Getting Ready

Today I have been going down the checklist for my trip. My Liberian Visa arrived safely over the past weekend, and I will get one for Zimbabwe when I arrive there. I have ordered my Malarone - my new prescription plan covers it so I can get it locally rather than send off to Canadadrugs.com. I am up to date with my shots. I am also getting a prophylactic prescription of Cipro - just in case. I am reading up on cholera and also malnutrition ... just to be prepared. As I sit here typing my gift to Simon of La Rochelle where I will be staying in Zimbabwe is charging....he loves music so I got him an ipod shuffle with the chargers etc., and so am going to fill it with a wide variety of music. There seems to be so much to do in the next week and a half. I have picked up travel size toiletries, but other than that packing will be a last minute thing I should imagine.

Church friends are putting together clean delivery kits - hundreds of them I believe. These all help to reduce infant mortality rates when properly used by traditional birthing attendants who have been trained. A meter square of plastic sheeting, two pieces of cord to tie off the umbilical cord, a pair of latex gloves, a piece of soap to wash the mother's perineum and caregiver's hands, a piece of cloth to swaddle the baby in and most importantly a single use clean razor blade to cut the cord (which fit nicely into a gallon plastic ziplock bag), all serve to decrease the infant mortality rate, by dramatically cutting down infection rates! These kits the team in the summer will take with us, and any extras we will ship across.

I cannot close today without acknowledging the inauguration of President Obama who brings us hope in troubled times. I pray that he will lead with integrity and wisdom.

This summer I led a group of 14 medical and non medical as a Volunteers in Mission Team of the United Methodist Church. The work started at Ganta United Methodist Hospital, Liberia is to continue and will become part of a coordinated, networked effort by the United Methodist Church to fight poverty and the diseases that thrive in those conditions.

Next month I am travelling to Zimbabwe to see the difference that relief feeding provided by the United Methodist Church is making in people's lives. This food is being distributed by ZOE Ministry. In addition, through special contributions, including funds from FUMC Mansfield, TX, the Nyadire Connection and ZOE Ministry, cholera medications have been purchased to help in the ever growing cholera epidemic. I will have the opportunity to see how these medications are being used and also will be helping to deliver the medications to the doctors in Zimbabwe. I will then travel on to Liberia to play a role in developing a comprehensive health care plan for Ganta Hospital and the United Methodist facilities across Liberia. It is hoped that the plan will offer a community based initiative focusing on sustainability, empowerment, that will eliminate the killer diseases of poverty (HIV/AIDS, malaria, TB, and diarrhea), and also focus on maternal child health. I hope as I work on this blog you will keep reading, get involved, pray for the mission, and be patient with me as I learn how to do the blog effectively.