We're Coming to America!

 by Julianne Dickie

Thursday, February 16
"the first of the last"

This morning after one of our last home cooked breakfasts, Team Amazing and Team Awesome went their separate ways.

Amazing presented our project on puberty, purity, and self worth to the boys and girls in the upper grades at Manna Mission Academy. We taught over 75 children about their bodies and importance to the Lord over the course of 3 hours.

For the girls, Kaitlin talked about adolescent body changes; I discussed the ins and outs of menstruation and PMS; Rachel instilled self worth in each girl; and Emily encouraged them in the purity journey. For the boys, Kaitlin talked about male body changes; Nian taught on healthy hygiene habits; Emily and our guest speakers (Jeremiah Ablorh and Felix Nartey) shared about purity and self worth; Rachel followed up with a powerful skit on purity.

After each presentation, we conducted a Q&A session. Both groups were receptive to our teaching and asked insightful questions. We were able to evaluate the efficacy of our efforts with pop quizzes and offered granola bars as healthy incentives for participating (I had lots of extras...I was mistaken in my thought that they would be a staple of my African diet).

Meanwhile, Awesome was busy delivering babies! The whole team had the opportunity to observe a cesarean section, and Matthew was able to assist. Helping bring a new life into the world is holy, and they were glowing as they relayed the tale.

Our morning left us famished, and we enjoyed rice and meat and beans with Velveeta for lunch. It was one of our favorite meals so far and energized us for our last afternoon of shopping! We returned to the same market we previously visited with newly exchanged cedes and bargaining skills. The afternoon was spent wheeling and dealing with various shop owners to discover African treasures. And at good prices!!

{market finds}

After shopping, we came back to a delicious dinner, to debrief, to prepare for Team Awesome's first presentation, and to practice our nursing skills on one of our own. Hays spent the evening being taken care of by the best nurses around and woke up the next day rejuvenated for travel. Tonight our team devotional included a debriefing session. Each team member (except Hays, poor thing) had the opportunity to share a favorite part of the trip and something God spoke to them. We all needed the chance to start the process of processing this experience.

As Dr. Catts said, "the mark of good leader is the ability for the team to carry on without her." After devotions and one down, Team Awesome trekked to the hospital to deliver their presentation on labor, pain management, and the birthing process. (that's punny and you know it!) The team did an awesome job, and the nurses in attendance answered their post-presentation pop quiz with 100% accuracy.

Friday, February 17

"don't cry because it's over...
...smile because it happened" 
This morning, I awoke to the realization that this was my last time to open my eyes in the country of Ghana on the continent of Africa. We donned our whites for one last time and took just a few more "snaps." All hospital devotions occur every Friday, and we started the day with the first of several rounds of teary goodbyes.

{last day in whites}

{last walk to the hospital}

For our last morning in the hospital, we each got to choose what area we wanted to visit, but most of us ended up floating around the hospital, saying goodbye to staff, and praying for patients. Around lunchtime, we headed back to the house one last time. Because of our schedules we were behind on some of our daily doses of each other. We heard two more life stories, had our last team devotional, showered, and ate our last lunch.

Hays and I are the team leaders for the duration of the trip, and yesterday she came to me with a God-given idea. The concept of foot washing makes more sense when you've been walking through red dirt for the last three weeks; she wanted to take the chance to wash Mrs. Poore's and Dr. Catts' feet. Each team member played a role, whether it was rinsing, soaping, scrubbing, drying, or lotioning each beautiful foot. This simple act is only a token of the gratitude each of us feel for their servant leadership over the last year.

The duration of the afternoon was filled with preparations for departure. Team Awesome presented one more time for the day nurses, Dr. Catts worked furiously to finish curriculum objectives and syllabi, and both teams printed off copies of their projects to leave at Manna. Oh, and we packed and loaded the vans. How did we accumulate more stuff to bring home?!

{the first hour of travel}

Before we left for the airport, we stopped to take anti-worm medication and pray over the building that will soon house the Manna Mission College of Nursing. Standing in what will be the classrooms, offices, and hallways of a nursing school across the world reminded me how thankful I am for my own. 

{walking towards the nursing school}

{future hallway of the Manna Mission College of Nursing}

Jeremiah, Felix, and Alex once again expertly navigated the team and our suitcases to the airport. We unloaded, checked in, made it through immigration and security, and even stopped for our last Ghanaian Coca-Cola in record time. Sitting in the airport was a welcome opportunity to breath and reflect on the blur that is the last 48 hours.

In order to board the plane at the Accra airport, we had to descend a flight of stairs, take a shuttle to the jet, and ascend into the aircraft. There's a smell that engulfs you when you step out from a climate controlled building into the heat and humidity of Africa. That final wave of air solidified reality--we are coming home.

Once in our seats, we anxiously waited for take off and dinner. Some of us watched movies and listened to music while others journaled and read. It's heartbreaking to leave a place you love, but the balm of heading home heals most of the hurt. We all knew it was time to return.

