All Around The Africa Mercy

Nurse Jenny, in her blog, "Shine Bright", wrote                                             It's been almost 2 months since the ship landed in the country of Guinea! We've been off to a good but very busy start! While over 400 patients have received free surgery, it takes a while to get their stories and photos to share with you all. So I thought instead, we would take a little tour of what else is happening around Mercy Ships. Working in the hospital, I generally focus on those surgeries and patients, but there's lots to see outside of our wards and ORs too!!

Last week, the screening team left the Africa Mercy and headed several hours up country to seek out patients from across the large country of Guinea. Several hundred patients were selected from two cities to come to the ship for further assessment. We ask you to join us in praying for the teams involved in a second screening trip coming in a few weeks. Please pray for: Safe travels for those staying away from the ship Wisdom and discernment for the screening team selecting potential patients The future patients who will receive surgery on the ship Security and safety at the sites

Sometimes the larger tumors our volunteer surgeons see are the result of a neglected dental problem, making the dental program such an important preventative aspect of the work of Mercy Ships. The focus of the program is the removal of decayed teeth and treatment of infections; they also provide cavity treatments, dental hygiene and partial dentures for some patients. This field service in Guinea, the dental team has the unique opportunity to hold their clinic inside a local dental school to provide training opportunities for local dentists, hygienists, sterilizers and denture makers. 1,600 patients have already received treatments and we look forward to supporting thousands more!

Dental Clinic Before: an unused classroom at the Dental school sits in disrepair Dental Clinic After: a few repairs and cleaning made this space usable for patient assessments and treatments by the Mercy Ships Dental team

Pediatric eye screening has now started in Guinea to find the young lives who have suffered with blindness due to cataracts. Because of your partnership, these children are given a second chance at a brighter future after surgery on the Africa Mercy! Most of these children are born with congenital cataracts due to genetic reasons or infection and grow up unable to see, work or go to school. Thanks to a simple, short surgery to remove these clouded lenses, we are able to celebrate new sight with hundreds of eye patients every year!

Through our Medical Capacity Building program, we believe that leaving a lasting impact should be one of the core foundations of Mercy Ships. Courses are held throughout the country in areas such as Safe Surgery, Safe Anesthesia, Surgical Skills, BioMedical and Sterile Processing several times throughout the year. For further training, 1:1 mentoring for surgeons, anesthesiologists, therapists and dentists is also provided. This photo from the recent sterile processing course is just one of several classes held so far in Guinea.

It’s not just surgeries that take place when the Africa Mercy is invited to a country. Here in Guinea, the Medical Capacity Building team is to thank for the fantastic HOPE Center renovation (Hospital Outpatient Extension Center) that houses patients before and after their surgeries. Having recently opened, it now looks forward to being filled with patients, all of whom will receive free surgery!

Prayer Points: Ongoing surgeries each day on the ship in Maxillofacial, General, Ophthalmic and soon to start Orthopedic specialties Peace in Guinea as there are riots and protests occasionally happening here in the capital of Conakry against rising gas prices and other government issues Large turnover of crew members as many 2-3 month commitments end Health of the crew and a stop to several illnesses spreading around the ship

Thankful Thursday!

Today, I am thankful that we are healthy and well.

I called my dad on Monday.  He told me that he had just found out my cousin Jay had colon cancer.  His parents were on their way up to see him in St. Peter, but dad didn't know anything more than that. 

You have to understand Jay became my favorite cousin after high school.  He was four years younger than me.  We both went to Mankato State, but not at the same time.  We both worked in the Cities after graduation and he was a frequent visitor in our town home.  We both married.  We both adopted two children.  I didn't see him a lot.  I could list the number of times in the past twelve years - mom's funeral, Aunt Janice's funeral, his niece's graduation.  But the memories and the laughter we shared all the times we were together were good, very good.   

Jay died yesterday.  Dad told me when he called to wish Micah a "Happy Birthday."  It was a "brief battle with cancer" - very brief.  We'll be going to visitation Sunday afternoon because on Monday I have an appointment with the knee surgeon that I've been waiting for for three weeks . . . 

I am thankful that we are healthy and well.  

Happy Birthday, Micah!

Hard to image this sweet little girl

turned nineteen yesterday!

I sent her nineteen Bitmoji birthday greetings just to annoy her -

and she thanked me!

HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY, MICAH!

 

TOTALLY Terrible Tuesday!

Tuesday was one of those days where I felt like I was taking one step forward and three steps back.  It wasn't that it was bad - I voted, I dropped off some paperwork at the clinic and I made it to work on time . . .

Where I had a new student in my first class!  A parent-child class where the parent let him go, because after all, he was three!  Go jump in when he wanted to . . . go under because he wasn't watching him . . . go play with the toys while we were singing . . . 

Then came my second class - she cried and cried and cried!  And this was the second lesson.  But it got better.  When Mom left, she started to scream and scream and scream!  I got "empathy eyes" from the ENTIRE pool!

My third class was the best of the day.  I finished with them, I packed my stuff away and I went in to take a shower.  When I packed my pool bag the night before, I had been helping Micah bake cookies.  Yeah, guess what I forgot!  But I told myself that when camping, I used to wear the same pair of underwear for LONGER than two days, so . . . 

And speaking of underwear . . . read on!

Captain Underpants!

Oh, the stories you just can't make up!  I am the Tuesday night deck manager at the Y this session. 

On Tuesday, I watched in awe as a gentleman, and I'm guessing, his wife came into the pool, walked to the deep end, and sat down.  He proceeded to take off his shoes, his socks, his shirt, his pants . . . You know where I was headed with this!

Fortunately, he had on red plaid boxers.  The truth is you do not need a swimsuit to swim at the Y.  You need "appropriate swim attire."  Now I am of the generation where we used to wear boxers as shorts so I may have been a bit more lenient than others, but I let him go in.

You gotta love it!  He wanted me to watch him swim so that I could tell him if he could swim!  And he started at the deep end . . .

Unfortunately, English was not his first language, but his maybe wife could speak it well.  I made her walk beside me to interpret my comments about his swimming abilities.  

You know, he wasn't bad.  But I did tell her to let him know that next time he came in to swim, he had to wear either a swimsuit or shorts - boxers were NOT going to cut it!  

Fun with the F.O.O.'s!

We met Allison (Matt and Micah's birth mother) and her hub and their three children at the Mall of America last night.  It was probably our most disjointed visit ever and we will probably never go back to the MOA on a Saturday night, but we did have fun!  Next visit will be Christmas cookie baking at our house . . . 

Micah, Kennedy, Allison, Lincoln, Matt and Kingsley

Sensational Selfie at Supper!?!

The five sibs . . .

 

Locker Room Chatter . . .

It couldn't have been funnier as I listened in to the locker room chatter yesterday . . .

"I always weigh more on the scale at the Y . . ."

"I always weigh more at the scale at the doctor's office . . ."

"My scale at home weighs best . . ."
"Because you always go to the bathroom first, right?"

"And I wear as little as possible . . ."
"I even have my 'light' clothes that I wear to to doctor's . . . "

And I laughed because I do the same exact thing - except maybe not the light clothes to the doctor's office . . .