Our last couple of weeks in Cameroon

We’re back in the UK! Our lack of blogging for the last couple of weeks has been due to a selection of internet problems...it’s amazing how much you take for granted in the UK. Our final week in Meskine started with my birthday party J We invited all the other foreigners along for homemade mango sorbet & party games...’salade de fruite’ and a relay race which dissolved into a water fight with the kids! I spent my actual birthday in the bloc and got to do my first sutures whilst listening to Christian worship music in French. Sarah had a more adventurous week in the hospital spending some time in the laboratory and with the physiotherapy department before we both finished our time in Meskine in the same way we started...with the 2 amazingly committed Cameroonian doctors who work full-time in the hospital (despite being past the national retirement age), Dr Bray and Dr Salamatou. Our overall impression of l’hopital de Meskine is that it is a well-respected hospital in the north of Cameroon which unlike the government hospitals isn’t corrupt and makes the most of the limited resources adapting the way things are done to maximise the care that can be provided. Personally, I was initially sceptical about care being provided at most levels than less trained people at nearly every level...from personal needs being met just by a family member (the ‘garde-malade’) to surgery being performed by 2 Cameroonians one of whom had completed only 1 year of uni & the other left school at 16!...but I have come to realise that having years of training isn’t always necessary, it’s having a heart of compassion and willingness to learn that’s necessary...if I needed an operation I would now trust the skills of Baba & Sadjo.

Please continue to pray for the hospital... Praise God for raising up staff (mostly Cameroonians) who are passionate about caring for the sick in the north of Cameroon. Pray for continued energy, compassion and wisdom for all the staff especially the surgeons, Baba & Sadjo, and Dr Salamatou & Dr Bray. Pray for God to send out a couple of Western surgeons to both improve the range of surgery the hospital can provide and to enable the hospital to train up men and women from across central Africa to become surgeons as part of the PAACS scheme (Pan-African Association of Christian Surgeons)...if you know any Christian surgeons maybe suggest this to them! Finally, please pray for wisdom & continued passion for those involved (both Cameroonians & westerners) in reaching the Fulbe people (a large Muslim tribe) with the gospel.

As you can see from the photos we spent our last few days in Cameroon enjoying the cooler south and the beautiful beaches at Kribi. The journey to Kribi was very cramped & hot with 5 of us sharing the backseat of a bus definitely only designed for a maximum of 4 but it was good value...less than £4 for a 4 hour journey. The beaches were stunningly beautiful & we stayed just round the corner from Lobe falls, one of the few places in the world where water falls directly into the sea. We spent a little bit of time in Yaounde before flying back staying in the hostel where missionary kids from central Africa live in order to go to the international school...although their life was different in some ways to if their parents hadn’t decided to work in Africa they all said they enjoyed it & Rainforest International School does an excellent job of making their lives more exciting than most kids of their age in the UK...the night before they left they a Prom night for all the senior students & then stayed up all night for their after party. Please pray for the provision of more teachers for the next academic year & if you or someone you know may be interested in experiencing another culture whilst teaching some amazing kids please get in touch! 

Seventh (and last!) week

Sixth week

Our penultimate week in Meskine!

Salut! Our week began with us both getting some kind of bug so we didn't spend as much time in the hospital as normal! Despite this we were able to enjoy the  "Fete du travail" - an annual celebration on 1st May for employees to have fun together & be recognised for all the work they've done...this year the celebrations involved an early morning hike (which we skipped!), a friendly volleyball match against another hospital team, a march in the nearby town of Maroua (the hospital came 3rd!) & a formal 'ceremony' at the hospital with speeches, awards & a buffet! During our limited time in the hospital we both saw babies being born although with 2 very different outcomes...one (Vicki's) was a normal birth although the baby struggled to breathe initially but the other (Sarah's) was a caesarean section for a women who had been hit by her husband - unfortunately the baby died as a result of both the trauma & also a delay in the operation due to the lack of family members present who could consent it. Sarah spent some more time assisting with operations in the 'bloc' (some by torch light due to the ongoing power problems) & Vicki spent more time in the paediatric and maternity wards. We're praying for the power problems to be resolved quickly and that God will quickly provide a new surgeon to work at the hospital - although we've both seen the excellent skills of the surgical team, they really need the leadership & wisdom of a medically trained surgeon - and for legal reasons it is also important to always have a doctor present in the theatres.
This weekend we escaped the heat of Meskine as we visited some of the villages in the Mandara mountains next to Nigeria...it was fascinating to discover more about village life (see the photos for more info) and also to talk to some of the local people. Our guide in Rhumsiki was an active Christian so we had some good discussions with him & we also got to spend time with 3 boys from the village who became our unofficial guides...despite their challenging circumstances (2 had lost their dads & 1 - the boy with the liverpool shirt - has a mum with a severe foot problem so she is unable to work) they loved life & have great aspirations...to be a doctor, policeman & chef all working & supporting their village...please pray that they would fulfil their goals & that through going to church they would come to have a personal relationship with God.

Fifth week - La fete de travail & a weekend trip to Rhumsiki

An example of some of the singing we hear at church

From Cameroon Week 4 (and some more of Waza)