August 9, 2008

  • Tuesdays

    After the two week class in Choma on Preventing Mother to Child Transmission of HIV, Sal and Geoffrey and I decided to initiate an official “Maternal Child Health Department” here at Sons of Thunder Medical Clinic.  That seems to be what the other rural health centers do and so they see their antenatals all on one day. Another day every week is delegated for Under Fives.  Well, we have already designated the last Monday of the month for Under Five here at Sons and it has been working well for three years now, so no change there seemed needed. We decided to just make Tuesdays “Antenatal day” every week. It only made sense to Geoffrey and Sal that since I handle Under Five….I should also handle Antenatals.  Now remember me?….I have one delivery under my belt….Sal has over 100 and Geoffrey has about 5. So I very quickly told them:  I would be willing to handle group education and ultrasounds, but not exams.  Our thought for this department was to hold group education classes with all the moms prior to their exams and we also decided to start using the ultrasound machine for checking gestation, viability and positioning.   Classes and ultrasounds we hoped would also serve as a way to get men involved with the pregnancy and birth of their babies, which here in Zambia is rare.  And of course, everyone wants to see their baby!!!  Well, God provided two women who came into my path on different occasions and between them both they were able to demonstrate the fundamentals of our donated ultrasound machine.  So, Tuesday the 15th of July was our first Antenatal day.  Sal told me I had 8 patients scheduled, so armed with teaching models and knowledge, I organized one exam room to accommodate about 12 chairs hoping for some dads to join us.  Well to my surprise, there were 20 moms and 5 dads throughout the day which I had to organize into two classes !!!!  Classes went well…..topics covered were simple anatomy and physiology during pregnancy, preparing for childbirth, nutrition and exercise, anemia, malaria and HIV prevention and/or treatment during pregnancy with discussion of blood tests and prophylaxis. Teaching models were used, questions were answered and everyone seemed interested including the dads!  Next were the ultrasounds…..I was able to check viability by finding the beating heart and positioning just by checking for head down position, but gestational age was another matter.  I found the landmarks and even did the measurements, but my numbers didn’t match up to the charts in the book.  I was able however to point out body parts to the moms and dads and print out take home pictures….they were amazed and very excited to see their babies! And guess what…our numbers for antenatals have increased significantly! J  Just last week, we had one father come to the clinic with his wife in labor….He wanted to be with his wife and see his baby born…..a FIRST here!!!  He sat with his wife all during labor, but when it was time to deliver, he couldn’t be found.  When I asked about it later, mom told me she had told him no…she didn’t want him in there at the time of the birth…..Ugh so close!!!   Oh well, maybe next time.

     

    Sal and I just want to tell you something very important to us……

     

    What we are doing here at Sons of Thunder Medical Ministries would not be possible without you…..all of you.  We are very thankful for your partnership and want you to know what an integral part you play in this ministry. Without your prayers….without your financial support…..without your encouragement…..without your love, we would not be able to effectively do what we feel God is directing us to do.  Please know how important you are to both us and the Zambian people. 

     

    If I could only capture a smile at the time a mom or dad see their unborn baby on ultrasound….

                                                   

    or describe the look of hope in the eyes of a loved one when their mother, husband or child looks and feels better than the day before….

                                                                                                                                       

    or catch the tears that fall when a young wife or mother is told she is HIV positive…..

     

    or let you hear someone ask Jesus into his or her heart for the first time….

     

    I would…..just so I could send it to you.  Just so I could let you know firsthand that…..

                                        together we are making a difference.

     

    Thank you so very much......with love,

    Sal and Renee

     

    PS Sorry there have been no pictures lately....I dropped my camera and it's out of commission. :)