Co-patients at Mapuordit

Volunteers' compound


Monday 14th June

Our one and only surgeon was bitten on the hand by a scorpion in the hospital yesterday so is now unable to operate for a while; it is very painful and swollen, so we just have to hope there are no emergencies. He has cancelled the theatre list for Wednesday, let’s hope he recovers quickly.

It is just so busy right now, we had five admissions to the children’s ward in 30mins - all malaria, two cerebral. Temp up to 40c, so sick.

One family were bringing their two children to the hospital, a 5 and a 3 yr old. They had seen the local witch doctor who had given them some sort of ground root, no good.

On their way, the little 3 yr old died at the side of the road.

From what I can gather, the mother took her back to the village and the father continued on to us with her sister. She is so sick, I don’t know if she will make it. Her little heart is just racing. We gave all we could in drugs to reduce her temp and pressure in the brain, and of course the quinine for the malaria, plus tepid sponging. Now we have to wait and see, the poor father is beside himself.

The patient who is the paraplegic (the one that gave me the goat) was in the dressing room today. His wounds have improved so much since last year, all the very hard work of one nurse who has persevered all this time changing them 4 times a week. The only dressing material we have here is cotton wool hand rolled and gauze hand cut into squares. Lotions are savlon, iodine and hydrogen peroxide.

So he (the nurse) has done so well. Last year, this patient had the biggest pressure sores I have ever seen across both buttocks. He lives in the hospital and spends all day in an old wheelchair with a very thin cushion. Just the idea that they would heal at all is a wonder. I was given a few special fancy dressings from my hospital in Sydney which I am trying now. It would be great if we could get it completely healed before they run out. Fingers crossed.