Medical Mission Trip February 2009

The last day of the clinic went well. Everyone is healthy and doing very well. They are tired but are basking in the goodness of God’s grace during their time in Uganda.

David Mayinja was able to gain access to a computer with internet service and provided the following final update:

The medical team was granted access to a local prison where Pastor Moses has had a thriving ministry for a number of years. The team was able to treat seventeen in-mates and ten staff members of the Kiburara prison.

A donation has made it possible to refer three patients to local hospitals where much needed corrective surgery can be done. Included in these three patients was a one month old infant with a meningocoele (a bone defect along the spine that with surgery can be easily repaired), a twelve year old with bulging mass on top of her head she’s had since birth and a twenty year old woman who has been suffering physical problems since the birth of her child.

A Muslim gentleman and his wife who the team provided with reading glasses two days ago delivered four pounds of raw peanuts to the team in an appreciation for treating him and his wife! In African standards, this is a VERY generous gift! He has invited Pastor Moses to visit him at his home. Please pray that this family would be drawn to the cross by this encounter and start attending Moses’s church.

The last day of the clinic ended in prayer and praise with all the volunteers and local professional staff who have participated in the clinic. Many of the children in the sponsorship program joyfully joined in the worship and prayer time as well.

The team treated close to 1,200 people (including 500 teeth extractions, 40 fillings, and three partial dentures) and many have heard about the love that the Savior has for them. Several people have witnessed to others of the love of Christ that was displayed through the care given by the med team to this local community during these last six days. Please pray that the Holy Spirit would water the seeds that have been sown; and that a revival would start here in Kiburara and spread to other parts of the district as well.

So far three of the med team members have decided to sponsor children in Kiburara. They were blessed with the opportunity to spend time with their newly sponsored children and now have a deep personal relationship with these children.

Prayer Request: Pray for traveling mercies as the team journeys back to Entebbe tomorrow and then to London and finally home on Saturday.

As the team is unreachable during their travel, this is the last update that will be posted on the team.

Thank you for your prayer, love, and support for these team members as they have so courageously and valiantly served Christ and this local community in Uganda these past six days.

God Bless you.

The team had another very busy day, it was their busiest day yet. There are more and more people who show up every day. They now have crowd control because of the magnitude of people that are arriving by the droves. It’s heartbreaking because the team won’t be able to see everyone who comes seeking medical treatment.

A few of the team members had an amazing experience last night and were really encouraged. One of the nurses saw a very sick little toddler (the child is two years old and weighed only ten pounds). The toddler tested positive for HIV and the team was able to test the mother, father and other siblings. All tested positive. After drawing out the father, it turns out he is a polygamist, which is very common in Africa, and has another wife and family.

After the clinic was closed yesterday the nurse who treated this child and one of our doctors went along with the local nurse to the home of this man to speak with his other wife. They live in the poorest, most destitute area of Kamwenge. The family was so welcoming and kind to their visitors. After the local nurse gently explained the test results and that the second wife and her children are most likely HIV positive, there was such great sorrow and grieving. By God's grace, our nurse and doctor were able to share the gospel with this family. Then centered around a small candle in a dark hut in the middle of the poorest area of Kamwenge, Uganda, this man, his two wives and all their children all knelt down on a dirt floor and surrendered their lives to Christ. The team members were in awe of how God used them to be ministers of grace in the midst of this profoundly sorrowful time during these people's lives.

Fortunately, they were also able to direct this family to free HIV treatment at a local government clinic.

Tonight’s last patient was an elderly 75 year old woman. She was praising the Lord and dancing in the waiting area. Sesame, one of our physician’s assistants, joyfully treated her and then joined her in dancing and praising the Lord. A little boy then picked up a large plastic pail and started playing the drums, making joyful noises onto the Lord. And soon the entire clinic, both the med team and all the volunteers were all singing, dancing and praising the Lord. What a great way to end such a weary day.

Prayer Requests: Please pray for continued strength and sweet restorative sleep for the team as tomorrow is the last day at the clinic. And pray for grace and peace for the team as they will have to leave many people unseen and untreated. And lastly for traveling mercies and they begin the long journey home on Thursday.

Well, I was able to reach the team today. Sometimes it’s hard to get through to them, reception can be spotty in rural Uganda.

The team had a tough day on Thursday. A family brought in a very sick, dehydrated little baby, he was barely breathing. They believed the infant had meningitis. They tried to give him an IV with some fluids and an antibiotic but they were unable to get a line into him. Although, the infant was transported to a local hospital 45 minutes away and was given treatment, his fever spiked and he passed away that evening. It is always tough for the team when there’s nothing they can do for a really sick child. They feel so helpless.

