Children's Hospital Boston in Ghana

Welcome to Ghana

We arrived at the Accra Airport today around 1:30pm after a long flight.  Some of us slept in drug induced comas and the rest of us felt like nothing slept except our backsides!  Once off the plane the
first sign when you enter the terminal is Akwaaba Welcome To Ghana Gateway to Africa! 

Once through customs we were warmly greeted by Dr. Fynn-Thompsons parents, who assisted us through security and on to our awaiting bus.  What a difference comfortable seats and air conditioning can make. 

Thank you Teresa and Keith!

Every year we have hopes that the roads will be better, because they do seem to be working on them every time we visit.  Our hopes were soon dashed when we had been on the road for about 45min. and could still see the airport!  The past few weeks the area has received some heavy rain fall which made the already bad roads even worse.  Sleeping was definitely out of the question for this 8 hour bus ride!  But it was not long until the team started passing around snacks and reminiscing about past missions.  It was actually an amazingly diverse trip.  We traveled through a few small towns and many small villages.  We were greeted by the street vendors every time the bus slowed, selling everything from water and food to maps of Africa. 

It is always fun to see what is for sale along the side of the road as well.  Today we saw everything from caskets to toilets.Gallery   It was interesting as the sun began to set, watching households build fires outside their homes and begin to cook dinner.

 

As the hours wore on we would see towns with electricity and hope that we were nearing Kumasi.  Gradually the terrain and roads began to become more familiar until someone exclaimed “I think we are close, this looks like the Jamaica Way”.  Indeed we were entering Kumasi.  At about 9:30pm we rolled into the Milken Hotel, our home for the next two weeks.

After a nice dinner, we have dispersed to unpack, email family and friends and get ready to start work tomorrow.  We will meet for breakfast in the morning at 6:30 and leave for the hospital at 7:30 to set up the clinic, OR and ICU.  We will begin seeing patients as soon as we get everything organized in the morning.  We are all anxious to see old friends and begin this exciting adventure.

 

The question of the day comes from our dinner this evening.  Can anyone guess what we were served?  I have included a picture to help.

 

Susan

We are Off!

The team arrived at Logan today at 1:30pm to begin our 6th mission to Ghana.  A few new faces but most are seasoned veterans from previous missions.  Everyone is excited for the experiences and adventures that lay ahead.  Friday we will begin evaluating new patients as well as seeing patients from last year in conjuction with setting up the OR and ICU.  We are also expecting to see patients that we have arranged to come to the United States for surgery.  We are excited to hold the first African Pediatric Surgical Cardiovascular Conference on Saturday. We are also happy to welcome back Isaac this year, who is training to take over the Pediatric Cardiovascular Surgeries in Ghana.

We are currently at Washington, Dulles airport waiting for our 11 hour flight to Accra, Ghana followed by an 8 hour bus ride to Kamasi.  We are currently spread out in the terminal charging our electronics and saying goodbye to our families.  We look forward to your comments on the blog as you follow our progress and adventures.

 -Susan

Update

During our last visit to Komfo Anoyke Teaching Hospital we met and evaluated Clement, a 2 year old with tetrology of fallot.  He was accompanied by his parents, Baba and Laadi as well as a nurse/missionary Wendy Nyhus, who had found our organization through the blog.  They traveled 9 long hours from Nalerigu, Ghana to be evaluated by the Children's team to see if Clement was a candidate for surgery.  After evaluating Clement, it was determined that his heart disease was too complicated for what we could provide during our short visit to KATH.  As the news was given to Baba, Laadi and Wendy it was not long before the tears began to flow from staff as well as parents.  Dr. Fynn-Thompson and Dr. Thiagavajan discussed options and took the time to educate Baba and Laadi on Clement's condition.  I will never forget Baba kissing my hand with tears running down his checks and a smile on his face thanking us for our time that afternoon.

