M'Bote



Our new home

A cloudy, cold day greeted us as we arrived in the port of Pointe Noire, Congo, but a large, colorful tent was waiting for us in our new home.  A large crowd of dignitaries were waiting to welcome us to this new country.  After all the pomp & circumstances were done, we were able to leave the ship & walk on land for the first time in over 14 days. 



Bill & Don Stevens wait for us on the dock

It was dark when we made our way through the port, a 20 minute walk, to the gate & into town.  Our first impression of Pointe Noire was how different it is from Guinea & other West African countries that we’ve been to.  A beautiful, European-style train station stood at the end of a large boulevard, lined with street lights.  We may have gotten lost, walking the streets of Pointe Noire, but a man gave us directions to a small restaurant.  We headed off in the direction he told us about, only to find him standing on a street corner waiting for us!  He told us that the place he recommended was close & he would show us to another place!  What a nice guy! 

The last two weeks have been spent unpacking, waxing the OR floors (a job that if I ever have to do again will be too soon!), exploring the city & just settling into our new home.  As part of being the OR nurse educator, my job also includes training local OR nurses, in such I needed to get an idea of how things are done here in Congo.  A group of us went to visit some of the local hospitals to get a feel of what healthcare in Congo was really like.  It was an eye opening experience to say the least.  We went to three different hospitals here in Pointe Noire, each time being welcomed with open arms & red carpets.  I was invited to watch a surgery at one of the hospitals & though all went well, I was able to see areas for improvement.  During our time at the local hospitals, we learned that a patient has to provide all their own supplies.  Booths outside the hospital sell IV bags, medicine, suture, dressings, etc.  Before a surgery, a patient has to go out & buy everything he/she might need.  A big cardboard box then follows the patient during their hospital stay filled with all their supplies.  If a patient can’t afford something, they go without.  If a patient needs blood, there may be a blood bank at the hospital, the patient will receive the needed blood, but the next day, his/her entire family will have to come to the hospital & donate blood to replace what was taken.  There is no privacy in the hospitals.  Open wards are the norm, but it goes beyond that.  While visiting a 44 bed pediatric ward we were told that there were 57 patients at that time & it wasn’t uncommon for 7-8 children to be in one bed!  Entire families come to the hospital to care for the sick, as you can imagine, the wards are pretty packed full.

We have been asked by the government to pass on what we can to their nurses here.  In the OR on the ship, I have been given six local nurses, who not only will act as our translators for the next 10 months, but will be my students in my “peri-operative 101” class. 

"Nurses" taking care of the eye "patients"

Flavien leads his blind patient, Ines

Most of these nurses have worked in the OR at various different local hospitals, so they are no strangers to the surgical scene.  My goal is to expand on what they know & modify the western approach to fit the African needs.  A daunting task.  Classes started on the ship last week, with basic information regarding what to wear, the importance of being on time, etc.  We did some role playing with preop check in & leading blind eye patients down the hall.  Surprisingly, this is a new concept for many of them, the act of talking to & asking the patient questions.  It is something that is taken for granted in the Western world.  Patients here often have no rights, they are at the mercy of the doctors & the nurses.  The first thing my nurses told me when I asked about what they have learned is how they liked is how we (as western nurses) treat our patients.  We went on to talk about empathy & the role of the nurse regarding patient safety & who is the most important person during surgery (the patient).  I think this coming year will be rewarding & an eye opening experience for everyone.

Blessings 

Memoirs of a Royal Diamond Shellback

At sea there’s plenty to keep you busy, especially when you are heading to a new port in a new country getting ready for a new field service.  There’s meetings & planning, as well as a lot of computer work.  After all, what else would you be doing for 2 weeks when you can’t get off ship?

Dolphins come to visit

Of course, it’s hard to get any work done when there’s the overhead announcements of “dolphins off the bow” happening throughout the day. 

We left the shores of Tenerife after another 2 months of shipyard work following our Guinea outreach.  Major changes happened in the hospital.  The wards got a new floor when the old train tracks started coming through the old floor.  (Our ship used to be a train ferry in Denmark & the hospital is on the train deck)  We also got another ward to help meet our patient needs.  The ORs got some work done too, the moveable wall between ORs 1 & 2 became permanent & OR 1 became the new PACU.  Its hard to imagine what everything will look like once we unpack & set up, but it should be a nice change.

Worship on the bow is a special time

Sunset from my front porch

During the sail is the only time the bow is open because all the mooring lines are stowed & out of the way.  On nice days, the bow acts like our front porch.  In the evenings, we gather to enjoy the end of the day, watch the sunset & watch for dolphins, flying fish, whales, sharks & sea turtles.

Ok, I bet you are asking yourself, what is a “Royal Diamond Shellback”?  Well, in marine time lore, someone who has crossed the Equator is known as a “Shellback”.  Those new to the sea & haven’t been that far south (or north) are called “Pollywogs”.  When a ship crosses the Equator, there is an initiation of sorts, often involving ropes, sea water, fish & other interesting traditions.  Anyhoo, to become a “Royal Diamond Shellback” (also known as “Emerald Shellback”) one has to not only cross the Equator, but also the Prime Meridian at the same time.

Crossing the Line

Tina & I getting ready to cross the line

Going under the line

A heated tug-of-war on the bow

It just so happened that on our voyage from Tenerife to Congo, we crossed at 0, 0 thus making us “Royal Diamond Shellbacks”.  In order to do it correctly, we had a Line Crossing party, complete with Tug-a-War (being pulled over the line), Limbo (going under the line), Line dancing (self explanatory) & a Congo (get it? Congo!?) line.  Then at around 9 pm August 5, we crossed over to the Southern & Eastern hemispheres.  Unfortunately, the promised dotted lines were not visible because it was night time, but we have proof via GPS.

Desperate times call for desperate measures!

Crossing over to the Southern hemisphere meant that we went from summer to winter & who would have thought that a few degrees of latitude would make that big of a difference in temperature!  Brrrr!  It also didn't help that a big storm by Antarctica was stirring up the waters & causing our big ship to rock & roll!  

These last few days have been a little rough.  I don't get sea sick, but I think I would be enjoying the rocking if I didn’t have to sit in a rolling chair at a computer all day.  I have found myself only 50% productive because I have to wait for the ship to roll the other way to bring me back to my desk!  I finally resorted to strapping my chair to the desk, a wee bit uncomfortable, but at least I’m not playing bumper chairs in the office anymore!

Ready or not, here we come!

Soon we’ll be arriving in the Republic of Congo (Congo Brazzaville- not the bigger neighbor of the Democratic Republic of the Congo)  A new outreach will start in a country where Mercy Ships has never been before.  Please pray for us, Congo & her people.

Blessings