I had blood all over my gloved hands and was wading through some small intestines looking for any signs of damaged or twisted gut. This isn’t so great for the patient, but I was quite comfortable;) Sorry if I’ve already spoiled your lunchJ. The patient was six years old and had a fairly large umbilical hernia and some bad abdominal cramping. We were worried about a strangulated hernia in her and consequently explored things a little bit before we fixed the hernia. I ran the whole gut and found everything looking quite normal, but then I noticed something was sitting inside her intestines and it was quite alive too. She had a very large hook worm about 14 or 15 inches long and about the diameter of a drinking straw! We fixed her hernia and treated her for the worm with medicine, which will die and leave her feeling much, much better.
Ashley and I are continually challenged by the meager medical resources here in Angola. We often wonder what we have to offer as we have gotten so used to the fancy things we have in the States. It has been great to learn from Dr. Foster as he shares his wealth of clinical practice with us when we sit and discuss how to treat our patients. Ashley has found that she has been able to help teach a young Angolan intern who has been learning from Dr. Foster and another Brazilian clinician who also works at the hospital. Ashley’s strong emphasis in internal medicine has been a great asset on the wards. We are both learning a great deal and it’s been quite helpful as we talk about our future and what and where we may end up.
We cherish your prayers as we work and interact with patients. We pray this finds you well and learning more of our Savior and what it means to truly pursue Him.
No comments:
Post a Comment