is going to attend Northern Kentucky University, which is only about 5 miles from my house in Fort Thomas. I am sure there will be plenty of photo and video coverage from our family. Pray for her as she goes through this big period of transition in her life.
It is hard to believe this time in 1 week we will be getting back into the USA. Jim one of the other docs here reminded me today. Our time is going by so quickly. I just hope our work and efforts are a good example to the local people. We know the hospital is going through transition and some serious financial struggles currently for multiple reasons (not being paid by the goverment insurance for 6 months now, having difficulty purchasing medications, searching for more long-term physicians to help staff the hospital). I just hope God blesses them to be able to continue the good work that is happening here so the local people can continue to receive good care and spiritual nourishment. A large part of the community's life is due in part to the hospital at some point, past or present.
My goal for the coming week is to begin putting together some of our photos into a slide show, or a printable format, so that we can have them ready pretty quickly to share with everyone when we are back. It is always frustrating to try to tell people about the trip and not have the pictures ready to show when we return. Pray that I would get this done or at least a good start. We have a lot of pictures to sort through, and many more we will acquire/share with some of the others here with us.
I will stop for now. I hope you are all having a great weekend. We will post again soon, and maybe even try to get a few more pictures on here in the next couple of days.
Love always,
Steve
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Welcome Aboard!
Good Evening Everyone,
I know Jeremy wrote earlier this evening, but I just returned from hospital night rounds and thought I, too, would give some updates.
The title may have you a bit curious. Well, we are happy to be joined by another pediatrician, Michelle, from Kansas City. Today was her first day on wards and in clinic. She was paired with me for the day, so we were able to share the shock of being a pediatrician who also sees some adults throughout the day. I think it went well though, because clinic wasn't too busy today, so she had some time to adjust and bring back some old med school memories about treating adults. It is a wonderful blessing to have another person who will share call and help divide up the patient load at the hospital.
The week otherwise has been quite busy. Jeremy had posted about a few of the patients earlier. I, too, have patients who need prayer. It seems the peds ward is now with less patients, but not because of discharging them home. Already 5 patients have died since Sunday night this week. 3 of them were a complete shock to me, and a couple of the others were expected. The three that were surprising were children who had typical viral gastroenteritis with dehydration, 2 of whom were very close to going home, but during the night the past 2 nights have passed away. I don't know if something else went wrong suddenly or if there was another illness that we were not able to recognize because of the symptoms from dehydration. They all had some component of malnutrition, however, so I am sure their immune systems were weaker than normal, and they had no reserve to help fight an infection or acute bodily stress. Some of the others had respiratory illnesses and little hope of survival from the time they were admitted, because they were very ill before they got here, and honestly the antibiotics probably never had a chance to work.
Meanwhile, there are a few new kids on the ward who are very ill right now, one, maybe two of whom I expect to pass very soon. One is a little boy with a respiratory illness that looks like pneumonia and maybe bronchiolitis, but he also has some large tonsils and is having a lot of trouble breathing. He is on oxygen (via NG tube in the nose), but is working VERY hard to breath. Unfortunately we only have bulb suction available at the bedside, so some of the routine treatments we would do at home are not available. Pray for his recovery, because if we could get him through this acute phase, he probably has a chance, but he is really in some distress tonight. The other one I expect to die is a little 4 day old who likely had a hypoxic brain injury during birth, who presented with seizures soon after birth. I was able to get the seizures to stop with meds, but the child is not at all normal in regards to a neurologic status. I had the chaplains come spend time with the mother today to help her prepare for the reality that her child will likely not survive. In the meantime I am treating with antibiotics for the slim possibility that the child has a severe meningitis picture that is complicated by the long birth history.
This evening on night rounds I also had a few sad cases. One is a young man in his 20's who drank car battery acid this afternoon to try to commit suicide. He said he had an argument with his mother and wanted to die. He would not answer when asked if he still wanted to die or if he was wanting to live. He appears well currently, but anything is possible with acid in the gut. Another is a younger man who apparently had a bicycle accident today. He seems very intoxicated or encephalopathic one of the two. I think he most likley is intoxicated based on my exam, but I am testing for malaria tonight, in the case that he has cerebral malaria. Either way they both need prayer as the outcomes for both could be good or poor. I also had 2 children who had fallen out of trees and had leg injuries. I suppose today was a great day to climb a tree. Since we have no x-ray film, we will likely take them to the procedure (theatre) area in the morning, sedate them, and exam them better so that we can reduce any fractures or dislocations they have. Pray for us to have wisdom as we do this.
