Resolution to a previous post...

I found out what the thief (see post Jungle Justice) was assaulted over....are you ready....get this...

6 DOLLARS...thats right! Six dollars, it's not a typo! That's 3,000 Congolese Francs!

Man, keep your hand outta the cookie jar around this place!

Branhamites and motorbikes

Have any of you ever heard of William Branham? All you Kentuckians better raise your hands, he was born there! Anyway, there's this group called the Branhamites who are disciples of....that's right, W. Branham. Well, we had been 'advised' that there were Branhamites in Kole (of all places!!) and that we were to steer clear. COME ON! That's like telling a little kid (good comparison) that a house is haunted and to stay away. So what did I do? Naturally, I invited them to the house!

Now, before you go all crazy (and no, I didn't get converted, I don't think) I did my due diligence and researched this whole deal to see what the hubbub was all about. If you want to do a neat experiment, Google the word 'Branhamites' and count how many times the word 'cult' comes up. By the way, they don't refer to themselves as 'Branhamites', at least not outwardly, there as a bunch of different names. Anyway, there were some concerns from the powers that be (my bosses, not God) that they were operating in the area and were an issue. They confessed that they had little to no direct info so it was best to play it safe. Well, DANGER is my middle name, though my nick name is 'special ed'.

Like I said, they seemed like a nice bunch so I had them over for a chat. 2 guys showed up carrying a book. Why is there always a book? And no, it was NOT the Bible. It was Branham's notes on the Bible. They gave me the low down on the church, number of members, locations, how they are financed (supposedly), etc. etc. For a mysterious group they were pretty forthcoming. I passed on the info to the 'Powers' who demanded that I reveal my source! Though admittedly not that dramatic, it was more like, "Who told you that?!" I laid out the [ahem] story of how I came into these tidings (sans the invitation) and they were content for the time being.

I'll keep this next one short.

So we were running drastically short on patients and would be out by the time the next group got here if we didn't find more. So one of the guides and I saddled up the bikes and took off for Gengwa, where most of our patients had come from (see map below). After a tortuous 4 hours and 85km, we finally pulled into the local health clinic to discover there were NO patients. In fact no one had seen a monkeypox patient in about a month.

But amazingly...what they did have...were villagers with leprosy! How many people in the course of a career in nursing actually get to see leprosy, in person? While I felt truly sorry for the patients, I couldn't help the fascination with seeing them up close and touching them (with gloves). I couldn't imagine what an entire colony of people affected with this disease must have been like....unbelievable. After I had finished interviewing the staff we (dreadfully) headed back. Imagine driving from Fredrick to DC and back...on a motocross track. Fun you say? Ever see saddle burn from a motorcycle? Not pretty!

Bottom of the 9th, bases loaded....

Sweat is burning my eyes as I look for the signal.....

at least that's what it feels like, in my own head. I'm 5 days from leaving (not including today) and 8 days from being home...and this will NOT be going into extra innings!! We found out today, in typical Kole style, that the truck which is to bring us to the airstrip and our replacements and all the gear in, has broken down. Let me get into some specifics so you can appreciate the gravity of this event.

We have 2 people with their personal bags, 14 large boxes, and 2 large canisters of liquid nitrogen that need to travel 11 kilometers over some of the worst road/trail conditions you can imagine. Additionally, and arguably more importantly, we have 3 people and their personal belongings to get out!! The only conveyance we have available is 4 motorcycles and a bicycle....someone is going to have a REALLY long day!! More on that as it develops.

I haven't told Teresa that my camera (actually her camera) is broken beyond repair....Sorry you had to find out this way babe! So none of my pictures or video from the last 2 weeks will be up until after I get home. Before you say.."Hey Rhett, why don't you just take the card out and put it in your computer?"...HA! I say..I thought of that, but these African ants have gotten into my computer and disabled it. Before any of you questions my sanity (which may be somewhat warranted) you haven't seen these things. They get into EVERYTHING..and they love electronics. Think I'm fibbing, maybe exaggerating to sound all cool and exotic (also a possibility), I have a witness. He has seen them coming in and out of my computer shortly before it died. Teresa already knows about this, still sorry though ;)

So no camera, no computer (except the work one), no vehicle. I've learned that it is better not to ask "What else can go wrong". I'm afraid to get that answer.

On another note, we have been so starved for entertainment that one of most common saying to be heard here is.."Hey come see what the [insert animal here] is doing!!!"

We watched a battle royale between a chicken and a duck yesterday. After 5 minutes the duck had him and, I believe, was going for the kill until Gaston saw it and PUNTED the duck across the yard. He was obviously baffled by our frowny faces and protests. With a dumbfounded (and somewhat disgusted) look on his face, he went back inside and Max and I went looking for more entertainment. It didn't take long...

One of the chickens had gotten in the house. Now, the sane person would what? RIGHT...shoo them out, but the person desperate for amusement would call his buddy and shut all the doors so the chicken can't get out. One of the perks of having a veterinarian as a roommate is that they know some really funny things to do with animals... You ever hypnotize a chicken? Well if you answered 'NO', youll ahve to wait until I post the video...SORRY!


...and here comes the pitch......