Saturday, February 18
"there's no place like home" 

This morning, I awoke on a plane flying across an ocean. It was 7am in Accra, so 1am Tulsa time. I said a prayer for all my friends enjoying the last few moments before curfew on Homecoming night and marveled at the fact that in just an hour it would be time for hospital devotions in Accra. As I looked around at the sleeping team, I thanked God for the grace, peace and love I've experienced over the last few weeks.

The plane landed in Atlanta around 6am, and once we passed through the lines at customs and security, we enjoyed our first American meal. TGIFriday's offered an smorgasbord of choices--the most important of which was cheesecake! We enjoyed our last meal together as a team while participating in a "hot seat" debriefing activity. Each person had the opportunity to be affirmed by the other team members while also speaking into their respective lives.

We encountered yet another divine appointment with our waitress, who Mrs. Poore felt led to give above and beyond gratuity. She accepted our humble offering with tears and a request for prayer before we went to find our gate.

The final leg of our journey went smoothly as people slept, looked through pictures, journaled, and got excited to see loved ones. Our plane landed at 12:30pm, and we were back on "Tulsa time." We tracked down our suitcases,  loaded the van, squished into the back, and traveled from the airport to ORU safely. Big hugs and goodbyes were exchanged as we parted ways, promising to talk soon and see each other next soon.

{hello, Tulsa!}

{last time to file in to the 15 passenger}

Sunday, February 19
"new beginnings"

It's over.
It's really over.

The flights have been flown.
The patients cared for.
The friendships made.
The Velveeta eaten.
The kids loved.
The Gospel shared.
The lessons learned.
The goodbyes said.

Internet connection has been reestablished.
Loved ones called or hugged.
Suitcases unpacked. 
Laundry started.
Stories begun to be relayed.

Mrs. Poore says we'll be able to smell Africa in our things when we get home, but I think we'll be able to "smell" Africa on ourselves forever.

In big and small ways, this trip shaped the rest of our lives. We, as senior nursing students, are facing major paradigm shifts in the next three months. May 5th is careening towards us at a rate we would all like to pause.  We will take a critical care class, graduate, take (and pass!) the NCLEX, get jobs, and start orientation in a matter of days.

In Africa, we got two pieces of American news: who won the Super Bowl and that Whitney Houston passed  away. It's only appropriate that, as we leave this place and these people and re-enter our everyday worlds that we keep the lyrics of her song "Step by Step" in mind.

"There's a road I have to follow

A place I have to go

No one told me

Just how to get there

But when I get there I'll know because

I'm taking it step by step

Bit by bit

Stone by stone

Brick by brick

Day by day"

Many good works were completed during our time in Africa: personally, professionally, individually, corporately, physically, mentally, and spiritually. However, there were just as many works started in just as many ways. The journey, for all of us, doesn't end here. As a matter of fact, the adventure is just beginning.

Team Ghana 2012, the Word sums it up best. Paul says this in Phillipians 1:3-11...

"I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident in this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."

He goes on to say...

"It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart; for whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God's grace with me. God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.

And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes trough Jesus Christ--to the glory and praise of God."

The Beginning of The End

By Hays Bourgeois

This morning we all woke up with an acute case of “the Mondays.” The deadline to have our project presentations completed was pushing closer and closer. After breakfast we went to the hospital to work on our schoolwork and some of us went to different areas of the hospital to help out and see the patients. Soon, our moods lifted and the joy of being at Manna Mission reminded us what this is all about, and as we began our last week here, we were reminded to take in every moment and every smile.

            All of us went to devotions at the hospital for worshiping and prayer with the staff of the hospital before the workday began. It is always so captivating to see the commitment of the people who work here, day in a day out- they always begin with singing and setting a special time aside for the One who gives us each day. Some of the girls from team “amazing” went straight to work after devotions on their teaching for the girls in Kumasi. Some of the members of team “awesome” put the finishing touches on their teachings that would take place later in the week. Nian, Kaitlin, and I went to the lab and learned all about the tests they can run and assisted in drawing blood work and pregnancy tests! Nian went to outpatient and shared her beautiful smile with the patients waiting to see the doctor and assisted in checking people in. Kaitlin spent her day in the pharmacy counting pills, identifying different types of medications, and processed prescriptions.

            Later that afternoon, the other 6 students split into 2 groups-half going to the hospital for an hour and a half and then the others at the eye clinic. Around 6pm, they switched going to eye clinic and the hospital. They got to see exams concerning eye injuries, the refraction process, and sight irregularities. After dinner, we packed our things enthusiastically since we were leaving for KUMASI in the morning!!