While we could not operate on Clement at KATH we were all determined to find an organization that could sponsor Clement for his surgery.  Within a couple of weeks a foundation, Patrons of the Hearts, which helps children with Congenital Heart Disease from underdeveloped countries, thought they could assist Clement and his family at the University of Florida, Jacksonville.

Dr. Fynn-Thompson and Dr. Thiagarajan compiled the information they had on Clement and sent it to Dr. Ettedgui in Jacksonville.  We are happy to report that Clement is doing great!  He had a valve sparing repair on Jan. 20th and returned to Ghana on no medication.

 

We also received an update from Leah, a volunteer from the 2009 mission, regarding Portia, a beautiful young girl that we operated on during our last mission.  She looks wonderful and is playing with her friends and going to school.

 
 

-Susan

 

 

Celebration

All of the patients have been discharged and are heading home.  We will not see them for a year, but they will be in our hearts and minds until we see them again.  Words cannot begin to describe the time we have spent in Ghana.  It has been a priviledge to be a part of such a dedicated, hard working  and compasionate group of people.  We came on this trip to operate on as many children as possible, hoping to improve their lives.  In reality, we are the ones coming home changed.  Each of us will leave Ghana with different experiences and stories that we will share with all of you.  I have done my best to convey the emotions and experiences of the past week but I am sure there are many more stories and experiences to tell.  I hope I have brought our experiences to life for you in a small way. 

Tonight we will be attending a thank you party given by the hospital.  Tomorrow we will begin the long journey home to our loved ones.  I will continue to post photos in the upcoming weeks and adding reflections from team members.

I wanted to say a special thank you to Bev, Christine and Judy for organizing a flawless trip and a special thank you to Francis, for without him this would not be possible.  Until next year:

 

 - Susan

A New Beginning

Wow, twenty surgeries in six days, so many lives touched.  This is always the hardest day to put into words.  We are exhausted, exhilerated and still trying to process the events of the past week and a half. The true reality of what we have accomplished will not register with most of us until we are at home.  We have been faced with many obstacles but have over come them one by one.  Tomorrow we have six echos to do, then we begin packing up the rooms for the ICU and OR.  We will have a party for the patients at 1:00pm to celebrate their new beginning.   Then we will discharge our last patients, either home or to a floor for monitoring for a few days.  Saturday, half of us will leave early for Accra, while the other half will go to the Cape Coast to tour the Slave Castle before meeting at the airport to fly home.  We are all excited to come home but sad to leave these wonderful people and this experience behind.  Today we finished our last tours of the schools.  We visited the Trede and Anikroma Schools to deliver donated items.  We were greeted by the tribal elders and serenaded with tribal dance and song.  There is  a custom that is followed with each presentation where you state your purpose for the visit then you present your gifts to the tribal elders.There is often a ceremony coinciding with the presentation where the children perform customary celebratory dances. 

 

Over the next couple of days, I will be uploading pictures from the week into the galleries.  The internet connection has been very slow, so I have not been able to load alot of the pictures taken this week. In the mean time the members of the team are beinging to write about their experiences this week. Gallery of Highlights from the week.

I have created a gallery entitled Scenes of Ghana which is a collaboration of pictures that Brenda and I have taken during the week,of people and scenes around the hospital.

It's the Little Things in Life...

It is Saturday night and I am working the night shift.  Three children had been operated on during the day and we would be caring for him in the ICU

One little six year old girl, Josephine, who had her PDA ligated and was recovering well, just broke my heart.

By morning, Josephine had most of her lines and her drain discontinued.  After working her up, I discovered her clothes that her mom had set aside for her to wear.  She had handmade pajamas and a bathrobe which were stitched together using pieces of fabric that she had gathered from outside sources.  I also found a pair of new panties for her to wear that had been stitched on either side because they were too big.  Her mom wanted her to look and feel special…and she was!

