Ward B, Where I met my fellow nurses for the first time. Where I bonded and hugged and saw the joy in all the lovely VVF ladies, wet or dry it was a day to rejoice as they left Ward B to head home to their villages. Where we cleaned and prepared for all of our plastics cases and prayed over the ward that healing would be abundant, and it was. Where I saw the strength of those who have been neglected, tortured, and abused come back to life and raise their hands in Thanks to the Lord for where their journey has lead them and the healing that has taken place. It has been a place for growth professionally and spiritually over the last 4 months. This weeks marks the closing of the Hospital here on Board the Africa Mercy and my departure from the ship to return home to Canada. 
Over the last few weeks as the hospital winds down we have been displaced to different areas of work. Scanning, shredding, bleaching and scrubbing. This sums up the lists of tasks us Nurses have been working on over the last few weeks. Some nurses headed to the Out Patient tent. It is here where a team of nurses and Day Workers see patients for follow-up appointments, dressing changes and Physio. Once all the follow up care is complete they are officially discharged and their file is closed. This leads to a "Special Project" as it is titled. At times instead of working on the wards or in the tent, you are assigned to "Special Projects". Some days this consist of organizing, labeling and scanning the patient files, or sweeping out the entire Cargo Hold of the Africa Mercy ship.... after a couple hours of sweeping and sweating you could eat your dinner off the slightly rusty floor!
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| One of my cute Ward D patients! |
In addition to cleaning, us Ward B nurses have got to dance and play our way through the work day on the other 2 units. Over the last few weeks I have spent a few shifts on Ward D. If you have seen any documentaries or the 60 min feature of Mercy Ships, you have seen Dr. Garry Parker. He has been here serving with Mercy Ships for 26 years. He is the head of surgery and our Maxillofacial surgeon on board. Maxillofacial includes cleft lip and pallet surgeries, re-building of noses, and removal of facial tumors. There are so many amazing stories and patients that I have only had a brief opportunity to work with. Here is a Blog that I would love to invite you all to read and learn more about the wonderful patients on D ward. It is written by a friend and fellow nurse here on the ship.
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