            …We all went to bed except for Grace, Julianne, and Bethany who stayed up to chat in the living room. Around 1:15am, a strange occurrence took place. I awoke from a deep sleep to what could be described as a “blood-curdling” scream, followed by another scream, then another. Then the house fell almost silent. The girls upstairs and I decided, against our fear, to peak down the stairs to see what was going on. Dr. Catts explained to us that she had heard the front gate open (the girls did too) and in attempts to wake Ms. Poore up, she pulled her toe! Ms. Poore let out a horrified shriek! Since the girls were already “spooked” when they heard this they went dashing towards the back of the house tripping over each other. It was quite a scare! However, we were all able to go back to our beds (after saying a few prayers for peace) and went soundly to sleep. The gate, come to find out, had just been opened by the wind that night.

            On Thursday, we piled into our big white van and headed north to Kumasi to visit a girls home founded and sponsored by our very own President Mark Rutland and his ministry. The trip there took a little bit longer than expected, but upon arrival we were elated to finally be there to share some love…ON VALENTINE’S DAY! There were 6 spectacular young girls there, who forever engraved upon our hearts and I don’t think we could ever forget. They were all between the ages of 6 and 10. We introduced ourselves and once they realized we had cameras…. suddenly there were 6 professional photographers in the room with us! Snapping away and giggling every time they would see the picture the captured on the screen. We gathered them up and sat down to begin the teaching the “team amazing” had prepared for them. The girls were very receptive and engaged in the discussion of “healthy habits” that Julianne led. The “healthy habits” included personal hygiene, brushing teeth, washing hands, & making healthy nutrition choices. After the teaching, we sang songs with them like “Jesus loves me” and “Aye-ye-ray” and danced with them until it was time for dinner. After dinner, we gave them each their own special blanket (made by our sweet supporters in the U.S.!) and a teddy bear. They quickly ran to put their new items on their beds, excited to have a new friend and something special to have in their own little space. I think we all went to bed that night realizing that while we came to bless the girls there, they ended up blessing us more. Our prayer as a team is that every girl who passes through that home will grow up knowing the love of Christ and that their hope is in His unfailing love.

            The next morning (Wednesday), was started with a big family breakfast served by Pastor Samuel and his gracious family. Before we left, we stopped by the school and sang some songs with children there and took lots of pictures! Pastor Samuel said there was somewhere that he needed to take us to show us something before we left. He took us to see his guesthouse, which was prepared for us to stay in that had burnt to the ground just weeks earlier. But in the midst of such devastation and sorrow there was a glimmer of hope- we will have homes in heaven. And God will restore what they have lost 100 times over!

            On Thursday, we woke up to complete our last FULL day in Ghana. “Team amazing” went to the school to present a teaching for middle school children of Manna Mission. “Team awesome” went to the hospital. About an hour into our time at the hospital, Matt, Bethany, Grace, & I were called in to see and assist with a C-Section delivery. We were all very excited to be able to be so close to such an amazing miracle! In the afternoon we went back to the market for our last minute shopping! We got more bags, drums, jewelry, & wooden carvings. As our trip comes to an end...we are soaking in every moment! This is our second to last blog of our trip make sure to keep checking back for the final update!

Retreat Days

By Nian Muang

February 10, 2012 Friday

It was hard to get up at 4 am and get ready for our journey to a town called Swedru, which is about two hours away from Teshie.  As you can imagine, we didn’t get enough sleep when we had to go to bed at midnight. Good thing we got an hour nap on our way to Swedru. Although we had to wake up early in the morning, we were all excited that we will be attending the Crusade. Upon our arrival to Swedru, we were welcomed by lovely people who were at the Guest house with a wonderful breakfast, oatmeal, coffee, and rice porridge. After the breakfast, we all got onto the van to unload our bags at a hotel where we were supposed to stay for the night. The hotel was called “Rich Guest House”. When we arrived at the clinic, we were introduced to the community and our clinic screening began. Our whole group was split into different departments. There was HIV testing, blood sugar checks, blood pressure screening, breast exam, eye exam, and pharmacy. All of us rotated through the different departments throughout the day. The clinic was successful and not hectic. The weather was not as hot as when we were at Ada Island, which was very nice.

After a successful clinic, we all walked to a new building which will open soon as their new clinic. The building was nice, clean and we noticed the beautiful tile in the waiting room. As we waited for our van to take us back to the hotel, we entertained ourselves by playing Big Booty, the ninja game and telephone. In my opinion, everyone enjoyed the ninja game the most. After playing our games, we ate tuna sandwiches, mangos, papayas and watermelon for lunch.

In the evening, we all headed back to the hotel to get ready for our crusade at night. Everyone was dressed up nicely and looking good for the evening. Before we left for the crusade, we stopped at the guest house, where we had had our breakfast, for some dinner. At the guest house, the people served us fried chicken, rice and spicy tomato sauce. Everyone agreed that the fried chicken was delicious. After we finished our dinner, we all left the guest house to go to the crusade. By the time we left the house for the crusade, the crusade was almost over. We were sad that we didn’t have a chance to experience the whole crusade, but we had a chance to dance in front of the stage with everyone while we were there. We all really enjoyed dancing. It was a great ending to our day.

