It is now almost 2 months since we arrived in India. The weather has started getting cooler and there is snow on the surrounding mountain tops.
Manali lies at the top end of the Kullu valley with mountains surrounding the town. The Lady Willingdon hospital, or Manali Mission Hospital as it is also known as, lies very central in new Manali, close to the main shopping mall. The "mission compound" consists of the hospital, the Daystar School and a crèche. In the heart of this compound is the little church. The church meets every Sunday between 10-12 and there are also quite a number of home groups. David and Lena have joined an English speaking group which meets on Friday nights between 6-7.30 pm. At present we are studying the gospel of Luke. The group consists of Drs Philip and Anna Alexander, dentist Rhiya, physiotherapist Johanna, Dr Ranjit and his wife Pushpa (who is a social worker), Steve, an American, and his wife Rampui. There is also another American couple, Grant and Charlene, who are in Greece on holidays at present. Thomas, a hotel manager for one of the hotels in Old Manali, is a very well read member of this group and often has a different opinion from the other group members. Last night the discussion became quite loud and intense but we also laughed a lot. There are also 3 small boys present who add to the noise levels.
The hospital itself consists of an ICU (intensive care unit), with 4 beds. We have one ventilator. There is a small labour ward and a very tiny nursery. We also have an X-ray department, a theatre, a lab and a pharmacy. There are 55 beds available but during the winter some wards are closed as there are fewer patients and the rooms are difficult to heat.
We also have an OPD(out patient department), an emergency room and a Ultra sound room.
The staff here are wonderful and very friendly. The training is quite specialized, ie the anaesthetists are trained in giving spinal anaesthetic blocks and General anaesthetics but are not trained doctors.
At present we have quite a number of younger doctors (from all parts of India) who are doing part of their training here.
The patients come from the town, surrounding villages, the bigger town of Kullu, and also from Lahoul and Spiti which are villages on the other side of the Rothang pass (3950m above sea level).
Lena is focusing on children, antenatal care and community health. Focusing may not be the best word as it is a wide area. The OPD runs from 10 am to 4 pm on Monday to Friday and on Saturday from 10 am to 1 pm. The daily work starts with devotions and then ward rounds. Lena now has a smattering of Hindi and can communicate quite well with patients and their parents.
There have been phone calls in the evening and at night regarding sick children and newborns which have meant another visit to the hospital. Great that the hospital is so close to our flat.
One morning Lena was woken up at 4.30 am after a forceps delivery. The baby was discovered to have a bowel malformation with no anal opening and a fistula between the bowel and the bladder. We were blessed to have a paediatric surgeon here at that time who was able to operate and make an opening on the stomach for the bowel. The baby later developed an obstruction and was sent to Herbertpur where the paediatric surgeon works. There was no need at this time for any further intervention and the baby returned to Spiti via Manali only some days ago, looking quite well and feeding well.
One couple brought their child who was struggling to breathe due to bronchiolitis. The baby was just getting more and more unwell and in the end Lena tried using a nasal CPAP (central positive airways pressure) device which she had not seen before coming to Manali. She went over and prayed for the baby, in the name of Jesus, after having asked the permission of the parents. The baby finally turned the corner and the Sydney paediatrician which Lena keeps in touch with via email congratulated her on the treatment with nasal CPAP as this is apparently the latest treatment for severe bronchiolitis.
There is a lot of malnutrition and one little baby presented to the hospital with severe rickets, with bowing of the lower leg bones. This is so simple to prevent, just spend time in the sun and make sure there is an adequate intake of dairy foods (which are easily available here).
Drugs are readily available here, young children start sniffing various drugs and then proceed to alcohol, smoking cigarettes, marijuana and other heavier drugs like cocain and heroin. The smoking and dusty environment up the the Lahoul/Spiti valley leads to severe lung disease with chronic airways obstruction, add to this another very common infection - tuberculosis and you have patients with very little lung tissue left.
Marijuana is very common, it grows by the wayside even in the town of Manali. Luckily we have not yet had a bush fire here!
Last week there were 2 twin deliveries. One mother had 2 healthy boys weighing 1.5 and 1.75 kgs and these boys are doing really well. The other mother had a Caesarean section and had one healthy girl, the other twin had died at about 20 weeks gestation. There is an urgent need for a well qualified ultra sonographer who can give accurate reports.
David has started to give ecological talks in the Daystar school and is getting along well with the children there. He has also preached twice in the church here and will preach again tomorrow. Next week he will travel to Amritsar to pick up a vehicle that he will use when traveling to the surrounding schools and churches in Himachal Pradesh. The bishop has asked him to give a bible study when he is in Amritsar.
David has also started trying to learn Hindi. He is finding it difficult and bewildering.
We have started making some friends and had afternoon tea with the principal of Daystar school and his family the other day. We were told that Himachal Pradesh has a very small minority of Christians, less than 0.1% of the population. There are a lot of temples dedicated to Durga, the wife of Shiva, the destroyer.