-Judy

Today is the last day of surgery and it feels time went by rapidly. We have been busy and today we will end with 19 cases, innumerable clinic visits and echocardiograms. I saw some very interesting things this week. Bishop 8 yr old with seizures, a blood disorder, and severe obstruction to the aorta - who we operated on successfully on Tuesday. Interestingly his seizures only occurred with exercise and we hope that relief of his aortic obstruction may relieve him of seizures as well. Kinda of a 2 cures for one treatment! It has been a great but very tiring week and I looking forward to putting my feet up at  the end of today.

Ravi

 The answer to yesterdays Question fo the day is:

Ghana gained independence March 6th, 1957.

Reflections

 
Today we were hoping the title would be four by four, four cases by four o'clock.  In reality we did have a record day of 4 cases but by 5:00pm.  It does not have quite the same ring to it, but it is still a great accomplishment.  So far, we have successfully operated on 16 patients, which is a record in itself.  But we have one more day to go with 3 surgeries.

Today we also held clinic for patients from previous missions and a group of us went to the Kumasi Orphanage. We had a patient from the first mission, Bright, that came in for his followup.  He was a child that we operated on our first mission.  He looked great and helped us realize once again, that what we are doing is changing peoples lives.

 The trip to the Kumasi Orphanage is always emotional.  The children greet the bus with smiles and waves, eager to see who is arriving.  We do our best to comfort the children the short time we are there, but In evidently the question always arises, will you take me home?

 

 

 I titled today's entry reflections, because some of the Team Ghana first timers wanted to write a few words.

-Susan

Although I spoke to a lot of ‘veterans’ of this mission before this trip, I was still a little anxious and wasn’t sure what to expect. It didn’t take long to feel very comfortable with this group, in this setting. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time here and hope to be invited back next year! It’s been great working with my colleagues (current and past) in the OR  - we’ve been working very hard, but having a lot of laughs along the way. It’s refreshing to get back to the basics of taking care of patients (without the endless paperwork).

One of the things I’ve noticed is that the kids are very stoic when they come into the operating room, but getting a new toy still brings a smile to their face. I’ve also learned that I am dependent on paper towels!

-Ellen

This is my first mission trip, hope it’s not my last.  I arrived at Logan airport, anxious but not really nervous.  I saw a group of people, I thought it might be the group.  I saw familiar faces from when I used to work at Childrens in Boston.  Francis was one of the first to greet me , which put me at ease immediately.  Then I saw Bev and other nurses.  I introduced myself to the rest of the group.  So we start  our journey.  Travel for quite a few hours to Ghana.  I noticed a friendly woman with her husband at the airport, they were so happy to see the group big hugs and kisses.  I wondered who they were.  Turns out they were parents of one of the patients from last year.  Actually the child came to the US for his surgery, and stayed at the home of one of the nurses during his surgical course.    Now he is a happy healthy toddler!  I am so amazed at the passion and ambition of the team and am proud to be a part of it.  I have trouble articulating about my experience,  because it is overwhelming to me at this time.  I need time to process everything and reflect upon this wonderful experience. 

-Leslie

I didn't know what to expect from this trip.  I was excited to go, but honestly I was apprehensive also.

Many of my fears were put to rest when I arrived at the Logan Airport terminal.  When I entered the terminal I was first greeted by Francis with a smile and a welcoming hello, then Bev greeted me with a hug.  Those gestures made me feel immediately a part of the team.

My experience over these first few days in Ghana have been both overwhelming and gratifying.  I now have a new appreciation for what basic needs are.  The Ghanian people are gracious hosts.  I appreciate this opportunity to interact with the people here and to learn about their culture.   I have found the nursing staff here eager to interact with us, as we both teach them and learn from them.  I am grateful for the opportunity to help make a diffence here.

-Ruth

The answer to yesterdays Question of the Day is:

Elephant trunk up = longlife

Elephant runk down =  goodluck

Question of the Day: What year did Ghana achieve independence?

When in Rome...