Feb 11, 2012 Saturday

Today was one of the best days of our trip. We started out our day with a wonderful breakfast at the ‘Rich Guest House’ which was joined by Dr. Alborh and Linda (Dr. Alborh’s daughter-in-law).  We were glad that they joined us because Dr. Alborh and Linda are wonderful people to be around. After we were finished with our breakfast, we started our journey to a town called Cape Coast. It is about three hours away from Swedu. On our way to Cape Coast, Linda taught us a song that we will be singing at church the next day. The song name is called ‘Aye Ri Re’.The lyrics to the song are as follows:

(Aye ri re)X2                                                      (Lord of all praise)X2

Ye yi wa Re                                                      We praise your name

Na ye ma wu sol                                    And we lift you up

We are all excited to sing this song at church and we look forward to this coming Sunday. As we were learning to sing this song, Linda decided that we should have two soloists to lead the song. Emily and Julianne volunteered to be the soloists. In my opinion, they did an amazing job leading the song. 

Upon arrival to Cape Coast, we took a tour of a beautiful white castle that was previously used for slavery. The castle served as one of three Ghanaian castles in the slave trade triangle that included ports in Africa, North and South America, and Europe. During the tour, we got to see male and female dungeons and a tunnel that was located under the castle. The tour guide explained the history of the oppression of slavery that took place at the castle. It is heart breaking to hear the events that had occurred. Touring the castle was very interesting and we all felt like we were part of the history.

 After the tour of the castle, we were off to eat our lunch at a resort called ‘Coconut Grove’. Going to Coconut Grove was the best decision that we ever made. As we drove around the corner of the resort, we could see a beach with beautiful waves splashing onto the shore. We couldn’t wait to get out of the van. It’s amazing how God cares about even the little things in our lives. We were all sad that we couldn’t spend another day at the beach, but this was our second chance. Everyone was delighted and ran to the shore. We even forgot that our stomachs were growling! Some of us were occupied with taking photos, walking on the shore, and buying some souvenirs to take home for family.  We had our dinner at the resort after exploring the beach. We all had a blast! After dinner, it was time for us to go back home to Teshie. Although we were sad to go home, we were glad that we had a relaxing treat at the Coconut Grove.  Upon our arrival home (Teshie), Linda suggested that we practice our song one last time before bed. By this time, we were confident that we would be able to sing the song the next day.

February 12, 2012 Sunday

Waking up in the morning, knowing that today is our last Sunday at church was very emotional for all of us. We all got ready for church with our African dresses. We, of course, had to take a photo with our new dresses. Before we left home for church, we practiced our song one last time. I think we were all pretty confident about our singing ability. During the church service, Dr. Alborh called our group to sing our song in front of the stage. We all got up to the stage and performed our best. I think we sang beautifully; it was marvelous. After the song, Linda presented us with sashes for our contribution to Manna Mission. It was a way of saying thank you and well done to our team. We felt honored to receive the wonderfully made sashes. After our ceremony, Linda brought a birthday cake in front of the stage for Dr. Alborh’s birthday. The whole church sang “Happy Birthday” to him. After the church service, Dr. Alborh invited us to his office and he blessed each and every one of us. We truly needed his blessings during our trip here in Ghana. For some of us, his prayer and blessing are clarity for our mind and for our spirit.

Later in the evening, Linda invited us for dinner and a swim in her swimming pool. Around 4pm, Jeremiah picked us up from home. Upon our arrival to the pool, the weather was a little chilly; only a few of us swam in the swimming pool. For dinner, we all sat around the table outside and ate pizza. This pizza was nothing like we had ever tasted before. In my opinion, it tasted so much better than the pizza that we have in United States. When dinner was over, we all sat around and chatted. We also got to meet Zachery, Linda’s son. We all played with Zachery; he was so precious! It was very nice of Linda to invite all of us over to swim and have the amazing pizza. After the swimming party, we all went back home. Everyone was stressed because of our project that we had to do. We did as much of our project as we could before drifting off into a sweet, restful sleep.

Best Days Ever

By Bethany Fron

Wednesday was one of my favorite days. We woke up and had a wonderful morning at the hospital.

Matt and Rachel enjoyed a great day at the eye clinic. They were able to learn how to work the eye equipment and stared into each other’s eyes all morning.

Grace hung out in medical records. She learned the admission process and had a fantastic time talking with the staff.

Julianne worked in medical outpatient. She said she met a delightful little boy who she played with and ministered to while he waited to see the doctor.

Kaitlin and Emily went to the school today. They had a blast playing and teaching the kids. They said today the kids taught them how to play a game called “Tiger,” and they loved it!

