Francois

Francois came to me following a traffic accident. His leg was gangrenous and I took him to the theatre to debride it. He was under spinal anaesthesia so could communicate with me. I told him "Je doix coupe isi" and he understood my French telling him I must cut his leg off. He refused even with me telling him he will die. The next morning I saw him and now not only had the gangrene moved several centimeters up his leg but he also had a surgical abdomen. I was able to convince him to allow me to explore his abdomen and amputate his leg. 

He is now ten days out of surgery for the amputation and he had blown open completely the second portion of his duodenum, which I was able to repair. He is eating a full meal and the education I have done with the creation of the wound care team has him recovering well at his 
amputation site and nutrition wise. He will return to complete the reconstruction on his leg next week after some good nutrition and then hopefully off to Bafut for physical rehabilitation. 

I wrote this poem after a late night discussion with his wife and son (sorry no pics internet isn't so hot right now):

Your blackness reflects in my eyes of china blue
Lines of pain zig-zag around your face
In a maze  that I can not understand and is so exhausting
That it would put angels to rest
I am not sure what you are trying to say to me
You are not nameless yet I do not know your name
I am not sure how to love you
but as long as there is no price to it I?ll stay
In this hour it is too easy to construct an artificial distance
In this dark place with death waiting when we
Are unsure if in the morn we will be met with
The preserved honey of life or the mortuary concrete

Je suis presse

Je suis presse, that is French for I am rushed. It may be spelled incorrectly but as it says I am rushed! 

My french has been coming along as I bartered "like an African woman" I was told, for a French textbook. In addition the operating theatre has been moving along with perforations and c-sections and so many wounds. Aside from the business of clinical work I have introduced wound care teaching and something akin to a "wound care team" as it would be called in the states and it looks like improvements are slowly happening we will see how it goes. 

Lastly, I have begun some work to improve upon the library and will be reaching out for help as far as that goes.

God Bless!

When it Rains it Pours

Well when it rains it pours here and I don't mean only the monsoon rains that come and keep my clothes from drying for over three days!  

Today was slow which was okay considering yesterday was three emergency c-sections with one woman who did not know she was pregnant with twins. Surprise for everyone and all mamas and babies doing well today. 

I am preparing a lecture for Saturday on wound care for the hospital staff and have also noticed there is no medical library...hmmmm?

A Box of Chocolates

So far I have done two laparotomies and was told that opening an  abdomen in Cameroon is like a box of chocolates....you don't know what you will get.  So true! 

My days are filled with many patients and I  think over half the ward is filled with wounds and fractures from motor vehicle accidents. My attempt at a shoulder reduction today was something else...patients present in their condition very late and  this 81 year old woman presented with two weeks of dislocation.

In the picture is little Yvette, an orphan. She is receiving physical therapy. She had an injured leg from a fall and then attempt was made by a traditional healer to fix it which caused severe compression sores. We have the wounds closed now and she is improving and hopefully will be well enough to start school.

Suitcases filled with hope, love, medical supplies, & other stuff

We've sorted through a garage full of supplies in hopes of finding what was specifically requested, or else making something similar.  We've ended up with two suitcases, total of 100lbs, for checked baggage and hope it gets put to good use.

Cherrish, my daughter (in the picture), and other friends were instrumental in getting the job done and Randy asked me last year  "Crystal when are you gonna move these supplies so I can get the car in the garage?" I said "When God tells me too", his reply "I sure hope he tells you by winter!"

Getting Ready to Depart

I depart in one week and have not been able to prepare as much as I'd 
hoped due to boards and some time working on the Navajo Indian 
Reservation.
 

I've managed to gather some supplies requested by the Hakes who are 
already there. When watching the news and seeing the drought on the 
East continent I can't help but wonder if it moves West who will be 
left in need of a doctor? It reminds me of a physician who worked very 
hard for polio eradication in Africa: After a huge vaccination effort 
a village man went up to him and said that child you vaccinated, he 
thanks you now but wait...he will curse you later when he is hungry.

Lastly, several people have been asking why I have not taken a 
position in a hospital and instead go off to "The Dark Continent" my 
response is that of Mother Teresa who says: Everybody wants to be 
where people have the most where people can pay you and it's nice to 
live. It's all the other places nobody wants to go. It is these places 
I think as servants of our brothers and sisters we must go "Whatever 
you neglected to do unto one of these least of these, you neglected to 
do unto Me".