Christmas Time for the Nurses!

And a  Stitch Job...

Finally the long awaited for meds arrived from CAM. We had so much fun rummaging through the boxes and finding a whole bunch of treasures. We felt like we were opening Christmas presents!

I have learned to appreciate meds and what they do for people, much more since I am here working in the Pharmacy.  Its such a blessing to be able to give the needed meds but my utmost desire is that they would see Jesus and turn to him for healing.

Here we are going through boxes and marking down the quantity of each med.

Ro and Mali stocking the pharmacy.

Wit trying to hide from the camera.

While we were unpacking meds this guy came in... He was working on a construction crew and  cut his hand with a saw.  So Mali stitched him up.

 


I'm just going to throw this picture in from today. Here's a 16 year old who gets seizures once or twice a month.  Unfortunately he was too close to a fire and fell in, thankfully the burns weren't too bad.

Please continue to pray for us as we let our lights shine!

~Miss Marcile

One or Two???

"Its twins"...was the verdict of 3 tired nurses as they carefully slid the ultrasound probe over the woman's very pregnant belly. Glancing at each other we nod in unison. "Twins". She needs to go out. We all realize that our diagnosis could be wrong but what if it was twins and we are not equipped to do a caesarean.
 Don came told us that in half in hour if we still feel the same about it then Kate and I should go with Julian to Tit Guave.
  Half an hour later we are all ready to leave. I clutch our emergency birthing bag and whisper a prayer that we wont need to use it. After a short prayer from Don we go flying down the trail. A BIG thank you to whoever donated towards our new machine. It rides like a dream !! Kate and I couldn't get over it. We made it to Tit Guave in 1 hour 15 min.!! The lady seemed to be calm and her contractions not too strong. Sadly the hospital in TG was closed so we had to go to Pastors to get the ambulance. After loading up all our gear Julian announces the tire pressure to low to drive to Leogane. I wink at kate..."Oh joy,!!" Every minute is becoming very precious. We quick switch everything to Pastors vehicle and roar away. I can hear her contractions getting closer..."Go faster Julian.."About 3 minutes from the hospital in Leogane we hear a flood over water. I jump back to check her, "Her water broke, just drive as fast as you can." I plop down to my seat and pray that we make it. A second later and more water and a plop. I switch on the light and there is a healthy FAT baby on the floor. Kate yells to stop and we run to the back. It was CRAZY!!! I take care of the baby and Kate takes care of the mom. Kate glances at me,"I think that's all,I cant feel another baby in here.."I feel like laughing but instead I lean over the pink screaming baby to ask him if he had another womb-mate with him. The dad is shocked. "Mis, the baby is too young to talk!!" I throw my head back and laugh. Kate joins and even Julian did, soon the father is chuckling and the mom has a huge smile. We are parked right in the center of a busy spot in town. People flock to watch. We try to have some privacy but it is impossible. They are all excited about this. A birth, in a vehicle, 2 little white nurses scurrying around trying clean up, a huge baby.... We felt awful for our wrong call but as we bounced back up the trail Kate said drowsily. "Mothers fine, baby's  fine, we are tired but alive."I nod drowsily, right now I am too tired to care.

One or Two???

Everyone happy and alive!!

 

 

The last few days at the clinic have been sort of stressful. Saying Goodbye to our administrators in the middle of a busy clinic day,crying our eyes out as we hold hands and pray for strength to face our line of waiting patients that are quietly watching the white nurses wipe tears. Two days later finds us doing the same thing except this time its Mis Katie that is leaving us.  We watch in tears as Fre Derick takes her by the arm and brings her to the waiting Bobcat. Once again we watch the bobcat disappear down the trail and Kates arms waving in farewell. We miss you Mis Katie.

When Rho caught sight of the this cute preemie....she couldn't stop hugging it!! It weighed 3 lbs 4 oz.It brought smiles to our faces!!

