12/3/21
Today was our first day working at the Selian hospital in Arusha. Gayle, Steve, Alinda and I arrived to the hospital at 8am this morning. We were greeted by a beautiful gospel choir and sermon (all in Swahili) to set the tone for our day. We prayed for the patients we were going to serve that day, and then proceeded to do a brief report on our patients. I learned that Selian hospital had over 80 patients currently in its care. The new admits were described to the medical team. The deaths within the hospital were also reviewed with the team, which was sad to hear about. We then began our visits among the patients, reviewing some of the more critical cases of patients who had come in over the weekend. Alinda and I were amazed at the advancements these Tanzanians had made with their limited technology. These people use every resource possible to show their care and compassion for their people. For nearly all of the bone fractures, skeletal tractions were used to pull the broken bone pieces together and heal them properly. Also, we learned quickly that family is responsible to provide laundry and food for the patients, and it was nice to see loved ones surround the patients during their hospital stay.
After we made rounds through the patient rooms, we proceeded then to set up our clinic and visit our patients. We had an excellent team partnering with the Tanzanian doctors. It was so rewarding to see many of our patients again, getting to hold some of the little ones, and see slight improvements and make plans for real change in their healthcare plans. We ended the day by gifting Salian huge bags filled with medical equipment, as well as an endoscope and gastroscope. Dr. Robbers and Dr. Elibariki looked like kids on Christmas Day as they proudly showed us the new OR equipment Hope Ministries had provided. Thank you again for the donations allowing for these machines to help diagnose and treat many GI diseases.
While the medical people were busy at Salian, Lynn met with the hospice group. This team cares for about 2,000 patients throughout the four districts of Tanzania. Many of these cases were very sad and difficult to see. Lynn visited a total of 4 houses, and gifted each of them with a bundle of food lasting them at least a month. The first case Lynn had was of a 27 year old girl, who appeared only half of her age. The child was unable to speak and relied on taking at least 8 pills each day to remain pain free. Lynn was astonished by the way these people live in their one-man huts in remote villages. She said she had never seen anything like it. Lynn was amazed by the hospice team, filled with incredible individuals who have a true passion and heart for the people they serve.
God bless,
Abby
