Observations

During my past 4 months of work in the clinic, I have made certain little observations. Life is so different here, I try not to take anything for granted.

I have become a pro at pronouncing most of the names of my patients, such as Fadimatou, Ousmanou, Fatime and Aissatou. I also know that “Mht” is a very convenient way of abbreviating “Mohammet” and that Hamadou indicates the eldest son of a family.

I can now distinguish Cameroonians from Chadians on sight based on their clothing, personal belongings, height and the color of their skin.

I am familiar with the fact that many Chadian women come in multiple layers. They often wear shorts then a slip then a skirt plus blouse plus a head scarf and top it all off with about 3 yards of extra material which wraps them up like a present:-) It often takes a few minutes for them to disrobe in preparation for their examination.

One of the most common health complaints here is pain. When the patient sits down with his translator and begins to point to his head, shoulders, back, stomach, hips, knees and feet in rapid succession I know I have my work cut out for me:-) Last week we met a man who believed he had been poisoined when someone shook his hand and a woman who after 6 years of amenorrhea, came to us convinced she had been pregnant for that entire time and requested we remove the baby.

When asked, most women will reply that they have given birth to about 10 children and that approximately 5 of them are still living.

The following excerpt came from a thank you letter I recently wrote to a church in my hometown;

"One of my favorite things about life here is watching the family members of our patients. Often they will come with their sick relative, spread out their mats and cooking supplies and carry on with life in one of the many hospital courtyards. The children will play, the mothers will feed their babies or cook a meal, the men will sit together and talk. Clothes hang from the trees to dry, people nap, women wrap and re-wrap their “pagnes” or skirts as they bend to pick up a load of wood or a bucket of water and proceed to place it on their heads:-)

And so they move in...and move out, and life continues to flow in and around the hospital of Meskine. I cherish my time here and am so grateful for all of you who have shared in this experience with me. God bless."