Yesterday morning we had another child die at the RC.  She had just recovered from cholera and was severely malnourished before hand and just could not make it.  We were talking yesterday about how much death we have seen just this past week at RHFH.  Many kids have died and we have deaths at the cholera house.  It has been a hard week.  Now many of you know that Lori (who runs the cholera house and clinic) left this week (for a short much needed vacation) so she was not here.  Caroline, who is and RN, is here until the 15th to help me out with many different medical things.  So yesterday we had a tropical storm coming out way.  I was trying to prepare for that.  Get supplies up to the cholera for a few days, filling buckets, barrels and containers with water, and answering emails. 

Our nurse that cares for the pregnant ladies and newborn babies said she needed me.  There was a lady in labor in her room.  I went in and looked her over.  She was in hard labor, to the pushing stage, and had been since 4am.  It was now about 2:30 or so.    She has tried to deliver at her house and could not.  She lived very far back in the mountains.  The midwife there told her she needed to go to a hospital.  She came to us hoping that we could help her or direct her to another place.  So she did what any normal lady would do in labor.  She jumped on the back of a motorcycle with her mom and traveled for 3 hours on a very bumpy, rocky, dirt road to get here.  The whole time she was having pains and pushing.  I moved her into a large room to get a better idea of what was going on and prepared to get a tap-tap to transport them into another hospital.  I yelled upstairs to Caroline to come help me, I told her to also get Hannah to help.

Once moved she was still pushing.  I took a better look and there was a lot of poo coming out, things we not right, the poo was from the baby,  we could still hear a heart beat, there was something there ready to come out but we could all tell it was not the head.  In a matter of seconds I knew she would not make it into a hospital that would take 2 hours to get to, and when she got there have to find someone to help her that could take several more hours.  I was concerned, very concerned.  Okay who am I kidding, I was totally scared and freaked out. We are out here far away from a large medical facility, far away from help.   She pushed and out popped a little bum, with each push the mom gave the baby was pooping and now peeing and we could see it was a girl.  I took four steps to the door, opened it and yelled to my staff to pray and pray very hard.  Prayers begin going up from staff and from patients waiting to be seen.  Singing and praying and bringing peace over the whole situation. 

The mom was still pushing and nothing was happening.  The little baby girl was stuck.  We worked and got one leg out then the other.  Still stuck.  With a few more pushes we were up to the arm pits, her arms and head were stuck inside,  I do not know how many times we yelled out to Jesus to please help us.  The staff was praying and singing.  I knew we were in big trouble.  I held onto the babies body and tried to move its position to get her delivered.  We worked and worked and finally got one arm and then another out.  The baby was totally limp and blue, and the head was not coming out.  I still had a hold of the baby and it was trying to breath.  I could feel it in my hands breathing with its head stuck inside.  I begin to cry and said “I cannot do this”.  I never pretend that I know how to do something I do not know how to do.  We always take as many precautions as we can and know are limits as to what we can do.  We send patients into other hospitals all the time.  But sometimes there is not time and we have to depend on God to help us.  Lori is my rambo nurse that does these things, makes these decisions, not me that has no professional medical training.  I am usually the one to say- everyone take a breath and calm down and lets think a minute.  My hands were shaking and I had horrific outcomes already going through my head of what was going to happen.  We worked and worked to try and get the head out.  Nothing.  Stuck.  Baby not breathing now.  I was thinking and thinking and trying to decide what to do.  I told everyone to get her up in a squatting position.  It was crunch time.  We had to get this baby out.  It was pouring down rain and I was thinking how are we going to get this baby out and if we cannot, how am I going to save this mothers life and get her into Port with all this rain on this dirt road with a baby stuck.   I climbed up on a gurney to try and get behind the mom to have her get up.  She was having a hard time and did not fully understand what was happening.  I told her she had to give me everything, all her strength that she had inside of her and push.  She looked down then and saw what was happening.  We got her up the best we could and after a few good pushes and lots of pulling the baby was delivered.

Relieve and sadness at the same time.  We got the baby and put it on the bed.  Caroline was working on it and I was looking at the mom.  She was bleeding very bad.  We got meds for her.  Caroline sucked out a bunch of stuff from the babies nose and mouth.  I turned it upside down and got the suction machine on.  We sucked out as much as we could.  We hit its back, we tried to get it breathing.  Nothing.  Remember all through this the staff is praying and singing, praying and singing.  More suction for the baby.  Nothing, and then a small gasp.  I looked at Caroline and said CPR.  She started and I looked at the clock.  It was only 3:10.  It seemed likes hours had passed.  3:10 I am thinking in my mind we will do this for 15 min and then I will call it. I have been through CPR many times but always Lori in charge of the situation.   Mom is still bleeding bad.  More meds for her, cut the cord.  Grandma with her hands in the air calling out to Jesus. 3:15 still doing CPR baby gasping and trying so hard to breath.  3:20 we get the oxygen machine out and try a little oxygen.  Stop CPR and baby struggling to breath but good strong  heart beat.  3:30 babies eyes open.  It cannot be.  I still can not believe that she is alive.  I still think she is not going to make it.  I am running back and forth sending meds up to the cholera house for a very sick patient and doing other things.  I am in and out of the room.  Each time its color looks better.  But it so limp- no movement.  So I think great- we broke it neck.  After several more minutes its little fingers begin to move.  After some more time it is moving all its limps.  Broken neck rulled out 🙂  Still I think there is no way.  It was raining by now very hard.  Lori was in the air flying so I could not call her.  I called Dr. Jen to see if she had any suggestion to do.  She gave us some good advice and encouragement. 🙂 

We decided to give baby a bath and she cried and yelled.  So sweet to our ears.  I could not believe it. I was not going to let my heart believe that she was going to live.  We got mom and baby cleaned up.  With the rain I had lots of extra people sleeping here.  There were already 8 people sleeping around in different rooms of the clinic.  The kids from the tent were upstairs at the volunteer house as I was worried about the wind from the storm.  So we moved them up there so Caroline could watch over the baby and mom throughout the night.  Everyone is fine this AM.  Mom of course is very sore and sleepy.  But we have life.  And we needed life today.  I, we, the staff called out to Jesus, and HE came and did a miracle.  A true miracle for this family.  The staff named the baby Jesula-which roughly translated “Jesus was there”

Read about it from Caroline here

I will end this post with the song the staff and clinic patients were singing when God was moving.  They said they sang it because it is one of Lori’s favorite songs

You are my strength when I am weak
You are the treasure that I seek
You are my all in all
Seeking You as a precious jewel
Lord, to give up I’d be a fool
You are my all in all

Jesus, Lamb of God
Worthy is Your name
Jesus, Lamb of God
Worthy is Your name

Taking my sin, my cross, my shame
Rising up again I bless Your name
You are my all in all
When I fall down You pick me up
When I am dry You fill my cup
You are my all in all

Jesus, Lamb of God
Worthy is Your name
Jesus, Lamb of God
Worthy is Your name

 Amen!  To God be all the Glory!