Jungle Justice

I know, it sounds like a bad Steven Seagal Movie...

Anyway, at 0445, I was roused by the sounds of yelling (yet again) outside. Thinking it was another funeral procession (we average about 1-2 a week) I rolled over and tried to go back to sleep. This sounded different though....more primal...guttural...and somewhat festive. I decided to investigate further.

As I approached the front door I could tell this was most definitely NOT a death (unless the person was exceedingly unpopular). No, this was bordering on a riot. I opened the door to see throngs of angry villagers yelling and taunting and though my Lingala (local vernacular) borders on non-existence, I clearly got the gist of what was happening. Someone had been busted.

I watched as the crowd enveloped a lone soul who was dragged out onto the street from behind a house. I could barely make out the form which was now on the ground being sequentially pummeled in a grisly 'round robin'. After about 20 minutes the figure was lifted up and carried off to the police chief's house (also the courthouse and penitentiary). After talking to some of the people in the crowd, I found out he was a thief they caught red-handed.

What he got caught doing, no one could tell me. Everyone seemed satisfied with his castigation though, despite the lack of details.

Now, I could have said.."I stood around and watched some guy get his a** kicked today", but where's the fun in that?

I also thought of a riddle...

Q - What's black and blue and lumpy all over?

A - That guy..

I told that little gem to the lab staff but they didn't seem to get it. I’d better stick to my day job..

The Right Thing..

I debated heavily whether I was going to write about this. The only person outside of Kole who knows about it is Teresa. My reluctance is born in part from the fear that I'd come off stinking of self glorification. The other part from knowing somewhere, someone will possibly be waiting to rake my butt over the coals for it.

I decided that, in the right context, I'll neither sound self promoting nor guilty of 'breaking the rules'.

Growing up, as most kids do, I would ask my dad for advice (or a solution) for problems that I had. Invariably, his answer was, "Do what you think is right".
It used to drive me nuts. At some point in my (pseudo) adult life, I came to understand what he meant. This was one of those times.

I was finishing up reading malaria slides in the lab when our project physician, Gaston, asked if I could come help and draw some blood from a sick 4 day old that was a really difficult stick. I told him I'd be happy to have a look. I grabbed a few supplies just in case I saw a vein I liked.

After walking through the maternity ward we came to the last bed and I walked up on what I would have though was a corps of a newborn. He was as yellow as a gold brick from jaundice and as dehydrated as I've ever seen. There was a gaggle of nurses and docs standing around as I made for the bedside. Understandably, the mother was frantic and crying hysterically, making the perception of heat, humidity, and pressure even more intense as I examined the lethargic infant.

He barely squeaked as I moved him around looking for any indication of a vessel with fluid in it. I saw one that looked promising in his left arm so I pulled out the smallest needle I had (which also happened to be the longest, further upsetting the mother)and pierced his dry, wrinkled, jaundiced skin. I was able to get it into the vein, like tapping a maple tree, and let the blood flow out and drip into the purple top tube.

After running the blood, the staff decided he was in need of a transfusion or he wouldn't make it through the night. They typed and cross matched his blood (see my previous post for the other part of the story) only to find out he was A positive, and the only donors available were AB and B type. Since there is no way to store blood here, it is donated and transfused in real time, on demand.

After Gaston, told me what was going on I knew, without hesitation, what I was about to do. I told him, if he'll clear it with the staff, they could take it from me.

Military guys always know their blood type, mine is A positive.

After about 30 seconds of discussion, one of the lab technicians came up to me with what looked like a garden hose in his hand and asked me to roll up my sleeve.

The baby was transfused throughout the night.

The next morning Gaston and I went straight to the maternity ward to check on the patient. Remarkably, most of his color had returned and he was feeding. The previous weeks of relentless frustration had disappeared and I felt like I could absorb any problems and deal with it.

Now what, you ask, are you making a fuss about? Well, a few things came to mind after it was all over. Technically, I was practicing in a foreign country, without local clearance, aside from the staff, who were grateful. But gratitude won't pay for legal expenses were something to happen. Also, I let someone stick a needle (a very large needle) into my arm in the middle of the jungle, in a country where HIV, hepatitis, and a host of other blood born diseases are significantly higher risks than most other places. What if my blood had caused a reaction in the patient, despite screening it prior to transfusing it? I could go on, but you get the idea.

So why was my knee-jerk reaction to make the decisions I did? Why did I stick that kid? Why did I drop a pint of blood? What was I thinking?

My only defense is simply, I did what I thought was right.

It was a pretty good day and I'm not losing any sleep over it.

When it rains..

In the Congo, when it rains, it floods. This pattern not only follows the weather (currently the rainy season here) but is applicable to most aspect of daily life.

It starts with clouds rolling in, which for us is problematic because we run predominately on solar power. So its time to fire up the generator. Well, easier said than done when your triple filtered fuel looks like mud.

Then the clouds darken and the wind howls. The power inverter decides it doesn't like the volts and hertz being delivered by the generator and refuses to connect. The power system drops as you run critical labs and database functions.

