Jan 13, 14, 15, 16, I think

Amsterdam

Here we are at Amsterdam, Schiphol Airport.  I have no idea how that is pronounced.  I think the pilot pronounced it “Sky’-pul.“ You would think he would know.  I also heard “Ski’-pole,” likely a displaced winter enthusiast.  It was raining on our arrival, 45 degrees F.  I didn’t see any snow, but then again, it was dark.  Lastly, I heard someone pronounce it “Skip’-ul.”  There is no schwa on my keyboard, which should replace the “u” in “ul.”  It doesn’t seem likely I will walk up to a Dutch person and ask.  We will see.  But I did! Ski-pole.

The flight was uneventful.  However, Randy’s article on medical issues on commercial flights reports a study with incidence of 46/1245 (3.6%) developed DVT, all high risk and compared to a cohort wearing compression hose.  That extrapolates to 10 of the 300 people on the flight, if we were all high risk.  Wow!  None of us though!

Amy capsulized how we all felt on the flight.  “I was too tired to read or even watch a movie.”  As I write this, I am too tired to make corrections, almost too tired to be clever.

I am looking forward to connecting with the Augustana College people.  They will visit Ilula one day.  On the flight I overheard a young woman say she was from SD and Augustana.  I wanted to ask her more, but it was fleeting.  She got off at Kili.  I am guessing it is natural to want to connect with the familiar experience.  Contrast that with my reticence to ask how to pronounce Schiphol.

Kili Airport, Dar and FPCT, Ilula

We made it!  No mishaps.  It was late to Free Pentacostal Church of Tanzania, 1 AM or so with arising at the B-C of dawn (very early).  We left by 7 AM and arrived in Ilula just before 5 PM.   For me, after three times, that drive has become a little familiar.  Seems to me there is a fair amount of new construction that looks like modern industrial and commercial building on the outskirts of Dar.  The vegetation is lush after the rains have begun.  Driving across the gorge is harrowing.  Kulwa did a wonderful job of driving.  I did a wonderful job of dozing.  So I am not sure if anyone was white-knuckling.  Amy reports all the rest of us were sleeping, but she was not white-knuckling.  We have now had a beer, dinner, and heard some stories.

The others have had an eventful 9 days: breech twins, one not salvageable, mom and the healthy babe left 8 hours after delivery; Mom was happy, having lost two previous babies; large bowel obstruction, repaired; wound dehiscence and repair; several normal deliveries: lots of malaria, including in a pregnant woman (with malaria it’s “shoot first and ask questions later”), primarily because of its prevalence.  None of the above are criticisms.  They do the best they can under the circumstances.  The med students have been doing a great job.  Quickly they realized they needed to limit the number of cases they would follow or be overwhelmed.

Besides all of us, we have three Australian med students too, Chantal, Sarah and Trish.  Two ESL teachers are with us from Morogoro.  (Becky Peterson and Alice Kellgren, both of World Teachs into their one-year commitment, seven month.)  Yet all have been and will be busy.  Some went to the HIV outreach clinic, the maternal and child outreach clinic and Bella and Latifah taught a class of form six men students on HIV prevention.  (Form six students are often 19-20 years old and would be about US 11th grade equivalent).  They were asked to come back and give it to some of the girls at the school.  Of course there is more, but I am tired.  Plans are formulated for tomorrow.  We will attend church Sunday and… wait for it… we will be expected to sing.  The women have worked up “We are Marching” in three languages: Hehe, Swahili and Marekani.  It’s gonna be over by the time you read this, but surely if there is an earthquake Sunday morning, you will know why.

Jan 16

Church is over, but not before lightening rounds at the hospital.  And rounds were interrupted by a blessed event: twin boys, almost 14 pounds together almost equally split.  They were delivered by C-section, because one was breech (and both large).  The health of these two babies is contrasted by the 1.9 kg (about 4 pounds 3 ounces) 15 day-old infant with jaundice and rigidity.  We saw four men all acutely ill overlying their chronic wasting illnesses.  A father looked on as his delirious son in the bed was unable to speak.   All of the men had malnutrition.  One had malaria but was not yet responding to quinine.  Because of the C-section, I missed them on rounds this morning.  But then, I missed the c-section too.  Some supplies are precious.  The adage is “hold on tight.”  I could hardly refuse when the surgeon asked for my OR cap and I trudged back to the house for another one.  By the time I returned, the twins were out, ably managed by the nurses as Kelsey and Amy looked on.  Sarah (Aussie), is going into OB, so it was her opportunity to shine assisting Dr. Saga and Dr. Moody and helping Dr. Moody close as Dr. Saga got back to more lightening.  Sarah got to meet proud papa too.

Church is always such a treat.  The choirs are astounding.  They use beautiful harmonies and rhythms in their songs. It’s another area where we can learn from our friends in TZ.  We were all given opportunity to introduce ourselves of course, but not in either of my fluent languages (“American” and pig-Latin), but naturally in Kiswahili.  Pastor Lamont Koerner delivered the message, a good one, mostly in English.  He also gave the benediction and his wife Becky and I both thought it was the end, but it was not to be for another twenty minutes.  The choirs marched out singing rousing hymns and sang for the congregation as we trooped out too.

Now we are on our way to Iringa for the afternoon.  All want to get to the internet café for email, of course and me so I can post this, but more importantly so I can talk to my wife!  Al I have done so far is a brief message to say I arrived all right.