The team prayed for the family and on Sunday afternoon after an amazing morning of worship, Moses, Sarah (Moses’s wife), Jeff, Maggie and David walked one mile to the family’s home (the family’s home is unreachable by car) to offer their sympathies and condolences. They prayed with them and took care of their hospital bill for them. The family is completely destitute. The family who did not go to church prior to the death of their child, was so moved and touched by these foreigners who came to visit them, that they said that they might now attend Moses’s church, Kiburara Gospel Center. The team was really encouraged to hear this and are praying for this family’s salvation.

During church the team met all the orphans in Kiburara and enjoyed four hours of singing and dancing as they praised the Lord. The congregation was really encouraged by the visitors. They couldn’t believe these people, all brothers and sisters in Christ, traveled so far to visit them and help them. Both the congregation and the med. team were so moved by the service.

The team was also invited to an exclusive showing of hand-made crafts by the church members in order to benefit the church. So family members, you might be blessed with a beautiful hand-made craft which benefited the local church in Kiburara, Uganda!

There was another sick child who was brought in to the clinic. One of the pastors’ children had a very bad case of malaria and was severely dehydrated. They were able to get an IV in and give her the anti-malaria meds. She is improving and doing well. The team was really encouraged.

Dr. Joe saw a woman who has been leaking urine since the birth of her child. She’s now an outcast and her husband has abandoned her. Covenant Mercies will pay the $250 for an operation in Kampala for her surgery. Her shouts for joy were heard all around!

There was a young boy who came in a with a stigmatism in his eye. He can’t learn and stopped going to school because he can’t see. One of the team members paid for the corrective lens for the child (it was $15) so the boy now has glasses and can see. The mother was beyond joyful.

A few of the team members were so touched by the children that they signed up to sponsor children while they are in Kiburara! They couldn’t wait until they arrived home and will be able to meet their newly sponsored children before they leave.

Prayer requests: Please pray for continued strength and stamina for the team. And for continued spiritual and physical strength for the next two days of the clinic. There are so many people, many many more than the team will ever be able to see. Every day they have to leave the clinic with so many patients left unseen. They desperately need an outpouring of God’s grace and mercy on them for the next two days.

Prayer requests: Please pray for continued strength and stamina for the team. And for continued spiritual and physical strength for the next two days of the clinic. There are so many people, much, much more than the team will ever be able to see. Every day they have to leave the clinic with so many patients left unseen. They desperately need an outpouring of God’s grace and mercy on them for the next two days.

Praise report: The last missing bin of dental equipment was delivered today. It was equipment they needed to perform patient fillings. So the dental patients will be getting fillings tomorrow. The dentist are really excited about the arrival of this piece of equipment!

Thank you all for your prayers. The team is doing really well and although they really miss their families, they are so encouraged by the good work the Lord is doing through them in the rural community in Uganda.

This first day of the clinic went very well. It was very hot day and everyone is in good spirits. It took them some time to sort through all the bins that arrived with the team last night and they ended up starting a little late today.

They saw approximately 140 patients, tested 100 sponsored children and their caregivers for HIV. They only had one test positive, which will be confirmed via blood test at a local government clinic. If they are confirmed positive via blood test they will be given treatment from a local government clinic.

They had 175 patients scheduled for today and have a little backlog for tomorrow, but all are doing well.

Prayer requests: Good restorative rest for the team this evening and that they would continue to be in good spirits and in good health. And for them to clearly see God working in their midst.

Praise Report: They had people from two local clinics who visited the Covenant Mercies Triage Clinic and were very impressed with our work and our team. They were so encouraged that the team came to this rural area of Uganda and gave praise and thanks to God.

Thank you in advance for your prayers for the team, their trip, their patients and the team members being ministers of God’s grace and mercy in such a rural area of Uganda.

The medical team has safely arrived in Uganda! They are on their way to Kiburara. They should be there around 2 pm EST. Everyone is fine but tired from two overnight flights!

The early team is all ready for them to bring in the bins and finish setting up the pharmacy. And all the bins except for one dental bin made it to Uganda. It was the bin with the extra dental equipment. And the dentists are confident they'll still be able to provide dental care to the people in Uganda without it.

And one of nurses on the early team, met her sponsored child, Phiona today. Phiona was able to spend the day helping the early team set up the Pharmacy. It was a fun day for everyone.