The first time you come to Africa, two things stand out; how does everyone carry things on their head and how do the women wrap the babies on their back?  Well yesterday, Christine received a lesson from one of the local nurses, Adwoa, on how to do both.  As you will see, Christine was able to wrap Dereck on her back, balance gloves on her head and take care of a patient simultaneously.  We might be on to something here!

 

Pride...

We arrived at the hospital today to the smiling faces of the 9 children that we have operated on so far. What a difference a few days can make.  Initially the children did not feel well and were not totally comfortable with us.  Now after surgery and a few days to become comfortable with the group, they are smiling, playing and full of energy.  Patients are beginning to be discharged. Some will go home and some will stay with local friends until after Friday, when we have our patient party celebrating the weeks events.

We have had a great couple of days enjoying the  patients from previous years come in for their follow up checkups.  It is so rewarding to see the difference we have made in their lives.  There have been tears of joy and celebration from the families and staff. 

 

Can you hear me now?

 

Josephine kicking her first soccer ball after surgery.

 
Bev receiving a kiss from Kelly.

Today we did 3 additional surgeries,  Mickail, Pricella and Lilian

This afternoon a few of us went to the Hosptial Staff Day Care to take supplies as well as play with the children.  They greeted us with song and dance.  It was adorable watching the 1 to 4 year olds dance to the African drum and sing. 

 

Then it was off to Kente village, where they weave their own cloth.  A few of us got the opportunity to try our hand at weaving on the looms.

 

Brittany

 Mary Eisenhower was the inspiration behind todays entry.  Here are her thoughts from the week.

Pride - The delight or elation arising from some act, possession or relationship.

                                                                                        -Miriam Webster online

    We are now more than halfway through our mission.  This is my 4th time as a member of the Hearts and Minds of Ghana Mission.   I am always searching for ways to describe my feelings while in Ghana.

As I entered the hospital today, i was able to play with children ready for discharge. I reunited with children we had operated on and cared for last year.  These children are thriving and now living life to its fullest.

I have also had the pleasure of watching new team members adjust, adapt and grow personally and professionally.  more than ever my pride comes from watching my daughter in her role as a volunteer.  She has been able to meet each challenge and perform her roles with a smile,  despite any apprehension.

So yes,  I am proud of the team, our successes and most of all Hayley!

-Mary

 The answer to yesterday's question of the day is:There are 10 tribes in native tribes in  Ghana.

a few people got a couple of the tribes correct.

1. Northern- Dogombas Tribe

2. Upper east Region - Mampasi Tribe

3. Upper West Region - Frafra tribe

4.  Ashanti Region-Ashanti Tribe

5. South of Frafia- Brong Ahafo

6. West of Ashanti- Adanti Tribe

7. Western Coast- Fante Tribe

8. Accra- Ga Tribe

9.  East of Ga- Ada Tribe

10.  Sounteast Region- Ewe

 Question of the Day

 What is the meaning of the different directions of an elephants trunk?  (Up and Down)

 

A New Perspective

This morning I asked some of the first timers if they would write a few reflections regarding their first trip to Ghana. So first thing this morning I had the title for todays blog, a new perspective.   Many were hesitant or said there is no way I can put this experience into words.  But after today, I think a new perspective reflects what many of us experienced today.

We had our usual routine, breakfast at 6:30am, then getting to the hospital by about 7:15am.  Today we had patients scheduled in the clinic that we operated on last year and we had 3 surgeries scheduled.  We were greeted by Dereck, one of the surgical patients for the day, who was an absolute doll standing in Dr. Fynn-Thompson's shoes. 

 

 It was wonderful seeing the patients from last year.  Some we did not even recognize because they had changed so much.  Many of these children had a hard time walking short distances and the children that came into the clinic today were full of energy.  What a joy to see the transformation.  I was so excited to see them so healthy, I forgot to take pictures of a couple of them.  But do not worry, between all of us, all pictures will be posted within a couple of days.

