March 30, 2006

  • Tidbits

    March 28, 2006


     


    Ten o’clock last Tuesday night, the phone rang.  It was Zimba Hospital.  They had a patient in labor (Orlando) that had stopped contractions even though fully dilated….they said the baby was “stuck.”  The problem was they had no doctor to do a C-section, no Pitocin to assist labor and no diesel for the hospital vehicle to transport the patient to Livingstone Hospital.   So they were calling us to see if we would transport.  We had seen the patient in the clinic for a couple antenatal visits so we agreed to transport her.  It took one hour to get to Zimba Hospital and then another hour and a half to get to Livingstone General.  We left her in the Maternity Ward in the hands of two midwives.  It was around 1am when we left the hospital and 1:30am when we got home.  The next day I went to Livingstone Hospital to take home a discharged patient and I stopped in to check on Orlando.  She was fine and ready for discharge but she was empty-handed….the baby had been born dead.  The women that were with her had already taken the body and buried it in an area near the hospital.  It was very sad and the dad wasn’t even aware of anything yet.  The only reason that baby died was the amount of time it took to get proper attention.  To make matters worse, we found out that 20 liters of diesel had been offered, but as the saga unfolded the Zimba vehicle was being used by a staff member for his personal use at the time and wasn’t available at the hospital for the needed patient transport.  The staff had even waited an hour before calling us.    


     


    Remember Tito, the teenage boy with tuberculosis whom we have on TB medications?  Well, when taking patients home from Livingstone Hospital this week, his father came up to our vehicle and told me that Tito was in the hospital. The story was that a tree he was cutting down fell on his leg, fracturing his knee.  That happened on Saturday the 18th and he was scheduled for surgery Wednesday the 22nd….I am not sure why the initial delay.  When I stopped in to see him on Wednesday, I was told he was not going to have the surgery that day because there was no oxygen in the hospital.  They were waiting for a delivery truck to come any day. Sal just stopped in to see him today, almost a week later, and his surgery still has not been done.  It is supposed to happen tomorrow the 29th….a full 11 days since the injury!  Can you imagine?  He’s been lying in a hospital bed all this time with a bone sticking out of his leg!  I’m really surprised he didn’t get septic, not to mention the pain he’s been in?


     


    I really don’t know what to do with stories like these two….the sad thing is these stories are not unusual or rare.  These stories are the norm; they are almost expected.  I know for a fact they are accepted as “just the way things are.”  You will hear people say,  “It’s Africa” shrugging their shoulders almost like “What do you expect?” It reminds me of when they said in the Bible…”Nothing good comes out of Nazareth.”  Ahhh…but we know different, don’t we?  We know who came out of Nazareth. I believe things can be different here as well.  It makes me ponder and ask….. “What are you going to birth out of Africa God?”


     


    Bristo left the clinic Thursday after being scalded and having burns over 38% of his body ten days previous…he was the child we took to Dr Shafik and he spent three nights at his facility.  He had been with us since his discharge from Dr Shafik’s…a total of 7 days.  His dressings were off, pain was gone and healing had been taking place.  Dr Shafik told us that he should have no scarring and the pigment should all return.  Praise God!  Bristo is still not a big fan of mine….he cried every time I enter the room because I am the one who always did his dressing changes.  His mom would even cry and leave the room whenever it was time for his dressings. J  It was good to see his little smiling face as he left for home. Yesterday, Bristo came back for review and Under Five Children’s Clinic….his pigment was already coming in!!!  Thank you God.  He took one look at me and started to squirm, trying to get away from me.  That’s okay….I didn’t take it personal. J


     


    I picked up little Libina from Zimba Hospital to take her home last Friday.  I found out her name is Robina instead of Libina…Zambians have a hard time with the “R” sound.  Robina went home without a fever, breathing normally and with a hemoglobin of 6.0.  The left side of her head was shaved where they tried to use a scalp vein for an IV unsuccessfully.  She also was not a big fan of ours….I guess we stuck her one too many times!  Oh well….it was good to see her parents smiling taking her home. God does answer prayer.  Robina’s parents were very thankful for your prayers and told me to tell you so.


     


    Oh, as I mentioned, yesterday was Under Five Clinic and guess who showed up for his first check-up…..little Sal!!!!  Yes, it’s true!  Primrose named her baby


    “Sal Norish Simutili.”  He’s only two weeks old, very cute and very healthy. I think the picture of mom and baby was in the last update.


     


                This past weekend was the women’s monthly prayer and fasting weekend held this month here at Sons of Thunder Church on the farm…I taught Saturday on “Fasting”, “Getting Oil” and “The Secret Place,” and ended up teaching Sunday School on “The Mary Miracle” and preaching on “Looking Through God’s Glasses.”   We had to restructure the Sunday School Program “Firm Foundations” because we lost two teachers….one with health problems and one because he was asked to pastor one of the outlying church plants.  So Howard, one of the teachers here at the primary school, moved to the adult class and Sal will help out until we leave.  Tim from the Hill has agreed to help out while we are in the States.  He has even agreed to have more Train the Trainer sessions.  One of the Bible College teachers, Pastor Hanguzul (I’m not sure of the spelling) will take over the church until either a new Pastor is put in place or Sal returns. Pastor Hanguzul already has a Baptism and Baby Dedication planned for April to correspond with a Fellowship Sunday….it might even be Easter Sunday, which by the way is when we head for home.


     


    This update is filled with tidbits….little noteworthy things I guess.  Either that or my brain is already on its way home…..which just might be the case!!!


    Looking forward to seeing you all soon or at least talking to you Stateside with good phone connections!!!!   Thank you all so much for your prayers and encouragement over the last nine months.  I know God has been here with us every minute of every day, but it also says in Proverbs 25:25, “Like cold water to a weary soul is good news from a distant land.”  Believe me, these weary souls have drank and felt the refreshing!!!  


     



                                       Bristo


     



                        Pigment Returning After Burns


     



                       Little "Sal" Norish