Hays, Nian, and I spent the morning preparing for our presentation. We put together an hour-long teaching about IV therapy with an emphasis on aseptic technique, needle safety, and IV complications. After adding some last minute touches, we went to the lying in ward and followed up with a mother that we had helped during her labor on Monday. She had a beautiful baby boy and it brought me so much joy to know that our presence had made her labor go more smoothly.

We all went to lunch and then hurried back to the hospital for the presentation. The teaching was offered to the nurses and doctors here at Manna Mission. It went so well! The staff was very receptive and learned some new information that will be extremely beneficial to their practice here. Once the presentation was over we were all extremely excited because it was finally time for something we had been looking forward to since the beginning of the trip...SHOPPING!

Upon arrival to the market we were in awe at all of the sights. Dresses, drums, bags, carvings, the list goes on. We quickly learned the art of haggling, as our good friend Felix helped us get the best deals. I was ecstatic when he haggled a bag from 25 cedis to 10 cedis. Not to mention the exchange rate here is 1 American dollar to 1.7 cedis. The rest of the afternoon was filled with everyone finding amazing souveniers. We loved it!

After dinner we all gathered in the living room for show and tell. We all had a blast hearing each other’s stories and seeing everyone’s treasures. We then hankered down to watch the movie Despicable Me while we waited for our fashion designer Joe Fox to come over with our outfits. About halfway through the movie he arrived and we all quickly changed. It was great to see the final product; because we had spent a significant amount of time looking through magazines, looking for fabric, and here we were, standing in our finished dresses and Matt’s amazing African ensemble! It ended up being such an accomplished and fun day.

Thursday morning ended up being a different day for us. Instead of changing into our whites we changed into our blue scrubs. This morning held the opportunity for us to help at a well baby clinic and to also help with a major project. The well baby clinical was fun as we had the opportunity to help by giving shots, and weighing the babies. We divided into our two teams: Team Awesome and Team Amazing.

For the first part of the morning Team Awesome began the project. The task was to separate all of the nursing books from an enormous pile of books that went from floor to ceiling. The books will be put into a library for the up and coming Nursing School here at Manna Mission. This ended up being quite a challenge and a different kind of stress, but we figured out a plan and started working. About halfway through our two teams switched and by the end of the morning we finished the project. It was exciting to complete such a major task as a group and to make a contribution to the nursing school here.

We spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing and recuperating from the morning. That night our group had a very important conversation that made us feel even more like a family. We were all able to be honest as we opened up our hearts to each other. I was very proud of our group that night.

Well, we are still having the best time here. Your thoughts and prayers are very much appreciated! We will be posting more blog posts tomorrow; so sorry we are behind. We love you all!

My Vision For Missions

February 6, 2012

By: Kaitlin Broadhurst

Today was a very productive day for the entire group. In the morning, Julianne, Emily, and Matt finished up preparing a lecture on aseptic techniques that they will be presenting to the hospital the following week. Rachel went to outpatient to check-in the new patient arrivals. Grace was in medical records and pediatrics. Bethany went to the lab and labor and delivery. Julianne and Emily went to lying in so they could visit with some of the newer moms. Emily has developed a strong bond with one of the mothers; the two have become very close friends. Matt was able to go to the men’s ward and sit in with the doctors in the consultation room. Matt said that the patient he had previously cared for at the men’s ward is improving. He is now able to sit up and eat his meals. The morning started out slow for me, Nian, and Hays because we stayed home t o study for our next exam.

At around 2 PM, the Eye Clinic opened, so the three of us went there to learn about optometry and different eye injuries. Joyce, the head ophthalmologic nurse, was very receptive and showed us around the entire clinic. We were able to examine each other’s eyes through the various instruments that were located in the exam room. We were also given the opportunity to sit in with the optometrist as he examined each of his patients. We saw common eye disorders as well as a few eye injuries. One man came in with a foreign body in his eye. He was a carpenter who had been outside working on the new nursing school for Manna Mission. Joyce stained his eye and let us see the ulceration that had formed. I had never seen anything like it.

I was excited when we were told we would be allowed to sit in on three surgeries in the theater (operating room). We went with one of the nurses to scrub in and began setting up the sterile field. We saw two pterygiums and one cataract surgery. I loved watching the cataract surgery. It was so fascinating! They took out the woman’s old, cloudy lens and replaced it with a brand new artificial lens. Joyce explained every step of the surgeries so that we knew what the doctor was doing. We found it humorous that the doctor listens to music while he performs his surgeries. Joyce would even dance a little while she talked to us. The Eye Clinic closed at 7PM, but we ended up staying there until about 8:30PM. It was an amazing experience!

February 7, 2012

Today was a day of rest for all of us. We all slept until about 9AM, which is pretty late for us. I woke up to the wonderful smell of French toast being made by Vida. Once breakfast was over, it was time to hit the books. We were scheduled to have an exam at 1PM. We sat around the living room reviewing our study guides and discussing topics.

