Wednesday, July 9, 2014

God Help Me

God help me.  God help me.  God help me.

I said this prayer over and over today.  It was my frightened mantra.  My cry for strength.  My whimper and my plea.

It took me 6 trips to Haiti to gather the courage to serve at the wound clinic.  Run by Catholic nuns, the clinic provides free medical care to the poor of Haiti.

When we arrived 30-40 patients were waiting outside with dirty bandages covering wounds on various body parts.  Some bandages had visible yellow pus staining the outside.  I was terrified to see what was behind the bandages.

After opening prayer we had a 1 minute training session.  Spray wounds with saline.  Clean with cotton.  Only use iodine if they are fresh wounds.  Cover with antibiotic.  Wrap. Here's your apron and 1 pair of surgical gloves that you are not to change between patients.

My first patient unwrapped his wound.  Tears welled up in my eyes as I looked in his eyes and then at his wound that he had obviously been living with for years.  I could see gangrenous tissue in it's deepest recesses. It was a wound that will never heal and that I suppose could eventually lead to the amputation of his leg.  I had no idea how vigorously or how gently to clean it.  I was afraid of causing pain.  I was afraid of not cleaning it properly.  I was afraid and horrified by the situation.  How could my rudimentary treatment be this man's only option?  How had the wound gotten to this deplorable state?  What agony had this man already endured and what more would he endure?

My patient guided me and showed with hand gestures how to care for him.  I completed his care and moved on to the next. And the next. And the next.  As did 4 Reiser Relief teammates who also humbled themselves to serve the sick today.

Haiti provides more questions than answers.  It puts me in touch with my limitations, my dependence, my humanity.   Thank you God for giving me the strength I lacked today.  Thank you Haiti for your lesson in humility.

Peace,
Joyce



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