You guessed it, another great and glorious day here in Wenchi! I seem to have a perpetual smile on my face and I am pinching myself that I actually get to be here and do this. It isn’t because anything here is even close to perfection. But the clutter is missing and that is so refreshing. Life is simple. We don’t have 10 choices of soda, we have one. We don’t have numerous restaurants to choose from, we have none. What I am saying is that life isn’t about having stuff and an overload of choices.
Morning staff devotions was about how Jesus washed His disciples feet and if He, the son of God, could do it, so should we. Serving each other, serving the least of these, serving the forgotten, serving period! Frequently the leader of the devotions says, “What do you want to ask God to do for you?” When we go to pray as a group, I am sure there are any number of requests (I wouldn’t know for sure because I don’t understand Twi), but I do know that I find myself asking God to do “the more” for those who I might encounter in the day.
I spent the morning in the operating theatre (operating room). I was able to ask questions of the anesthetist and the other staff regarding surgery and working in Ghana. It was interesting to observe the surgeon at work and to see the level of equipment and technology that they have. There were lesser standards by our book but clearly they maintain sterile field and technique. It was a great experience to see the dynamics between the surgeon and the rest of the staff. There is a lot of respect within the team.
The emergency department was a blast this afternoon! I ordered a flat film x-ray on a patient and assessed a trauma patient who had been hit by thrown rocks (not sure how that happened but it did!). It was great to be able to put into practice all that I have studied for and worked for over the past almost 20 years. And I have never put in so many paediatric IVs in my life as I have in the last couple of days. It is good to know that I can do these very difficult skills, especially when the child is screaming and dehydrated. For anyone who works with kids, you know what I mean. It isn’t easy to hit a moving target but I am batting 100% here.
For the record, in the ED today we had diagnosed TB, a three person motor vehicle crash, abdominal pain (multiple), a stroke patient, multiple malarias, and other issues. So many kids! Some very healthy coming in with mom or dad and some very sick. There were twins today, one sick and one well, they were very cute!
Finally, I am beginning to share with staff some of the medical supplies that I brought. I had one whole bag full to give to the hospital. It is a joy for me to be able to share with staff some of what they so definitely need and can use to care for the patients.