...Early Hospital Scenes

The hospital consists of long wards connected by covered walkways with overhangs that protect against rain during the brief rainy season. To the right is the combined medicine and pediatric ward while the surgery and obstetric wings are to the left.

                                                                                                       At 7:30, we take the 5 minute walk

up to the hospital and stop at the nursing station where the nurses have gathered our charts and 

placed them on a clipboard. Each patient file is a simple 8 1/2 by 11 inch cardstock sheet with areas for EVERYTHING including vitals signs, meds, lab, history, exam, and progress notes. Needless to say, we try to use our smallest and neatest writing and write down only what is necessary!    Rounds take anywhere from a half hour to hour and a half and then it is off to outpatient clinic!!!!                                                                                                                                                                  

.....five charts in the palm of my hand and no electronic medical records

The nurses here are very pleasant and helpful. They all speak French and are patient with us as we try to communicate in our very basic French. Thankfully, we have excellent translators nearly all of the time, not only to speak with the nurses but also with the patients in Hausa.

Here is my (Dave's) translator, Daouda whose name also means David. He recently finished 2 years of seminary training in Nigeria and works as a chaplain/evangelist at the hospital. We are happy that patients often give us permission to pray with them at the end of our visit. Thankfully, he is with me not only in the hospital but also in the outpatient clinic.



                                                                                       



This is one of the main wards that we work on. Children and adults are mixed together. Privacy is minimal in this busy room. This picture is at a quiet time - during morning rounds, there would be many family members and 2-4 doctors with nurses and translators filling the room!!As is common in developing country hospitals, each patient has a family attendant who feeds them and helps with basic care.

.....evaluating a patient at the bedside on morning rounds.