Africa has
opened up my eyes to a lot of things, some incredibly joyful, some incredibly
heartbreaking. One of the
heartbreaking things that I have seen and learned more about is the terrible effects of
poverty particularly related to health. Most of our patients, if not all, are poor. Due to this they are not able to
provide for their families basic health needs including food, water, shelter,
clothes, never mind medical needs (doctor visits, medicines, tests, etc). There are different levels of
poverty but some of the poorest of the poor are the patients
that are afflicted with a disease called Noma.
Just google “Noma disease images” and you will see the horrific effects
of this disease. This disease starts generally between the ages of 1 and 6 and
is due to a combination of poverty, malnutrition, and poor dental hygiene and if the child lives an area with
poor sanitation they have an even higher risk of getting this disease. For those of you reading this
that have been to a poor country you can empathize with these risks knowing that most
people in poverty are surrounded by these exact disparities. I think particularly of Haiti and the after effects of the
detrimental natural disasters to an already impoverished country. I bet Noma was high there before the disasters so I can't imagine what they are dealing with now. This is true for any poor country but then is multiplied by natural disasters, civil war, drought, famine,
etc. (*Sudan, Darfur, Irag). Right now the WHO states that there is about 140,000 new cases each year of Noma. We need to be made aware of
this awful disease so that we are willing to do something about it. Go, send, pray; which one is your part?
While in Guinea I
have seen more patients with this disease than in the other 6 countries I have
been to. About 80-90% of all Noma patients do not survive due to septicemia, pneumonia, or diarrhea associated with malnutrition. For the 10 to 20% of Noma
patients that do survive they are left with severe
disfigurements of the face. This
leads to then being ostracized and tagged demon possessed and/or cursed. On Mercy Ships we see that 10-20%
that have survived. In the past,
while serving on board, I have always cared for them in the wards or doing
their wound care but this year God blessed me with a greater gift and that was giving me a
friend.
When I
started to write about my friend Fodi for this blog I realized that his story and our
friendship didn’t carry as much weight if you didn’t understand the disease he has and what he has gone through. The scenario up above about being ostracized and labeled demon
possessed is exactly what Fodi endured as a boy and now a man. Yet the joy, love, kindness and care
that this man shows to all who have met him would never let you know.
This
outreach has been a bit (*extremely) different for me compared to what I’ve
been doing the past years on the ship.
One of the biggest things I missed was getting to know the patients. So I decided to sign up to “Befriend a
patient” where you get to befriend a patient (as the name implies). I won’t lie to ya, I originally signed
up for a middle aged female thinking ‘she’ would be a good match especially
because of Hailey. Thankfully my
wise friend Sarah knew that Fodi was our perfect friend. And she couldn't have been more right!
Upon
meeting Fodi I knew he was perfect for us when I asked one of the nurses who
he was and she pointed to an older man (51) with a bedazzled bright yellow
paper crown sitting firmly on his head.
As soon as Hailey saw this 'crown of glory' she lit up and so did I. Fodi put on the biggest smile
he could and quickly put out his hands to hold Hailey. This is where our friendship began.
Over the
past 4 months Hailey and I have had the joy and pleasure of getting to know
Fodi. During his stay on board he
had three separate surgeries in which Dr.Gary basically made him the other side
of his mouth. Through visits down to
the hospital, afternoons on Deck 7 playing Jenga or working on his alphabet, or
trips over to the Hope Center during his last few days getting treatment, we
loved spending time with him. Each
hour spent with him was so precious and even though our conversations were
short due to language differences they were always sweet. I’m happy to report that Fodi went home
this past Thursday fully healed and will receive his final surgery by a Guinean
doctor trained by Dr.Gary. Praise
God! Fodi is just one of the many
patients gone through during this outreach in Guinea but what an impression he
has made on my life and so many others.
During
these 4 years on the ship and seeing some of the poorest of the poor whether it
be due to them coming for surgery or begging on the streets this passage gave
me new insight, conviction, and hope.
“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see
you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in,
or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see
you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ -Matthew 25
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| Hospital |
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| Outside on deck 7 |
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| Hope Center |
1 comment:
Becca.. what a beautiful story. I hope Fodi continues to be strong and healthy and can live his life in peace now. May God bring more to see how much we need to serve the poor of our world.
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