Ray of Hope

On Friday, November 4, 2016 I went to the hospital for my first night shift. The purpose of my visit was to learn about night shift patient population characteristics and staff activities. Our facility operates 24 hours a day, throughout the week. However, we are usually busy during the day and afternoon hours with sporadic emergency cases presenting during the night shift hours. Since I live about 10 minutes from the hospital, I had to walk on my dusty road to the hospital and began my commute around 9pm local time. This was my first time venturing out on this road at that time of the night and as I made my way toward the hospital I began wondering about all the critters (snakes and scorpions) I had seen on the road during day time. Since there aren’t any street lights on this road, my flashlight came in handy but it wasn’t powerful enough to abate the darkness around me. However, I was reminded of the truth contained in Psalm 23 as I walked down on the dark road and that broug...

Today is election day in the United States. Folks all over the world are closely following occurrences at the polls and so are the Ghanaian people. It's all over the news here in Ghana. Here is a quick note to let our friends in the States know that they are in our thoughts and prayers as they vote for the next president. God be with you and God bless America.

On August 15, 2016 I posted a story about a boy whose parents couldn’t afford his hospital bills after discharge and how his bills were settled after a special fundraising.  Multiple scenarios such as this led to the creation of the Anidasowoha fund; a fund dedicated to helping poor patients who are unable to settle their hospital bills. Thanks to support from generous donors, we (Anidasowoha fund) were able to settle the hospital bills of a one year old boy who had been admitted, on October 18, due to multiple facial lacerations sustained due to a fall. His injuries were very significant and resulted in significant blood loss prompting us to transfuse blood products. By God’s grace, his brain was not affected by the fall and he consistently displayed all reflexes expected for a child of his age. He fully recovered and was discharged on Monday, October 24 2016. Unfortunately, his mother, who has 6 other children and an alcoholic, had not registered the boy on the national insu...

At 10:50 pm on Monday October 10, 2016 I received a call from Hannah’s dad. Hannah had passed away at home surrounded by family and loved ones. I was (and still am) saddened by the news. The life of a 14-year old was ended abruptly by a manageable illness due to a failed health system. Hannah was a strong girl full of life and dreams of the future whose resolve to beat her illness was evident for all to see. She fought this illness all the way to end and never backed down even when the complications of the illness required her to be stuck in the hospital for days. All she wanted was to get well, return back to school and also help her dad on their farm. She will be terribly missed. Unfortunately, Hannah’s story is repeated across the country each day. There is high prevalence of pediatric mortality due to preventable and manageable diseases in Ghana. Hannah’s death is a poignant reminder of urgently needed changes in this healthcare system. Rest in Peace Hannah, Rest in Peace...

The following story is being told with permission from parents of the patient. BACKGROUND Hannah is a 14-year-old girl who presented to the emergency unit on July 30, 2016 with an extremely high blood pressure, pulmonary edema and breathlessness. Her oxygen saturation was 55% (normal value for pediatric patients is 95-100%). Oxygen was quickly administered in addition to diuretics and antihypertensive drugs. Once stable, we obtained blood specimen for analysis and concluded based on the results that she had renal (kidney) disease. Kidney ultra sound showed atrophied renal tissue and this was also supportive of the renal injury diagnosis. Her parents reported that she began having symptoms (decreased urine output, weight gain, anemia, weakness) a few weeks before they brought her to our hospital. After several days at the hospital and further assessment, we learned that Hannah had renal failure. In developed parts of the world, patients like Hannah would have had kidney bio...

 Glucometers are essential to every health facility and especially, to diabetes management. They are used to assess a patient’s blood sugar and determine whether to administer insulin or dextrose. At our hospital, these little devices are used so often that they sometimes break down and dysfunction. Once it breaks down, it’s just cost effective to replace it rather than trying to fix it.  A few months ago, each department had a glucometer but overuse led to deterioration and due to lack of funds, we have not been able to replace them. Until last week, we had 2 for the whole hospital. This meant that, in case of a diabetic emergency (hypoglycemic or hyperglycemic episode), we had to run and look for any available glucometer. Delays in providing quick care during diabetic emergencies can lead to negative patient outcomes. Thanks to a special donation from Nick Eskridge and Meredith Skaggs of Cloverport United Methodist Church, we have been able to procure 3 more glucome...

I took last week off to spend time with my family and relax. I’ve been running around like a chicken without a head since my arrival and I felt it was time for a short break. I’m usually at Ankaase (location of the hospital) and do not always get to see my family. Sometimes I spend 2 -3 weeks in the village, visit my family for a weekend and then head back. This has reduced the amount of time I get to spend with them. So we were all glad to have last week to really spend time together. With help from my dad, we were are able to afford to head to Cape Coast, about 110 miles south west of Kumasi, for 2 days during my time off. My sister (Esther) and her husband (Francis) joined my mom, my brother Francis and I on this mini vacation.  From front center to right:  Esther (my sister), Stella (mom), Francis (in white, my sister's husband), Francis (my brother) and I (UK shirt and Cap :), go wildcats!!!) We visited the Kakum national park (https://en.wikipedia....