Random Saturday part 3

Here is part 3. The men surgery ward, the women's and men's medical wards and pediatrics.

All of these people and more needed care on that one random Saturday.

This young guy rocks! Great attitude and work ethic after receiving a leg amputation because of a severe leg infection

This gentleman has a leg infection but still managed last week to go to church and even translated for us.

This gentlemen suffers from stomach ulcers and a chronic wound infection

This child came in when he was 1 yo and weighing 10 pounds. he is now 14 pounds 3 weeks later.

This is a child who we suspect has had a stroke from the combination of sickle cell anemia and malaria.

This child suffers from an infection he caught while still inside his mom.

The child did not breath on his own for the first 10min of his life. His name is Grace.

His mom is now sick with a breast infection

This lady has a chronic lung infection which has spread to include areas around her heart

Believe it or not this lady has gained 4 pounds in the course of her treatment here

This lady has been here almost two months to treat her lung infection

This lady is here for longterm treatment of a lung infection

This lady is far from home and here for long term antibiotics for a lung infection

This is a young man with bleeding uclers whose blood level were 10% of normal.

This elderly man is a rare case of elder abandonment. he has severe hip pain and chronic lung problems.

This young man has severe spasms related to meningitis and low calcium levels

I can't say this enough. Thanks for praying for these patients and hundreds like them that we see all the time as we try to shine God's love and heal the whole person

random saturday part two

Here are the postpartum and "women surgery" rooms in the hospital

A lady who is 16weeks pregnant with twins but her placenta is in the wrong place and we are trying to keep the children and mom alive.

One of the twins from the lady in the first picture

The older sister of the twins. Recovering from polio

32 week premature twins slowly gaining weight to go home

This beautiful smile belies the fact that this 10 yo has lost 7 pounds in 2mos from typhoid fever

Recovering from life saving cesarean that Dr. Fuka performed last week.

Trying to avoid surgery with antibiotics

recovering from appendectomy

29 yo woman who has an abdominal fistula after a botched surgery in a "health clinic"

70 yo woman, Dr Fuka did a mastectomy for breast cancer

29 yo who had to have a hysterectomy because of tumors. No children.

Keep up the good work of prayer

A Random Saturday

Since most of my last posts have been word heavy I thought I would give you a tour of patients that I saw today.

These first group were from our emergency room

This first lady came in for abdominal pain and we are considering surgery

This child is 10 yo orphan with malnutrition who weighs less than 24 pounds!

This man suffers from the stigmata of leprosy and has pneumonia.

This child just came out of a 2 day long coma and trouble breathing after drinking kerosene

These two are of the same girl, who has pneumonia and sickle cell anemia.

This child is recovering from dehydration because of a stomach bug. Getting ready to go home.

This elderly man is in a coma from dehydration and tuberculosis. We are the last resort for him.

More picts to follow. But know your prayers undergird our work here and I encourage you to not lose heart in doing good.

Yika Mpiko

This is a new Lingala phrase we’ve picked up. It means to take courage, be strong, don’t give up. That’s a good phrase for us. We are 15 months into our first term, and sometimes staying the course and keeping courage can be a challenge. Everyday life can be difficult, and the medical work here is more complicated than in the United States.

Some examples from everyday life...

...making bread but sifting the flour for bugs first...

...teaching home school then having home school interrupted by someone trying to kill a poisonous snake in your yard (then letting it get away!)...

...not having a dishwasher or a washing machine...

...going to the market (on a bicycle) trying to find produce, not succeeding, and then going back again to try again...

...making supper only to have the bottled gas go out without any replacement for several months...

...having internet go in and out, cutting of reliable communication with family and supporters...

From the medical side...

...wanting a consult and not having one...

...making a diagnosis and saying “you need a surgeon” and then realizing that it’s you...

...fighting to keep parents from taking their kids out of the hospital to soon because (a)they don’t want to pay the bill, (b) they want to try a fetish at home, (c) the dad wants the mom to come back home...

...receiving sick patients and realizing that if you only had “one more thing” or more organization or something, you had a shot at saving the patient...

...watching patients die and wondering what you could have done differently...

...doing all of this in a different language and culture...

Then there are other things...

...hearing your kids say Sunday is their least favorite day because they take the malaria medicine and have to go to church in a language they do not understand...

...trying to explain the peace that comes from the Prince of Peace to someone who is too scared to listen...

...being exposed to communicable diseases regularly...

Yet, God is proving that He is more than faithful:

The kids are seeing a culture that makes them evaluate their own; they are seeing God answer prayer; they are happy and healthy.

We see babies start to breathe who would not be resuscitated in the past;

we speak love into downtrodden forgotten women;

we see God answer prayer; and with that we can say, “Yika mpiko.”

You have a part. Your gifts, your prayers keep us going, keep us determined to follow Jesus wherever He is and to bring light into an area of darkness in the world. So we say to you, “Yika mpiko.” Keep praying, keep giving, and keep in touch.

Right now we can use prayers for: family health, reliable internet communication, team unity, for a medical container to clear customs, and for a better understanding of the gospel for ourselves and the people around us.

Thanks,

Stephen