Quite a day!

Blowing bubbles, playing Mario Cart-Liberia edition (live) and visiting the hospital in Ganta; just a couple highlights from the day. Only one of those sound like someone who just had a “0” birthday. It’s been quite a day.

Our ride from Monrovia (130 miles) took us about 6 hours. We stopped twice. We were thankful we weren’t driving & trying to navigate the potholes. It felt like we were playing a life size game of Mario Cart weaving around pot holes up and down the road. It was an adventure!

Once we arrived, we had a tour of the current hospital & the new hospital grounds. The picture below is of the foundation of part of the hospital & part of my birthday wish (see the post below: a box…) As we stood there looking into the mountains of guinea, the need for new facilities had already become evident. The doctors here do much with little. Nurses play a large role in patient care. They, too, do much with little. There are women who are in labor and delivery… No birthing suites here. Cots in the hallway, open windows blowing in hot tropical air. The two surgery theaters are basic with any modern amenities.

Today, the hospital has electricity powered by a generator. Natural light is very important. The new hospital includes a wing for children, ob, surgery, and an outpatient clinic. There is no ER and the outpatient clinic has lots of patients every day who come from Liberia, the Ivory Coast and Guinea.

Well, the generator just turned off & so did all electric. No lights, no a/c, only the talking of two men staying here as they serve in Phebe (a town down the road).

Time for some rest! Tomorrow we’ll spend our day at the hospital.