You never know…

By Guest Blogger Troy Brooks
It was just another routine morning in the clinic. We had already seen a few patients and I was in the storage room organizing some medications we received from the Navy when I heard some commotion in the hallway. I was surprised to see a couple of sweaty men carrying a very pregnant woman on a hand held cot that looked like something you would see on MASH. I took a quick peak under her dress and saw something bloody protruding from her body. It had been 15 years since I had delivered a baby while in PA school; and that was with an American OB watching every move I made. So I did what any other rookie would do, I ran to get Dr. Yves. “We’re having a baby…..NOW!” I told him. When we both got back to examine the patient closer we found that she had a severely prolapsed uterus. She said she was about 7 months pregnant with her 9th child. She lived in Petit Bois ( a 2 hour hike up the mountain). Her uterus had been like this since yesterday, from doing too much lifting no doubt. The 2 men carried her down on the stretcher this morning.The strength of the Haitian people never cease to amaze me. They simply do what has to be done, seemingly without a thought about complaining.
Dr. Yves and I knew this would require major surgery which was too big a job for us to handle in the clinic. So we loaded her and a couple of family members into the back of the truck and tried to make her as comfortable as possible and headed for Port Au Prince. As we started to pull out of the Lifeline drive Dr. Yves looked at me with his big contagious smile and said “You never know what your day will have in store for you in Haiti.”
Amber gave us some money that the mission keeps for emergencies like this, because the patient had none. We knew that the hospital would not even look at her if she did not have some money up front. We took her to the best obstetrics hospital in the country, a University hospital in Port au Prince. It was much like a typical teaching hospital with resident doctors, nursing students, and lots of patients. However, it looked like an old abandoned hospital from the 1950s. There were women lying everywhere on beds without sheets, in various stages of labor without a hint of privacy. They were going to do an ultrasound and blood work. She would most likely need a C-section then a Hysterectomy. We left her and her family at the hospital because they will probably be there a couple of days.

On our way home Dr. Yves told me if we hadn’t helped her, she probably would have tried to fix the problem herself or gone to a witch doctor. She wouldn’t have considered going to Port Au Prince because she didn’t have any money. When people back home give to Lifeline, you never know how your donation will be used. Unfortunately, this is not an unusual event here in Haiti. Like Dr. Yves said, “you never know…” Nearly every day people from miles around show up at the gate with any imaginable situation. Lifeline is unique because they don’t only serve people in this village; they also serve a very needy group of people from the mountains. These people are typically more impoverished, and we are the closest place for them to get help.
While driving home from the hospital I was saying a prayer for this lady, her baby, and her family. I realized that I didn’t even know her name, but God knows. He knows when every sparrow falls, the hairs on our heads, and the needs of his children here in Haiti. Please say a prayer for her today. God will know who you are talking about.