Thank you all for your support.
Manali lies at the top end of the Kullu valley with mountains surrounding the town. The Lady Willingdon hospital, or Manali Mission Hospital as it is also known as, lies very central in new Manali, close to the main shopping mall. The "mission compound" consists of the hospital, the Daystar School and a crèche. In the heart of this compound is the little church. The church meets every Sunday between 10-12 and there are also quite a number of home groups. David and Lena have joined an English speaking group which meets on Friday nights between 6-7.30 pm. At present we are studying the gospel of Luke. The group consists of Drs Philip and Anna Alexander, dentist Rhiya, physiotherapist Johanna, Dr Ranjit and his wife Pushpa (who is a social worker), Steve, an American, and his wife Rampui. There is also another American couple, Grant and Charlene, who are in Greece on holidays at present. Thomas, a hotel manager for one of the hotels in Old Manali, is a very well read member of this group and often has a different opinion from the other group members. Last night the discussion became quite loud and intense but we also laughed a lot. There are also 3 small boys present who add to the noise levels.
The hospital itself consists of an ICU (intensive care unit), with 4 beds. We have one ventilator. There is a small labour ward and a very tiny nursery. We also have an X-ray department, a theatre, a lab and a pharmacy. There are 55 beds available but during the winter some wards are closed as there are fewer patients and the rooms are difficult to heat.
We also have an OPD(out patient department), an emergency room and a Ultra sound room.
The staff here are wonderful and very friendly. The training is quite specialized, ie the anaesthetists are trained in giving spinal anaesthetic blocks and General anaesthetics but are not trained doctors.
At present we have quite a number of younger doctors (from all parts of India) who are doing part of their training here.
The patients come from the town, surrounding villages, the bigger town of Kullu, and also from Lahoul and Spiti which are villages on the other side of the Rothang pass (3950m above sea level).
Lena is focusing on children, antenatal care and community health. Focusing may not be the best word as it is a wide area. The OPD runs from 10 am to 4 pm on Monday to Friday and on Saturday from 10 am to 1 pm. The daily work starts with devotions and then ward rounds. Lena now has a smattering of Hindi and can communicate quite well with patients and their parents.
There have been phone calls in the evening and at night regarding sick children and newborns which have meant another visit to the hospital. Great that the hospital is so close to our flat.
One morning Lena was woken up at 4.30 am after a forceps delivery. The baby was discovered to have a bowel malformation with no anal opening and a fistula between the bowel and the bladder. We were blessed to have a paediatric surgeon here at that time who was able to operate and make an opening on the stomach for the bowel. The baby later developed an obstruction and was sent to Herbertpur where the paediatric surgeon works. There was no need at this time for any further intervention and the baby returned to Spiti via Manali only some days ago, looking quite well and feeding well.
One couple brought their child who was struggling to breathe due to bronchiolitis. The baby was just getting more and more unwell and in the end Lena tried using a nasal CPAP (central positive airways pressure) device which she had not seen before coming to Manali. She went over and prayed for the baby, in the name of Jesus, after having asked the permission of the parents. The baby finally turned the corner and the Sydney paediatrician which Lena keeps in touch with via email congratulated her on the treatment with nasal CPAP as this is apparently the latest treatment for severe bronchiolitis.
There is a lot of malnutrition and one little baby presented to the hospital with severe rickets, with bowing of the lower leg bones. This is so simple to prevent, just spend time in the sun and make sure there is an adequate intake of dairy foods (which are easily available here).
Drugs are readily available here, young children start sniffing various drugs and then proceed to alcohol, smoking cigarettes, marijuana and other heavier drugs like cocain and heroin. The smoking and dusty environment up the the Lahoul/Spiti valley leads to severe lung disease with chronic airways obstruction, add to this another very common infection - tuberculosis and you have patients with very little lung tissue left.
Marijuana is very common, it grows by the wayside even in the town of Manali. Luckily we have not yet had a bush fire here!
Last week there were 2 twin deliveries. One mother had 2 healthy boys weighing 1.5 and 1.75 kgs and these boys are doing really well. The other mother had a Caesarean section and had one healthy girl, the other twin had died at about 20 weeks gestation. There is an urgent need for a well qualified ultra sonographer who can give accurate reports.
David has started to give ecological talks in the Daystar school and is getting along well with the children there. He has also preached twice in the church here and will preach again tomorrow. Next week he will travel to Amritsar to pick up a vehicle that he will use when traveling to the surrounding schools and churches in Himachal Pradesh. The bishop has asked him to give a bible study when he is in Amritsar.
David has also started trying to learn Hindi. He is finding it difficult and bewildering.
We have started making some friends and had afternoon tea with the principal of Daystar school and his family the other day. We were told that Himachal Pradesh has a very small minority of Christians, less than 0.1% of the population. There are a lot of temples dedicated to Durga, the wife of Shiva, the destroyer.
Thank you all for your support.
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