On a more positive note, today the wife of one of our workers here came by this evening. She is a seamstress. She is going to make us some African clothing from the fabric we purchased on our trip the market a few days ago. (No, in case you are wondering, there was no Obama fabric. Those are all manufactuered clothes.) I am excited to see how the clothes turn out. The best part is the whole thing, fabric, sewing and all, are going to cost less than $30.
I suppose I should conclude for the day. I need to take a quick shower, and get some rest in case I get called back to the hospital tonight--several women are currently in labor. Please keep us in your prayers. We are learning a lot here, and enjoying our time to the best of our abilities. Please keep the comments coming, we have a lot of fun reading them.
Love always,
Steve
I know Jeremy wrote earlier this evening, but I just returned from hospital night rounds and thought I, too, would give some updates.
The title may have you a bit curious. Well, we are happy to be joined by another pediatrician, Michelle, from Kansas City. Today was her first day on wards and in clinic. She was paired with me for the day, so we were able to share the shock of being a pediatrician who also sees some adults throughout the day. I think it went well though, because clinic wasn't too busy today, so she had some time to adjust and bring back some old med school memories about treating adults. It is a wonderful blessing to have another person who will share call and help divide up the patient load at the hospital.
The week otherwise has been quite busy. Jeremy had posted about a few of the patients earlier. I, too, have patients who need prayer. It seems the peds ward is now with less patients, but not because of discharging them home. Already 5 patients have died since Sunday night this week. 3 of them were a complete shock to me, and a couple of the others were expected. The three that were surprising were children who had typical viral gastroenteritis with dehydration, 2 of whom were very close to going home, but during the night the past 2 nights have passed away. I don't know if something else went wrong suddenly or if there was another illness that we were not able to recognize because of the symptoms from dehydration. They all had some component of malnutrition, however, so I am sure their immune systems were weaker than normal, and they had no reserve to help fight an infection or acute bodily stress. Some of the others had respiratory illnesses and little hope of survival from the time they were admitted, because they were very ill before they got here, and honestly the antibiotics probably never had a chance to work.
Meanwhile, there are a few new kids on the ward who are very ill right now, one, maybe two of whom I expect to pass very soon. One is a little boy with a respiratory illness that looks like pneumonia and maybe bronchiolitis, but he also has some large tonsils and is having a lot of trouble breathing. He is on oxygen (via NG tube in the nose), but is working VERY hard to breath. Unfortunately we only have bulb suction available at the bedside, so some of the routine treatments we would do at home are not available. Pray for his recovery, because if we could get him through this acute phase, he probably has a chance, but he is really in some distress tonight. The other one I expect to die is a little 4 day old who likely had a hypoxic brain injury during birth, who presented with seizures soon after birth. I was able to get the seizures to stop with meds, but the child is not at all normal in regards to a neurologic status. I had the chaplains come spend time with the mother today to help her prepare for the reality that her child will likely not survive. In the meantime I am treating with antibiotics for the slim possibility that the child has a severe meningitis picture that is complicated by the long birth history.
This evening on night rounds I also had a few sad cases. One is a young man in his 20's who drank car battery acid this afternoon to try to commit suicide. He said he had an argument with his mother and wanted to die. He would not answer when asked if he still wanted to die or if he was wanting to live. He appears well currently, but anything is possible with acid in the gut. Another is a younger man who apparently had a bicycle accident today. He seems very intoxicated or encephalopathic one of the two. I think he most likley is intoxicated based on my exam, but I am testing for malaria tonight, in the case that he has cerebral malaria. Either way they both need prayer as the outcomes for both could be good or poor. I also had 2 children who had fallen out of trees and had leg injuries. I suppose today was a great day to climb a tree. Since we have no x-ray film, we will likely take them to the procedure (theatre) area in the morning, sedate them, and exam them better so that we can reduce any fractures or dislocations they have. Pray for us to have wisdom as we do this.
On a more positive note, today the wife of one of our workers here came by this evening. She is a seamstress. She is going to make us some African clothing from the fabric we purchased on our trip the market a few days ago. (No, in case you are wondering, there was no Obama fabric. Those are all manufactuered clothes.) I am excited to see how the clothes turn out. The best part is the whole thing, fabric, sewing and all, are going to cost less than $30.
I suppose I should conclude for the day. I need to take a quick shower, and get some rest in case I get called back to the hospital tonight--several women are currently in labor. Please keep us in your prayers. We are learning a lot here, and enjoying our time to the best of our abilities. Please keep the comments coming, we have a lot of fun reading them.
Love always,
Steve
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