At around noon, we were informed that Jeremiah was coming over to take us out to lunch. He arrived at our house with two of his good friends, Eugene and Felix. He drove us all to a restaurant called Papaye. When we walked in the door, our first thought was “hey, this looks like McDonalds”. The whole restaurant was bright red and yellow, just like our Golden Arches. We had a lovely smorgasbord of chicken, fish, and burgers. We didn’t want lunch to end because we knew we had to go home to take our exam. Our exam was a little stressful for all of us because it was over lecture material we had heard several weeks ago. We got through it and then we were all able to relax.

Later in the evening, Vida brought her son Gideon to the house. Today was his sixteenth birthday so we wanted to give him a surprise. When they arrived at the house, we all ran upstairs to the balcony. Once he was right underneath the balcony, we dumped a big bucket of water on him. Gideon was all smiles even though he was soaking wet. The dumping of water is a Ghanaian tradition known as “ponding”.  Vida was so excited that we participated in the ponding experience.

"Sorry!"

By Grace Mueller

Friday, February 3, 2012

Another day at the hospital has come and gone.  There are just some days when you are reminded why you decided to become a nurse, and today was one of those days.

Hays, Bethany, and I went to the pediatric ward, where the children’s mothers greeted us warmly.  A few of the children were not quite so happy to see us, since they are not used to seeing white people.  One little girl screamed at the top of her lungs EVERY time she saw us.  It was hilarious.  Anyway, we were able to give away some of the baby clothes that we brought with us.  We spent most of the morning running to and from the Matron’s office, sifting through the items in the suitcase to find the perfect dress, onesie, or shorts for the kids.   We had so much fun picking out clothes for each individual child, and the mothers were extremely thankful.  Linda, one of the hospital administrators, told us that we had really brightened up the place.  Though it was a brief statement, it was a huge encouragement.

Later on, I walked by the women’s ward, when I saw two women struggling to get an older woman onto a bedpan.  I walked in and asked if they needed any help, and one of the women (the patient’s daughter) told me that I was an angel that had helped her in her time of greatest need.  My action seemed insignificant to me, but it really ministered to her.  Hays and I answered some of the family’s questions and had the opportunity to pray with them a few times throughout the day.  There is no greater joy than making someone feel important and cared for, and it is exciting to think that we will get to do that for the rest of our lives.

Emily and Nian went to the school and shared devotionals, which were very impactful.  Afterward, they went around to each classroom, teaching handwashing and answering questions from the kids.  They also played with the children at recess.

A few of us followed up with the mother and baby who had delivered the night before.  Both mother and baby were doing great and were even discharged that same day!  Matt went back to the men’s ward to care for his patient from the day before.  Rachel spent the day working in medical records, and Kaitlin spent the day in the lab, where she had the opportunity to draw blood!  Julianne floated between the different female wards, where she learned a lot about the Ghanaian culture from the women.

Dr. Catts shared her testimony with us that night, and it was a blessing to see her heart.  She had some great advice to share with us, and we definitely appreciated her encouraging words.  We have all really enjoyed this opportunity to get to know our professors in such a personal way.  They are truly beautiful women of God, with such great passion for nursing.

Saturday, February 4, 2012

Today was quite the day.  We underwent a thrilling, 2-hour journey to an island called Ada.  Upon arrival we pulled up to a beautiful island resort, and we were overjoyed to get out of the car and explore.  We each suited up in our bright orange lifejackets and piled into a boat.

Once we reached the island, we hosted a clinic, where we took vital signs, tested vision, conducted breast exams, and helped pass out medicine after the doctor wrote the prescriptions.  Hundreds of patients attended, and we were worried we wouldn’t have time to see them all.  To our delight, we were able to see every last patient before we departed.  We also passed out candy to the children and played duck, duck, goose with them.  They all walked with us to the shore as they said goodbye, and it definitely tugged on our heartstrings.

After the clinic, we set off to a nearby island.  Almost immediately after landing on this island, we were each given a refreshing drink of coconut water.  Then we helped plant coconuts, which was a cool experience that we really enjoyed. :)

That night during our time of team devos, we shared our thoughts from the day.  We were all feeling a little overwhelmed after seeing the great need in Ada.  Those patients do not have easy access to healthcare on a regular basis.  It was hard not to feel like our little contribution was insignificant, and we were all left wondering if what we did had actually made a difference.  We concluded by stating that there will always be need, but we were still able to make an impact on over 100 lives.  And even if it would have just been one person, it would be worth it.

Sunday, February 5, 2012

It’s hard to believe that our trip is almost halfway over already.  It seems like just yesterday we had the baby shower at ORU and were all scrambling around to get those few last-minute items for our trip.

Today we went to the family service at Manna Mission Church.  Because it is the beginning of the year, the church took the opportunity to give a report on the church activities for the past year.  It was cool to hear all that Manna Mission has accomplished for the Kingdom of God in their church, academy, Bible school, and hospital.  This year’s projects will include opening their nursing school and opening a 40-bed women’s center in the hospital, which is sure to add to the impact Manna has already made here in Ghana.

