Shanksteps 53
Meningitis, Magic and Marriage
Quiz Question:
What are some common causes of meningitis?
Answer:
In the US, one might answer saying that the causes are
mainly infectious, caused by bacteria, viruses, or
fungi.
In Cameroon, the most common cause is magical.
We have unfortunately just started into the
meningitis season again, and it looks like it may be
another epidemic. We have seen 7 cases so far in the
past 2 weeks. The family of one young woman is
convinced that she is sick because she is ready to get
married. Let me explain. This young woman, Ngossa,
until recently had many male suitors. She had 5 or 6
men who were competing for her hand in marriage. Now
that she is marrying age (15) she has made her
decision and chosen the one she wants to marry.
Apparently all (or some) of the others were irate and
put a spell on her (or paid the sorcerer to do so),
which is why she is now sick. With this
understanding, no amount of medications is going to
solve the problem. (She remains in very serious
condition. Please pray for her recovery.)
I have been taking care of a 2 month old (also with
meningitis) who was slowly improving but not at the
rate I expected. On further examination, I realized
that he was not getting his medication as prescribed.
The nurses are in charge of giving IV meds, and the
family in charge of pills. This child had not
received the proper IV medication for several days and
now the family was demanding to change to pills.
Normally I insist on continuing the prescribed IV
treatment before converting to oral medication.
However, in this case I conceded, thinking that maybe
if the family was responsible for giving the meds, he
would at least receive them. When I examined the
child the following morning, I discovered that he had
again not received his medication. Why? You might
ask…They didn’t give him his medication because he was
sick…
On the same day in the same ward, a father asked me if
I would decrease the medication given to his daughter
(also with meningitis). Why? You ask again… Because
his wife is sick and he doesn’t want to have to pay
for both. Logical from a financial standpoint, but
not a medical one…
Too often here, the families of the sick dictate their
care. They often tell me what to prescribe, how to
prescribe it, how much to give, and how long they
should take it. Their knowledge is based on how much
money they have in their pockets at the moment, not
what is medically best for the patient. It is very
difficult here because there is such extreme poverty
and a hospital stay may mean the difference between
eating or not for weeks or months. However, patient’s
families also change the rates of their IVs (faster is
better), give twice the medication recommended (more
is better), don’t give the medication at all (less is
better). The hospital is continually accused of
trying to “just make money from the communityâ€.
With the lack of appreciation from the community, lack
of good nursing care, lack of cooperation from
families, and sorcery to cause or heal all ailments, I
often wonder what I am doing here. I often feel like
my being here doesn’t make a bit of difference, and it
may not. But then I remember that I am not here to
work for the villagers, or the nurses, or the
hospital, or the church. We are here to work for God,
and are here because HE has called us here. Please
pray that we don’t lose sight of this bigger picture.