A big welcome to Mis Whitney!!We missed you and its great to have you on the team again!! I am sick with a very bad fever and very achy bones. I am sure I look exactly like 90 year old!! Please pray for the clinic staff that no one else would get sick!
"We can never bless the world merely by having a good time in it; but by only by giving our lives for it."
-Mis Mali

Pumpkin Soup and Partings

    Pumpkin soup. Exactly. Maybe it would be better than you think. Maybe if it was all you got to eat all day, you would think it was good.

Joe said, "I always love when you come."
    Joe gets none too much love. He suffers way too much pain. But when we see him in the morning, again, he says, "God didn't call me yet." Poor, dear Joe with the huge bed sore. I think you would make him pumpkin soup if it was one thing in his day that made him smile, wouldn't you?

And, then, there is Pasquet. He has had cancer, for years, and seems to be on his death bed. He came

to us, deeply dehydrated, and unresponsive. We kept him on IV overnight and into the next day, before he started to respond with smiles, a few words, and hand motions. It is so exciting to watch him revive, and yet we know unless something miraculous happens, he will most likely be heading towards death, anyways. But, Pasquet loves God, and his peace is evident.

And, this cute little droopy-eyed child....why is he smiling?

We were able to make a trip to Laogone hospital, where specialists work on bones. This little boy returned to us after his surgery with some white doctors in that hospital. They were able to  successfully remove a toe that was causing him problems with pain and efficient walking. We praise the Lord for H

is timing, because the surgery itself was able to be done with a fairly low cost table, since it was a missionary team on the premises that week.                                                    

On the positive/miracle note. We were running out of gloves again here at clinic. They were too expensive to buy more when the last crew was in town, so we were trying very hard to not use too many of our sterile glove stash. Every day, multiple times, I would ask God if He was remembering about our gloves. Well, he was! Yesterday, some donated gloves arrived, unexpectedly. So, I know God is like that. 

 We as a team want to thank every one of our friends, who sends encouragement, takes the time to pray, and touch our lives from all over the globe. Steve, Shana, and family.This is your last night here. THANK-YOU doesn't cut our sentiments. Kate, ADIEU, and sniff. God is calling you somewhere else, too. We will try to pass on the legacy you left behind. We all love you and will miss the excellency portrayed in your service in the Haitian hills. I know that sometimes, at least, you will remember us over coffee....Good-night! --Mis Woda                                         

After Hour Fun...

  Yesterday we had a great time cooking corn and bean sauce at the neighbors house after work. One of my patients brought it as a gift and it made a great BIG pot.. enough to share with neighbors and all the hungry little bellies always begging for food.

Happy faces...eating off of Mali's plate :)

A few smiles from clinic today...

A jolly baby fattened up with Herbalife.

Our dear granny friend who doesn't come to the clinic for meds but always dances in the door and looks up with her signature face and says, " Did you leave a little food for me today?" She's a delight.

  

 And a new nurse! She came to take Mis Leda's place over the time of her pregnancy and birth. We're grateful for her help.

Jesus bless your day. Let's lose our lives in the joy of His service today!

- Mis Kate

Hospital Room Episodes...

Two, skinny, little Haitian grandpas. One healing and one dying, one lying and one singing. I don't know if any of you remember the blog Kin had posted about "143 Maggots"?  Our dying patient is Jo, the one that Whit removed 143 maggots from his pressure ulcer wound. He seemed to be really picking up and the ulcer was showing signs of healing. Rho and Steve brought him out to a to have a doctor look at it and they booked an appointment for him. Things were looking up for dear old Jo. Now, he gets weaker every day. He used to walk every day to our clinic to get bandaged, now he can barely walk from the hospital room to the exam room. His emaciated legs can barely hold his body up. Last night he fell off his bed and Kate found him on the floor, in a pool of his own blood, sheets soaked, and that pitiful look on his face. He lays there and sings softly until there is no strength left . Our  prayer is that God will soon call him home so his suffering can be over.

 His ballooning ulcer...

 

 

Jo....trying to swallow his meds.