 

 

Then it was off to Mother Theresa's Orphanage for those of us who were lucky enough to get away.  Words cannot begin to describe this piece of heaven within the city limits of Kumasi.  We were greeted by the Sister, please forgive me but I cannot begin to spell her name correctly.  But on that same note, the sister was with Mother Theresa since 1972 and was named by Mother Theresa.  It was quite an honor to meet her.  She gave us a tour of the house and grounds, giving us a detailed  history of each and every child within the walls, which was 33 residents.  I would like to share a few of the stories which she shared with us.

The ones that resonated the most with me were the babies.  The belief among some of the tribes is that if a child is born with a handicap, it will spread to the rest of the family.  So they feel they must kill the child.  So many of the residents of the orphanage have some kind of handicap, whether it be physical or mental.  The sister told us a few stories which I will never forget.  One is of a child which was abandoned at birth and found at 3 days of age by hunters out in the brush and they brought her to the orphanage.  Another was of a mother that was pregnant with twins and the mother died after the second baby, the baby was 2 weeks old. Then there were the children that are there for a short amount of time because their parents cannot take care of them at this time, but they will be able to return home once they are a little older. There was the child that came home from school while we were visiting.  Her uncle is abusive so the mother and daughter have found a safe haven at the orphange where they feel safe. The child that will stick in my heart the most is Daniella.  She was a Downs Syndrome child that was brought to the Orphanage as a child.  The sister told us that she changed her name once she was brought to the home because they were her new family. Daniella came outside and greeted us after her nap.  We walked through the grounds where they grow and dry some of their own food.  As we drove away, we left the residents waving goodbye as we had tears in our eyes.  That puts things in perspective!

On a lighter note, it seems there has been alot of interest in our pink chicken.  We found out the reason some chickens are pink.  They are dyed pink so the hawks will not recognize and eat them.  Also the yoke of the local eggs is white, not yellow.

Quite a few people got yesterday's question of the day correct.  I guess alot of you have been watching the Amazing Race!  The answer is boxing.

Today I have 2 Questions of the Day.  The second is a little biased towards people that have family members on the trip.

1.  How many native tribes are their in Ghana?

2.  Which team member is the most scared of the dark during a power outage?

-Susan 

 

Healing Hearts One by One

We are falling into a routine after 3 days.  Every day begins with breakfast at 6:30am and the bus leaves for the hospital at 7am.  The first cases are in the OR by 8am and then we are on our way to an exciting day.

 

We operated on 3 more children today; Porcha, Habib and Nana Ama.  The team was joined by a local pediatric surgeon from Kath, Boateng Nimako. They all did very well and we were finished by 5:30pm.  The 3 children from yesterday are all doing great and some will begin going home tomorrow.

The volunteers completed the task of sorting all of the donated items so they can be delivered to the area schools and orphanages.  We will begin making those trips tomorrow.The goal for the week is to visit 2 local schools a local day care and 2 orphanages. 

This afternoon a few of us went to the childrens ward of the hospital and handed out candy and beanie babies.  The childrens ward is especially heart wrenching.  Each family must supply their own food as well as bedding, which means that some children are lying on a bare mattress.  The building is not air conditioned and has windows opened to the outside, which means it is very hot and humid with mosquitos.  I was told today that when I returned from the ward, I looked like I had walked through a car wash.  That is hot and I don't think a complement!

  Some have never had candy, so we had to show them how to take off the wrapper then their faces just lit up.  Even the sickest smiled, while the mothers thanked us and kissed our hands.  This puts things in a new perspective to say the least. 

 

The final schedule for the week has been made and we hope to complete a record 19 surgeries for this mission by the end of the week!  Nineteen lives changed and many others touched.

 

Tonight we celebrated Lily's 27th birthday.  We had severe thunderstorms today and the power has gone out 3 times  so the pictures will be posted tomorrow.  Tomorrow it is back to work at 7am where we have 3 surgeries scheduled and a trip to Mother Theresa's orphanage as well as more visits to the local wards to play with the children. 

 -Susan

Question of the Day:

What is the second most popular sport in Ghana?