Aud’s view of Bere.
“I sure hope that kid has Tuberculosis!” Things I never imagined saying with a smile, and yet, I found myself saying just that today. I got into the hospital late today as jet lag would not allow me to get out of bed before 9am. I was about to make rounds when the pediatric nurse asked me to see a patient who had just come in. She is a 3 year old girl who was just skin and bones. She couldn’t even stand up by herself. Her family wanted her to be seen because of a mass in her belly. She had already been seen by medical personelle in the capital, N’Djamena. They had already done an ultrasound of her belly saying that it was probably cancer and that she should go home with palliative care waiting for her to die. When I saw her, she was a sweet, scared little girl, who’s ribs and spine all stuck out because there was no fat or muscle. Her belly was large and very firm. As far as my touch could determine, she had a gigantic liver, measuring from her ribs to her hips and probably even lower. She didn’t flinch at all when I palpated. Her lungs sounded like she was breathing through honey. Considering everything, she looks like she has advanced cancer. But I have seen TB give very strange physical exams in the past, so I hope and pray that she has TB and that treating her will start to shrink whatever is in her belly. I plan to try to get a sample of stomach contents in the morning to look for acid fast bacilli (TB),but will probably treat her anyhow because she has no other real chance. This family traveled more than 8 hrs to come to Bere Hospital because they heard it was a good hospital.
After seeing her, I did rounds on pediatrics. There were more kiddos today-all with malaria. And we had a huge rainstorm last night, so the standing water for breeding mosquitos won’t be leaving any time soon. Anyhow, the rounds were fairly routine. Unfortunately this included the family that refused all treatment. This little one has been transfused 4 times in the past 9 months. Because she came in so sick, the transfusions were always free. However, on each occasion, the mother refused to pay for any of the malaria (or other) treatment and so the child went home each time and didn’t get better, only to get sick again and need another transfusion. When asked where the father was (because the male makes all decisions about money), we have been told that he was coming, that he was far away, and that he was dead. It is soooooo frustrating to me to see how badly children (and often women) are treated. I understand that some poeple really have no money to pay for treatment, and my heart hurts for them. In the past I have kept a secret fund to help families that really can’t pay for their treatment. However, I get very frustrated with those people who choose to not take care of their children. I don’t truly know where this family lies, so I have to trust the information given to me by the nurses. These kids are innocent and don’t deserve the neglect they often face. Greg has had to face this similar situation numerous times as well since being here. When I lived in Cameroon, I fought for the lives of the kids every single day I was there. It is heartbreaking.
Please pray for these innocent little lives.