Dugger May 2007 Email Update

 

May 7, 2007

 

Hi everyone:

 

Happy summer to those in the northern hemisphere.  It’s hard to imagine either summer or winter coming on since it’s perpetually summer here for us.

 

We’ve had a busy month with a lot to learn.  Kim’s “let’s see a couple patients a day so that the staff can a learn a little” has snowballed.   Everyday whenever the clinic has opened, Kim has seen anywhere between 15 to 25 patients.  He’s noted that a lot of them have already gone to the local government hospital, the local clinics in town and have not gotten better.   Many of them have complicated problems, or problems that even he cannot help.  He was able to tell one lady that she had cervical cancer and all the medicines she’d been told to buy from other healthcare workers would not help her get better.   For even people like that, being told they are dying and then praying with them is more encouraging than never being told their diagnosis. 

 

There are constant cultural hurdles.  An expat lady and I have been in the clinic off and on trying to help with administrative training.   We were both concerned that staff were coming to work hungry, not eating lunch and leaving early.   One of the young men told us, as he laughed, that he only ate one meal a day – when he had money.   Both of us then said to each other in English, that we had to do something about it.   I guess we also laughed embarrassedly about this young man’s situation.  The next day we found out that he thought we were laughing AT him because he didn’t eat and so decided he was going to quit.   A group of us sat down when he came back to the clinic to talk through the situation and prayed.  He is still working at the clinic, and we are still leaving the responsibility of eating both a breakfast and lunch up to the staff.  It’s difficult for us to imagine that just laughter can cause such grief and misunderstanding.   But for others from a different cultural background, this simple act can be insulting.

 

 

Martesilla and Hanouk (both on the right) with a patient.

(M is almost RN level, while H just finished low level nursing school – no knowledge of IVs or even to give a shot)

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another cultural hurdle:  this morning, some patients informed our front desk staff that the guard was selling number cards to waiting patients.   Numbers are to be put out at 7 am for a “first come, first serve” system.   Apparently, people were coming as early as 2 am to try and get numbers . . . and trying (and maybe succeeding) to make it worth the guard’s efforts to hand them a number card.   One of the nurses said it’s “normal” for people to have to buy their numbers.

 

Yet another:  even though the staff has been told to come at 7:45 – they are still trickling in till 10 am!   And when they are working past 4 pm (some thought they could go home at 2 pm and yet get paid full-time) they are asking for overtime – even though they will not be working full 5 day weeks in both May and June.   Pray with us that they will have a service oriented mentality – serving their own people.

 

 

Kim using his portable ultrasound unit, showing the nurses (man in pink is the patient’s spouse)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Kim is hoping that the patient fees will cover all the staff salaries and medicines in the near future.   Our work funds are still covering the capital operations and buying medical equipment, furniture and all expenses needed to get this project off the ground.

 

The clinic still has not gotten government permission to get the government nursing staff to work long-term at the clinic.  Please continue to pray for this.   Meetings are often postponed and/or just not attended.  Pray for the church leader who is responsible for getting the permission.  He has a tough job.

 

At the end of this month, our international director from the US will be here for 2 days.  Pray we’ll have a profitable time with him.   Then after he leaves, we’ll be having eleven from our home church in Fairbanks spend almost a week with us in Papua.  We’re glad to be able to share our ministry and lives with them all – and even more thrilled to have the church cover our airfare to Bali for a break after their visit.   It’ll be good to get off this island and away from all the medical demands.  Pray that our visitors will have safe traveling and a good time here.

 

The Faulkners leave this Friday for New Zealand.  We’ll miss them when they leave – pray with us they will get their much needed rest and be able to get enough support to return in December.

 

We thank you for all your prayers and support – without you all, we’d not be here.

 

Working for Him

 

Grace (for Kim & Claire)

  

 

If you’d like to begin or continue supporting this ministry, you can mark your donations

 

Project 37707

 

and send to:

 

CrossWorld, PO Box 306, Bala-Cynwyd, PA 19006.