 

Now for our little healing liar. Kate blogged about "3 little piggies" A man that came in with 2 toes shriveled up with gangrene and a black, yellow ,oozing, smelly foot. We really wondered if it was ever going to heal. We were  NOT pleased to enter the hospital room one night and distinctly smell cigarette smoke. "Did you smoke Papi???" we called out to him. "Oh Mis, I never would do that!!" We grinned at each other and shrugged our shoulders, tomorrow we would address it clearly. Kate did and he promised to never touch a cigarette again. Well, last Friday our cleaning lady found a cigarette butt under his bed.... to say the least none us nurses were vey pleased with him. Kate stood outside and preached loudly to him for 10 minutes. I hope he got it this time. But...miracle. His foot is healing amazingly. A firm pink area covers what used to be open oozing flesh. Three cheers for Mis Woda and her loving hands that bandage him every day:)

 

1st DAY

TODAY!!

Healing is beautiful to see and it cheers each nurse to see a patient slowly recover. We see so much pain and wounds so far gone there is hardly hope but moments like this are what we remember and cling too. Our God is Healer, awesome in Power...That's the God we serve!!

Today I stitched up a sweet 11 year old boy that was brave enough to put a man to shame. He lay there and grinned at me every time I clipped the thread off a suture and never cried or pushed my hand away. Bravo!! We could use more of that kind of patient at times!!!

I thought you all might like to see a picture of each nurse at their station.

 

Rho, still smiling after a difficult consultation:)

Kate, squeezing one of her Plumpy Nut babies.

 

Marcile, Welcome!!! Our new pharmacist.

Myself, I am replacing Whit, consulting people in our Hypertension program. We miss you Mis Whitney!!!

Today I was thinking about the verse "Whatever you do, do it heartily as to the Lord and not to men." NO matter who it is....the Cause we are running for is Jesus. May His name be continually lifted up!!

-Mis Mali

 

 

How Did That Poison Taste?

     Knock. Knock. Knock. Knock. It is evening. And someone has really bad stomach pain. It's not a lady.
    Mali and I grabbed the keys and walked with Steve down to the clinic. Our patient was the man who takes care of feeding our mission horse. He was facing severe pain, and also had a recurring hernia. We checked his pain out, to make sure there was no chance of it being appendicitis, and then gave him a bed in the hospital, with some pills to subside his pain.
    As I went back home to finish my evening with the other girls, I pulled out a medical text and read up on hernias, and complications of them. We determined to keep a close eye on that man. It could become a medical emergency at any point in time, if it would become strangulated. We did a few checks on him through out the night.
   When morning came, it was difficult to assess the situation. It seemed like the actual site of the hernia was not the most painful, but his pain was constant and intense in his stomach region. By afternoon, when all the other patients had basically left, our patient began to show signs of shock. We quickly put him on oxygen, and called Steve on the radio. Before long we were on another record- breaking, body-breaking run to town.
    We strained our muscles to keep the man from tearing the mask off his face, and tried to remind the man over and over that he needs to repent of his sins. His heart was fluctuating from 238 beats a minute to 64 beats a minute. Things can not go on too long at that rate. And meeting God is going to happen when that heart stops....The dying man nodded his head that he heard us talking.
    Before long, Estofan was no longer responding at all.

    Our hearts couldn't figure out why this was the end to this case. We had prayed through every step of our decision, and had felt at peace as a team that we didn't feel we should transport him until now. Is death a good end, especially if we aren't sure if this man is saved? Is it okay to say that we were understanding God right? Did we as a team mess up somewhere? If we had a better facility and a doctor could we have saved this man?
    The wails of the daughter brought our minds to the needs of the present moment. We did our best to comfort her while we retraced our road, and brought the corpse home. But death is so final. And then, we felt like crying along with her, really. So little hope. No promise that this man is in Heaven.
     We played the case over and over in our minds. We asked doctor friends what had happened. They gave a hypothesis and another guess. And then, this week, we found out that his family had put poison in his beer. The case is now stark and clear. Nonetheless, it hurts. How could someone do this to their family member? Why did they even bother bringing him to the clinic if they wanted him to die? And how does that poison taste?
     Our minds replay the situation, and then seek to forget it forever. Life without love, without God. Bitter. Bad. Killing.
   

 
   
   

Shots from the Mobile Clinic

…and stories from the "misyon".