Then it begins to lightning and thunder....see my previous post for a demonstration. You watch helplessly as the power is sucked from the system which the Congolese lab is now connected to because their labs power tapped out hours ago and there is a baby that needs a blood transfusion or he'll die.

Suddenly, rain lands like a waterfall on the roof of the tiny exhaust filled room you've been in for the last hour. Frantically, you begin to weigh your options and begin running a full system sweep.

Just as it begins to really come down, the internet goes haywire and all connections are lost. The power is getting critically low and the entire grid is about to shut down. Nothing on the inverter or network systems hints as to what is causing this nightmare. What do you do?

Break out the tools and begin taking everything apart looking for the problem. You shut off all non-critical systems (satellite uplink, lights, freezers, fans, etc.)and hope there is just enough power to get through the next 30 minutes while they type and cross the blood and the Polymerase Chain Reaction equipment is cycling. The rain comes harder and you are soaked from running back and forth between the lab and the electric room.

What was once sand has now become submerged muck which has been tracked onto every square inch of the floor you are now crawling on in order to run the miles of wire and cable connecting all the electronics to the power grid and the battery bank. The possibility of getting electrocuted briefly enters your mind.

By a stroke of luck, nothing seems out of place. This means the only thing left is the generator. Unfortunately, the other 3 generators in the room are incompatible. You you reach out to it off and decide if taking it apart in the rain is really a good idea. The rain is hitting the side of your face due to the wind. The good news is you're not asphyxiating on fumes at the moment and can think a little more clearly.

Just as your plan of action solidifies and you touch the off switch, it sputters, kicks, and dies. NOT NOW! Having been here prevoiusly, you knew all to well what that death roll meant, the fuel filter has clogged. You deftly reach the filter plug and begin to rotate it while catching minor contact burns from the engine. After a little negotiating, the filter, and a pile of oily muck, drop out. You hold it out and let the rain do the work of cleaning the filter. After the bulk is washed away, you apply a little manual air pressure and blow on it to release the rest of the obstruction and reinsert it finally replacing all the components. It fires up as if it was brand new...beautiful.

Before you complete you mental victory lap, you remember that there is still another, larger issue and power it down. As you unplug the main line from the generator, you notice it is a little hot and discolored. On a whim, you decide to take it apart and give it a better look. The rain lightens ever so slightly.

Dumb luck is better than no luck at all. The hot wire has overheated the connection and separated from the plug. Pulling the necessary tools to repair the line, you yell at the lab to hold all operations for 5 minutes while you cut, strip, and reconnect the lines. 4 1/2 minutes later, you yell back to resume everything, start the generator, and flip the switch....everything begins to hum as the grid lights up; it feels like Christmas came early.

You sit down and look at the mess you'll have to spend the next 3 hours cleaning up. Satisfied, you look outside and notice the rain has stopped.....for now.

Chicken Little

What can I say...the sky WAS falling. Enjoy!


If you look at the 4 and 38 second frames, you can see how close it is..

I Have A Dream

They are starting again…

Nuclear war had ensued; I actually saw the mushroom clouds. There were burned out buildings, very Mad Max. The strange thing was I still had to take Rylyn to school. And she was late.

The other one I was going to my buddy Brian’s house. I called him from my parent’s house to say I’m going to be late. He said ‘You haven’t even left yet have you?” Then, I WOKE UP…looked at my watch, WENT BACK TO SLEEP, and told him I’ll be there at 9. It was four hours after the time I has seen on my watch, the exact amount of time it would take me to get to his house from my parents’.

The Incinerator Incident

How hard is it, really? Put trash in, add gas, light match, clean out when done, repeat. I EVEN WROTE IT DOWN!!!! IN FRENCH!!!! I GAVE A CLASS ON IT!!! COME ON!!!
I was warned before coming out that there were issues with the incinerator. They said I wouldn’t be happy; they TRIED to fix it, but saw it was no use.
I had no words when I saw it (none I can repeat here). Apparently, the hospital staff had been skipping the final, and most critical step, of ‘clean out when done’. So they would make clandestine trips to put trash in the incinerator, WITHOUT cleaning, burn, and put more on top, and burn, and CONTINUE to pile it on. Until finally, it was overflowing with biomedical, hazardous, waste. Needles, bloody bandages, broken glass, EVERYTHING, ALL OVER THE PLACE…..I was not in a good place, mentally, and I lost it.
I called a ‘senior staff’ meeting to find out what in the h**l had been going on. The sisters told me the staff FORGOT how to use it …..REALLY??!!!!! They were glad I was back so I could fix it, and by that, they meant clean it out, REBURN the partially burned refuse, and construct yet ANOTHER pit for the sterile waste. Back to square one.
I thought about it for a minute, and said NO. Not only was I NOT going to fix it, I offered to level it and take the barrel back to the house. Needless to say, the nuns, well, everyone was taken aback. I laid it out for them….if they were incapable of maintaining a metal barrel for burning trash, it wasn’t worth my time to fix it just to have it return to this state after I left. I suggested an alternative. They get THEIR staff to clean it and I’ll do some remedial training. After explaining that it was the hospitals equipment and they needed to take ownership and not rely on outside people to keep it going, they took my point, begrudgingly. We'll see how it goes.