It is Friday evening near sundown. Maliki comes to my door to have me come see a 13 year old boy. He says the boy may have meningitis, but is not sure and having bizarre reactions. He has borrowed the motorcycle of the man who brought in the boy so I hop on the back and we head into the hospital. Nearing the hospital he has difficulty slowing down as he finds out he breaks are not working well.
I walk into the ER and see an old woman holding the abdomen and back of the boy. I ask Ibrahim (the boy) what is bothering him. He says that for two days now he has had sudden pain in his abdomen that then goes to his back. Or it grabs his throat as if choking him. As I am talking to him he cries out and grabs his throat with two hands. About ten seconds later he appears fine. I ask him about taking any drugs, or stuff others gave him, he hasn’t. An uncle says that the day before this started he had a homosexual experience with another boy his age. The nurse starts making a clicking noise (surprise). I remind the nurse to be professional, and that he should not display any reaction to things the patients tell us, whether we are surprised or not. I give the boy water to drink and he gulps it down without problem. I think of tetanus, rabies, meningitis, cerebral malaria, syphilis, and demon possession. Doubt the last is on your differential in the USA, though maybe it should be! Papa Sidi (our Chaplain) happens by and I ask him to pray with me for the boy. The boy says he is Muslim and believes in Allah. I tell him to trust in Allah and we are going to pray to God for help and healing. The two of us, the nurse and student gather around the boy and we pray. Pray for healing and protection for this boy. I look for some medications in the pharmacy to start his treatment for some of my differential diagnosis. When I come back the boy is crying out and naming the names of sorcerers that he says are choking him. The family decides that this must be his real problem. They take him home to find a more powerful sorcerer to help him. I pray that God will protect him and that God’s name be glorified rather than a sorcerers. Please pray for Ibrahim.
Trying to follow Him, Greg