After church, we did a blood pressure screening.  Then we returned to the mission house, where we rested and studied for our test.  Bethany, Julianne, Emily, Hays and I went over to the Ablorhs’ house again to watch the soccer game.  Ghana won, 2-1!  Woohoo!  On our way home, traffic was stopped, because tons of people were running through the streets in celebration!  The sense of community was really awesome, and it was a fun sight to see.

As you can see, we are still having such a great time.  The Lord has really been speaking into all of our lives throughout the trip, and we already have so many great memories that will last a lifetime.  We are looking forward to the remaining days with expectation.  Please continue to pray for our team, and we will keep you updated as best as we can!  We love you all :)

Walking in the Anointing

By Emily Barden

Wednesday February 1^st, 2012

And so begins the month of February here in Accra, Ghana! As a team we began our morning with the usual surprise breakfast, prepared by the beautiful Grace and Vida. They have been such creative cooks in the kitchen and so gracious to take care of our needs from day to day. On this day we had MORE amazing pineapple and mangos and some hot porridge with bread and eggs.

After breakfast, we made our way over to the Manna Mission Academy to share morning devotionals with the school children in their chapel service. As we approached, we were greeted by the sound of drums and voices, singing praise and worship songs in beautiful harmonies. We spent time in worship, watching the children dance and sing with quite impeccable rhythm. They began a conga line, dancing and clapping around the auditorium during their worship song; so of course, we had to join in. It was so much fun to see them all laughing and clapping while we danced with them. After worship, the pastor welcomed us to the stage and Hays, Grace and Bethany had the opportunity to share a little bit of their hearts with the audience. They presented personal devotionals to the children; who all seemed very receptive and ready to learn from the girls.

From there, we all divided up into our different assignments for the day and made our way to the hospital. I had the opportunity to get to know some lovely ladies in the “lying in” ward during my assignment in labor and delivery. I met four women who were all waiting to have their babies, and two women who were lying in with their newborn baby girls. Time flew while we sat and chatted. The women were so enthusiastic and had such colorful personalities.

Nian was in pharmacy for the day learning about different kinds of malaria medication and got to meet Kingsford, the intelligent pharmacist at Manna Mission! Grace, Bethany and Julianne chose to spend the day helping with the well baby clinic in the hospital. They also had the opportunity to see a little girl have her dressings changed on a “soup” burn all over her arm. The day was filled with lots of babies and mothers coming in for their one-week check ups. We slowly figured out that all of the women wearing white were all of the new mothers. Here in Ghana it is customary to wear white for a few months after you have your baby.

Kaitlin and Rachel went to the Academy to teach all of the school children about hand washing and infection control. As it goes with most young kiddos at school, they all ended up playing a game of “heads up 7up” for the remainder of their time. Matt spent his time for the day in the lab, becoming familiar with the various tests and processes used in the mission hospital and entertaining the techs with his goofy sense of humor.

Hays saw a total of 85 patients in the “out patient” ward during her 3 hours at the hospital. She checked in the patient’s to the hospital, took vitals and made friends with everyone awaiting the doctor. While Ms. Poore floated to various areas of the hospital, Dr. Catts spent time working on the curriculum for the future Manna Mission College of Nursing. Because of Ms. Poore and Dr. Catt’s resources, we are able to partner with Manna Mission to make a curriculum with them for their developing school plans.

By noon we were all together again eating lunch and making plans for school work that needed to be done that afternoon. Each team began to make plans for what we would be doing our projects on during our stay here in Ghana. Team Amazing (Emily, Julianne, Kaitlin, Nian, Rachel) has chosen to teach young girls and boys about puberty, purity and the changes that come with becoming an adolescent. Team Awesome (Hays, Bethany, Grace, Matt) chose to research the labor and delivery practices of the people here and teach on healthy methods for delivery and ante-natal care.

That evening the Ghanaian soccer team was playing Guinea in the playoffs. A few of us were able to join the Ablorh’s at their home to watch the game and hang out together. Hays, Bethany, Grace, Julianne and I had fun with our new friends as we watched their favorite sport and cheered on Ghana as they moved onto the next round. As we left, Jeremiah gave us a tour of their beautiful home, and Bethany finally got to hug a palm tree in the front yard.

Standing in the Gap

 Thursday, February 2^nd 2012

It has now been ONE WEEK since we left Tulsa and said “adios” to the comforts of home in the United States. It’s hard to believe that after 7 days, our mission house has started to feel like home. We have already seen so many beautiful faces and felt so welcomed by everyone that we meet. We begin every morning at the hospital doing devotions and prayer, led by the hospital staff. It is inspiring to see the love these people have for Jesus and His grace. After one week, I have already learned how to welcome God into every corner of my day and to give thanks in new ways.