I'm sorry this update is a little out-of-date.  I'm back in the States for a month trying to juggle work, weddings, and everything else that has piled up on my need-to-do list...like write a blog update on the mobile clinic.  :)

*June 5th*
Thursday afternoon Steve, Kate, and I said sad goodbyes to the ones of our group staying behind to man the mission and we, along with several Haitians, started the rugged ride down the mountain to Ti Goave.  Our rig was full to the brim with people, backpacks, and lots of supplies that made for some tight seating places, but we had so much fun laughing and talking with the Haitians all the way, it definitely made for a joyride.  :)

We spent the night in Ti Goave at Pastor Levy's with plans to leave for Delot early the next morning.   Well,  we learned that "early" is subjective, but I don't think we even left early by Haitian time.  "So much for getting up so promptly!"  we thought.  :)   Pastor went ahead of us in the bobcat to lead the way and we followed after,  beginning the slow four-hour climb up the mountain.  

Pictures never do justice, but this can help you imagine some of the view we enjoyed on our way.  :)

The bank was softer and the rocks a little looser than Steve anticipated,  and we 'bout rolled to our destination less than a mile away!   Well not quite, but I have to say it felt a lot worse than it looks.     "Should I jump out?"  I asked from the far passenger's side.  "Well you're keeping the vehicle from rolling, so don't get out yet." was the reply I got.   Steve thought a couple feet farther and we would've tipped.  But thank the Lord we didn't!

The excitement drew down quite a crowd that had already been gathered at our destination, and with the pull of the bobcat and the push of a host of Haitian helpers, they made a smooth move putting the vehicle back in its place.

As soon as we made it there they showed us our working and sleeping quarters, which was a long cement building divided into four dorms.    The first one was where we set up clinic.   There were a handful of people already waiting when we got there, so we got started setting up right away.  We hung tarps to make one waiting room, two consultation rooms, and the pharmacy.   I think we saw about eighty people that evening before the evening service started. 

First things first, Dr. Felix grabs a bite to eat before delving into the lines of patients waiting for consultations just after we got there Friday.

Kate (above) and Mis Joseline (below) shared a consultation room where they very patiently consulted most of the 250 patients that came through over the weekend!  

That night all the guys slept in the first couple dorms, and Kate and I slept with all the Haitian ladies in the other two dorms, spreading out our blankets on the cement floor and piling in for the night.  Well, we did  slumber some that night, and it was  its own kind of party, but not exactly what I think of when I think of a slumber party.  

The next morning started at about 4:00 for us.  It started out very slow as a song- or a moan, I'm not sure which, that one lady sleepily began mumbling.  Before long it picked up in rhythm and racket as two or three more ladies blended with her, and soon the whole room was one lusty choir, clad in bed-gowns and blankets.  Imagine a dark room with only the light of a couple small flashlights, just enough light to see shadowy forms sitting up in bed all around the room, lifting their hands, singing, and praying…    As drowsy as we were, there was no more dozing through it.  Kate and I pulled the blankets over our heads and heartily laughed our sleepiness away until we reckoned with the idea of being awake so early in such a fashion, and then we joined in with the singing.  :)

The main purpose of the trip was to do a "misyon" as they call it, where a group of Christians go trooping over the mountains, singing, praying, and preaching.  So most of the Haitians left mid-morning to go do that, and the rest of us stayed behind to run the clinic.  

Clinic was nonstop that day, with a seemingly endless stream of patients coming to be consulted.  Dr. Felix had left, so Kate and Mis Joseline worked relentlessly to keep the lines moving.  Steve and Zita, our Haitian pharmacist, faithfully filled prescription after prescription in our makeshift pharmacy, and I ran between taking vitals in the waiting room and helping them back in the pharmacy.   

With a rough guesstimation, I would say that 75% of all the cases we saw over the weekend were simple things like colds and coughs, with the other 25% being more serious medical cases including extremely high blood pressures.  For all those people, we gave them appointments to come see us at our clinic where we hope to be able to treat them more long-term.

There was another service at 5:30 that evening, so after we filed the last patients through for the day, we ate some food, closed up, and took a little hike to a Pastor's house where they let us shower and clean up for the evening.

