Last days in West Africa...

12 July, 2010
Another ten hour day and I'm so tired...but I know this is all worth it. The race and pressure is on as there is little surgical time left and we all feel it in the Operating Room, no longer can we just say "Yes ok let's move that patient onto tomorrows list" as there is not space left so the days are getting longer. What struck me though with amazement is that decisions here are made a little differently here on the Africa Mercy. Firstly money is not even taken into consideration here and does not serve as the motivator to add patients to our lists. The heartbreaking decisions come with the decision to postpone patients till the next days list and the fear we will run out of time. Yesterday I was Co-ordinating the Theatres-a challenging role at times, which involves giving breaks to staff, organising lunchbreaks, putting away hospital supplies and generally trying to keep the ball rolling. It is also important for the Co-ordinator to make any adjustments to the order of the list and also arrange late staff when lists are running past dinner time. I found myself in agony Friday afternoon over a decision of whether or not to postpone a patient's surgery or go ahead with it. This is all about lives. We are all too aware that if we don't remove the tumour protruding from the person's face they will live with it for the rest of their life and eventually will suffocate to death as it grows and presses upon their airway. However there is also that point where crew and staff burn out and we don't want to get to that place.

Last week were two amazing cases. One I assisted
for was on 26 year old Collette who had a tumour
growth emerging out of her nose and looked horrific. As the surgery began it was clear this tumour was not superficial yet went very deep into head to the base of her skull. As it was dissected out and removed, a hole remained and I wondered how the surgeon was possibly going to reconstruct her face. With a metal plate and the Theatre running into the night, Collette was reported to be sitting up drinking some water later on that evening which was wonderful and encouraging news to receive.

Another case which was unreal was a woman who entered the Operating Room looking like she was pregnant with triplets. She had been carrying a 17kg Ovarian cyst for 12 years in her abdomen. It looked like six rugby balls being taken out of her stomach. I could not believe my eyes, what a relief to now she no longer has to struggle to walk without loosing her balance.

23rd July
Only 5 days of surgery left.

29th July
Surgery is over for 2010 Outreach in Togo. The last week was filled with long days and long hours. Everyone is breathing a sigh of relief it is over. Tonight I fly out of West Africa on my way to New Zealand. I plan to work a three month contract in Australia, saving all I can to return to Sierre Leone 2011 for the 10month Outreach Mercy Ships will do there. Sierre Leone is the second poorest country in the world.

I would like to say Thankyou to all those who have been so kind, supportive, read my blog and encouraged me while I have been here. I wish I had more eloquent words of appreciation to express my gratitude yet I guess I will never be able to really convey how grateful I feel towards every person who has extended their generosity and wonderful hearts. I will be updating this blog in near future.
Until then, Godbless :)