From 9am-12pm we all participated in different activities at the hospital. The well baby clinic was still going on, which provided multiple opportunities for us to look after newborns. In the labor and delivery ward there was one young woman awaiting the arrival of her first baby. By the time we left for lunch she was 6cm dilated and having frequent contractions. Little did we know; that later that night, the arrival of her baby girl would change some of our lives.

After lunch JOE FOX came to the house! YAAAYYYY!! Here in Ghana that means it’s shopping day. Pastor Seth, Jeremiah and Joe all came to the house to pick us up. We chose the dress styles that we wanted, while Matt stuck with a simple shirt and pants design. Once Joe had taken all of our measurements, Jeremiah skillfully drove our whole group into Accra to buy fabric.

As we drove into the city, we all admired the market dresses; of course Grace and I immediately noticed ALL the soccer jersey vendors. We are all excited to do some souvenir shopping later in the trip! So, we got back on task, made our way into the fabric stores, and picked out all of our colorful patterns to be used for our dresses.

By the time we all arrived back home, there were definitely some stomach’s grumbling. We ate dinner, and some of us decided to go back to the hospital to check on the patient’s we’ve been getting to know. I met up for a short walk with my friend Diana who is in the lying-in ward, awaiting the arrival of her first baby. The rest of the group went into the labor and delivery ward to check on the woman who was slowly progressing earlier in the day.

When I finished walking with Diana I went to the delivery room to find Matt and Rachel helping the young woman begin to give birth to her baby!! We all joined in on the help, and after an hour and a half of pushing, coaching, and encouragement, she finally delivered a little girl. Once the baby was out, we noticed right away that she was flaccid, blue and lifeless. All of us looked down at the baby girl and realized she needed oxygen and resuscitation right away.

Those first few moments after the birth were indescribable. Thankfully the doctor was in the room upon delivery, and the midwife had a positive attitude about the baby’s survival chances.  They brought her over to the baby basin; the doctor immediately began to administer oxygen through the ambu-bag. Matt stepped up to the basin and began resuscitating the baby right away. “1..2..3..4..5..” Matt counted as he pumped the little baby’s chest with his thumbs. After 10 minutes of praying, oxygen and resuscitation, a weak cry finally came from the little girl’s mouth. She cried a few times until the doctor was comfortable enough to discontinue the oxygen, but we didn’t stop praying.

They covered her with the blankets we brought from home, began to assess her weight, and cleaned her off with baby oil. We took pictures with the baby and brought her over to her mother.  The midwife told us, before we left, that if we wouldn’t have been there to help coach the mother through labor, than the baby might not have lived.

God’s mercy and plan are so great, and everything happens for His plan and His reasons.  Because there are times when you stand between life and death, and that night, we stood in the gap for life.

Psalm 3:3-5 “But you are a shield around me, O Lord; You bestow glory on me and lift up my head. To the Lord I cry aloud, and He answers me from His holy hill. I lie down in sleep; I wake again, because the Lord sustains me.”

P.S. Matt’s thoughts:

Early in the day, I had a very critical patient who was septic, unable to speak, had a foley, and extremely high blood pressure.  When we were cleaning up his stool, we discovered a bedsore and began to implement care for it.  Rachel, as mentioned, had met the laboring woman and felt strongly that she should wipe her forehead. Emily had connected with a woman who was on the laying-in ward and had asked her for food.

At dinner, we were all exhausted. We barely spoke to each other due to our fatigue.  There was little we wanted to do other than relax; however, we each felt a pull on our heart to return and check on our patients, and we chose to be obedient. Five of us came. The other four stayed because we had initiated a chore list for the mission house and they had duties to perform; those five where exactly the ones that needed to be there. Emily went to feed her patient. Rachel and I went to check on my patient with the bedsore. We cleaned his stool again and dressed the bedsore. This evolved to a full head to toe bath. His countenance became very peaceful after this.

Next, Rachel and I went to the labor ward so she could wash the woman’s forehead. As we walked in, the midwife called for us to move the women into the labor suite. The timing was perfect. We were there about 45mins when Emily joined us. She brought the refreshing energy we needed to continue on with coaching the woman.

After a lot of work, the baby came and I got to cut the cord. After a moment I noticed the silence. It was heart stopping to contrast the loud singing cry we knew should be there with the hollow silence and rush of the medical team. I walked over and saw the doctor giving rescue breathes to the still body with the ambu-bag. I began chest compressions and time all but stopped when the silence was finally broken by a weak, but clear, cry.

It’s an overwhelming thing to reflect upon, being part of saving a life. It shows how great God’s grace is and how he holds the world in his hands. We all learned the power of obedience. Had we not obeyed that still small voice in our hearts, the world may have never heard that cry of life. We followed up with the mother and newborn the next day, and there were no complications. The baby was nursing successfully and the mother was resting.