Category Archives: Ethiopia 2012

Letters from Ethiopia 2012

 Greetings from Soddo Christian Hospital March 23, 2012

The team has been busy getting settled in at Soddo Christian Hospital. This has been a very different but rewarding clinical experience from Langono. The cultural challenges are still here of course, but treating patients in a more urban setting at a hospital is a different type of clinical experience. The students in the out patient department (OPD) have been seeing many common types of problems, diabetes, hypertension, GERD, as well a quite a bit of trauma, usually related to auto accidents. It was interesting to me to be reminded not all medical problems here are tropical diseases!
The students have had the opportunity to rotate through the OR which has also provided a rich experience and an appreciation of simple things like not having to delay surgeries due to no running water, or having to thread your sutures on to separate needles to close the wounds.
It was a difficult day on the OB ward yesterday, due to having to deliver a still born baby and 2 babies that had massive abnormalities that died during the birth process. It is a poignant reminded of the importance of good prenatal care and nutrition. More things we take so much for granted in the US but something so often lacking in other countries.
On the medical wards the students were able to experience the difficult case of a 10 year old boy with tetanus. The boy had an open fracture of his arm repaired about 2 weeks ago and developed active tetanus infection, because he had never been immunized. Once again it emphasizes the importance of a good immunization program in reducing human suffering.
Every one is getting a little tire3d from the long days, but we are holding up well. Allison and Gloria have turned out to be GREAT cooks and have kept the team well fed. They even cooked barbecue chicken and potato salad for dinner last night!
We were able to join the staff on Wednesday and Thursday mornings for their bible study and chapel service. It is such a blessing to see the hospital staff form all departments come together to read and discuss God`s Word, and worship our great God.
Thank you for your prayers and support during this time. I appreciate the fact that you are an important part of our mission.

Brad White RN FNP-BC

 

Soddo Christian Hospital; Woman in the Emergency Department

Greetings from Soddo March 19, 2012

Greetings,

 We arrived at Soddo yesterday evening after a lovely drive across
Ethiopia. We were met with wonderful hospitality by Mark and Alice Karnes
and we are in a very comfortable guest house. The house usually has both
electricty and water and is very convenient to the hospital. We are at
a bit higher elevation – around 7000 feet and the mission hospital has a
beautiful mountain back drop.

Soddo, Ethiopia. Brad White in front of the hospital guest house

 This is BU LHSON first time to this mission hospital, and we
prayerfully exploring the potential for future student endeavors. This
morning – very early three of the students rounded in the OB Gyn and the
other two in general surgery. The complexity and accuity of the patients
is staggering. The students will rotate between the departments and work
with the physicians. Your prayers as we adapt to a new location, new
language and new setting are appreciated.

 This morning we visited the students in the outpatient / ER
department. Two patients arrived near the same time…one was a seizing
pregnant women with very high blood pressure – we think eclampsia, but in
this setting cerebral malaria is also on the differential diagnosis
list…the other patient, a probable cerebral malaria, with oxygen level
in the 80’s. The decision has to be made about who would get the Oxygen-
only available for one patient at a time. Medicine was needed, but the
system is that the patient goes to the pharmacy to purchase the
medication and IV supplies. This is the reality of life in a hospital in
a developing country. But it causes our hearts to ache as we realize how
little is in our control. This is important for my mission field bound
FNP’s to fully know and we recognize as Christians that it is in God’s
hands…and so we continue to pray.
 The students tired but in good health and in good hands with Brad
White. I am transitioning out and Brad is taking over this final leg of
the time in Ethiopia.

Blessings,

Lori A. Spies

Subject: Akum Akum March 16, 2012

A quick update….

Thank you for your prayers…we are all well and enjoying our last few days in Langano. Sunday we will travel to Soddo to begin work in a large mission hospital.

Brad White has arrived safely and is already orienting well to Ethiopia. He journeyed out this morning with a student and a missionary nurse to make a home visit today. An hour walk from the clinic and a great chance to see this arid and beautiful place. Each of the student’s has had the opportunity to visit an Ethiopian tukul. Each visiting team has been greeted with generous hospitality, coffee and chuko or injera and wot have been provided. The students gain an appreciation for the daily life of the Ethiopians. As a rule cooking fires are inside, on the ground. Mosquito nets are old and torn or non existent. There is a drought and the smallest trickle of water has herds of animals and flocks of people drinking and bathing. There is so much need for community health and public health outreaches. Each morning after the Ethiopian evangelist preaches the students share information on ways to stay healthy…a visit to the traditional homestead underscores for the students the great importance of this information.

Typical Homestead in the Langano Region

A side note —we have seen a variety of animals too – Baboons, colubus monkeys, warthogs, mongoose, camels and the ubiquitous goats, donkeys, mules and horses and perhaps the most amazing birds in the world…all around our guest house and the clinic as we walk to work each day and home each evening…It is awe inspiring.

 

Our final inservice for the nurses was yesterday afternoon. The students did a wonderful job sharing health care information. The Ethiopian and missionary nurses are very generous in educating all of us about tropical diseases and treatment in an environment of scarce resources. I believe we have all learned a great number of things; how to quickly diagnose trachoma, how to determine the position of the baby in a pregnant woman, how to find the heart beat (we found twins!), how to treat filiarisis… But just as important we have seen God’s word in action. We have seen beautifully effective, holistic and sustainable Christian outreach.