The Haitians served us good food, and lots of it!  This was a green leafy soup with boiled bananas, yam, and something like a boiled piece of dough in it.  It was all very tasty...well, all that we ate of it anyway!  I don't think any of us were ever able to eat the whole amount they put on our plates at once , but there were always children around who were happy to finish it up for us.  And before we'd know it,  they'd say it'd be time to eat again, and in would come another plate piled with food for each of us.  "Oh, we just ate!  We're not hungry  Our stomachs are full!" we'd say, but they'd insist, so we'd obligingly take a few more bites and then find another hungry child to help us out again.  :)

I made a mistake of taking mostly video footage of the weekend, so unfortunately I don't have very many good pictures.  Above, you can see the people gathering for the evening service held right next to the building where we worked and slept.

By the time we got back, the service was well underway.  The singing went on long enough for the sun to set over the mountains, and then out came their makeshift generator-powered night light strung up on a tall pole.

As the service went on and we lost ourselves singing our hearts out with all those Haitians, it gave me a very small, but very stirring glimpse of how awesome it will be to stand before God someday with Christians from every tribe and nation, singing, shouting, and dancing for joy before HIM, for what HE has done for all of us!

Several different Pastors preached that night, and as the singing started up again, one Pastor asked who was going to come and be saved.   Quite a few people went forward.  I heard that forty were born again over the weekend.  But that night one young lady went forward and when Steve and the Pastors laid hands on her to pray, she started throwing herself around uncontrollably.   She was demon possessed.

The excitement showed in the increasingly fervent singing as everyone started standing up on the benches to see what was happening.  It took half a dozen men to contain her, and carry her down into one of the dorms where a group of Christians continued praying for her there to be delivered.    They were all still in there praying after the service ended.  I met up with a couple of the girls' friends who told me that she had told them the day before that she didn't want to get saved 'cause she wasn't ready to yet.

After that I joined Steve and Kate in the dorm where several Pastors and a group of earnest Haitian Christians were still fighting in prayer against the demons still controlling the girl.   The Christians linked arms and formed a circle around her, and the demon would throw the girl against them to try to escape.   Pastor spoke with the demons and they told him their names, and where they were from.  It was all so real.

One of the young Christian men who was leading the praying and singing asked if there was anyone in the room who had any sin in their lives.  My prayer was, "God, free me from my self!"  I just saw so clearly how I only had as much power against Satan as I had been living in obedience to God, dying to my own self and living as a sacrifice…  It was a challenging time of searching our own hearts.

We continued praying in one corner of the room while Pastor Levy and others prayed with her in the other corner, and she was finally delivered!  I didn't get to see her after that though 'cause Pastor Levy said she was physically exhausted and thought we should all head off to bed right away.

There was much more that went on that night.  We all saw the real power of Satan, and some felt personally attacked by that demonic power, but we were never afraid.  Though we know we're personally powerless against Satan's power,  we know that God has won the victory over him already, and we witnessed His power and victory that night!

Sunday morning we had a very lively, refreshing church service in the local church there, really close by.   Again, we all sensed the power and reality of God and left with very full hearts and minds.

We left just before church finished and walked back up to the dorms to start packing up the clinic, but not in time before church let out and a rush of people decided this was their last chance to get any medical help for a long time!  We ended up seeing probably between 30 and 40 people, but thankfully none of them were seriously ill and mostly just needed a vitamin or worm med.  :)

So we did manage to stuff everything and everyone back into the vehicle and wind our way home!   We had some very good talks on our way back, and sometimes very funny exchanges as our tired bodies tried operating under our more tired minds…or vice-versa, I can't even remember.  :) But we did make it home late Sunday night and were quite happy (though none were as happy as Steve and his cute little wife to be together again;) to rejoin the rest of the team!  They had had their own set of stressful excitement running the mission short-staffed, with two births, lots of bandages, and all kinds of other things.  They were troopers!

I'd say this update is long enough to make up for me not having to do it the whole time I'm gone!  :)  God bless you all!   Please remember to pray for us and especially for the girl I wrote about...