Today a woman came to the clinic from far away and said she did so because it was famous. The Ethiopian nurse, Zufan, told her “If it is famous, it is because of Jesus Christ, let me tell you about him….”

God is good!

Lori A. Spies

 

Hello from Langano March 14, 2012

Greetings,

It is a busy clinic morning and the students are working closely with the Ethiopian and missionary nurses to provide excellence in health care and Christian outreach.

Our time in Ethiopia has been filled with diverse and rich experiences. Saturday we conducted a remote ‘bush’ clinic in Tufa. We brought in medicines and equipment and working with local mission contacts set up a clinic under a tree in an unreached area. The students saw several hundred patients…the worst case of pellegra I have ever seen, trachoma, Vitamin A deficiency, malaria, pneumonia and the more mundane allergies, ear infections and strep throat. We referred people for additional evaluation for abdominal trauma, tuberculosis, a grade V murmur, and cataracts… The students worked a long hard day and handled the challenges beautifully.

Sunday morning we worshipped in the local church, while the service was in Oromo we all clearly understood the faith and spirit of the believers gathered. Sunday afternoon we had our down time at a local resort. We enjoyed a Western styled restaurant and swam and kayaked in Lake Langano. It was a relaxing time of restoration. That evening when we returned there was a woman ready to give birth. The electricity was out so in addition to assisting Kim with the delivery the students held flash lights. It was wonderful to offer a prayer of thanksgiving over the healthy baby. The ululation from the dozen people waiting on the outside benches and the hugs from the woman’s aunt were sweet reward.

 

Ten day old triplets in Langano. Ethiopia

 

Monday we attended a lixo, a two week time of visiting following a death. We joined friends and family to sit in the home and offer prayers and presence to the daughter of the deceased. As is the tradition we ate injera and wot provided to all. It was a meaningful cultural experience.

Tuesday a set of healthy triplets came to the clinic…10 days old with healthy appetites. They had not yet been named…because twins and triplets often do not live, so they are not named for a period of time. We were able to facilitate the Mom being enrolled in the nutrition program.

The students are doing well, we have had a day or two of illness but everyone is on the mend. The team does a great job of working together and ministering physically and spiritually. They have bonded well with the Ethiopian nurses and staff. It is a blessing to work with each of our Baylor NP students and see what wonderful gifts they so freely use.

Thank you for your prayers, we need and are grateful for them. They are working. Brad will join us in Langano on Thursday and we will head to Soddo on Sunday. Please pray for these times of travel and transition and the ongoing health of the team.

Internet remains a challenge as it is difficult to get access, and for some reason more difficult to send e-mails than to get them.

God is Good,

Lori A. Spies

Subject: Greetings from Ethiopia March 09, 2012

Good morning,
It is a beautiful morning in Ethiopia. We are all healthy and safe. It is wonderful to connect with the Ethiopian and missionaries who are working so hard in this part of the world.
Our day begins with breakfast and a devotion time on the screened porch in front of the house where we stay. We have a view of Lake Langano and are serenaded by the birds each morning.
The clinic is a short walk and today is a prenatal day so as we walk up to the clinic there are several dozen pregnant women waiting, in addition to the 30-40 regular patients. We have seen a rich variety of diseases and disorders and the students and I are learning a great deal. As I write this two of the students are doing continuing education about HIV in the waiting area that is in front of the clinic. Each morning the evangelist shares the good news and one of the team shares important health information. Yesterday we taught about tooth brushing and handed out 75 tooth brushes, the day before the lesson was on preventing trachoma, a leading cause of blindness in the area, by face washing and wash cloths were shared. Thank you for donating those items so that we can improve the health of the people who gather at the clinic each morning.

Community Education in front of the clinic

The students, working with our Ethiopian colleagues, have diagnosed and treated people with malaria, TB, cutaneous anthrax, schistosomiasis, filirarisis… it is a rich learning experience. We have enrolled children in the nutrition program, counseled on breast feeding, vaccinated scores of children and provided prenatal care to 5or 6 dozen women. I am humbled by the extraordinary work of the Ethiopian nurses and the missionaries. We have prayed with the ill and wounded and shared the good news to people thirsty for the word of God.
The Baylor FNP students are doing wonderful work and I am pleased to be a part of this team. The work is hard, the days are long, the water cold, the electricity intermittent and I have not heard a whisper of complaint. It is a blessing to work at Baylor University LHSON and work with our amazing students. God is Good.
Thank you for your prayers, your gifts and all of the support that has made this work possible.
In Christ,
Lori

February 26, 2012 before leaving

Greetings,

We are headed into the final few days before the Africa Capstone 2012 departs for Ethiopia. I want to take a minute and offer sincere thanks for the support offered to this endeavor. I feel filled with joy about all of the wonderful things that God has planned for this year’s tea. I am humbled by the generous support of family, friends, neighbors and colleagues. I am truly blessed to have a mission focused career at Baylor University Louise Herrington School of Nursing that makes my heart sing. I am grateful for wonderful students, who sacrificially give so that they can join this mission during their busy final semester.
I will try to send out periodic e-mail updates, please feel free to forward these if you would like. The internet and electricity is unpredictable but generally I anticipate being able to send out a few e-mails with team updates. I have attached a prayer calendar that a student developed and I have updated.
I would ask for your prayers for the team and the people we will work with in Ethiopia. We will work hard together, pray together, worship together and do our best to glorify God in all that we do. We will do our best to represent Baylor University Louise Herrington School of Nursing to the very best of our ability.

Thank You