On August 28, 2013, I will get to participate in my first Patient Selection day. (Screening). I have had the opportunity to finish out two countries with Mercy Ships (Sierra Leone and Guinea) but never have I started one - thus, my first screening! I have a small small idea of what to expect, but my friend Catherine writes so beautifully that I am just going to borrow her words today - you can read more of her heart at My Life Aquatic
From Catherine, written last Wednesday:
Appointment Reminder: August 28th.
This is the gate. Ici c’est la porte principale.
A week from today, several thousand people will be waiting for this gate to open. They will be watching from this exact vantage point. They will have been waiting for hours; some will have arrived the night before. For many, Mercy Ships Screening Day will be the first time they’ve ever seen a doctor.
It is such a contrast from the kind of waiting I know.
My waiting starts with a clipboard and a ballpoint pen. An armed chair, maybe a fish tank. The View is on mute. I forgot my insurance card. Quick phone call. Scribble numbers. Apologize. Return paperwork. Flip through Time. Study finds correlation between global warming and ADHD. Good grief. A door opens. Someone calls my name. Nice to see you again.
Again, she says.
Because I get to go to the doctor every year.
We will see several thousand people next Wednesday. Their waiting started years ago.
Screening Day can be overwhelming. No matter how many times I see it, the magnitude of need will always be incomprehensible. When 350+ of us arrive on site before sunrise, we’ll already be outnumbered by those standing in line.
So to level the head count, I signed you up to come help us. Yes, you have an appointment on August 28th to meet me at the gate.
Here’s how to get there:
Prayer is how we take care of each other when we are far apart. So thank you for continuing to take such good care of us over here.
We can feel it, I promise.
Thank you, Catherine, for that perspective. May we never lose it. Love to all - Krissy
(photos from screening in Guinea)
A week from today, several thousand people will be waiting for this gate to open. They will be watching from this exact vantage point. They will have been waiting for hours; some will have arrived the night before. For many, Mercy Ships Screening Day will be the first time they’ve ever seen a doctor.
It is such a contrast from the kind of waiting I know.
My waiting starts with a clipboard and a ballpoint pen. An armed chair, maybe a fish tank. The View is on mute. I forgot my insurance card. Quick phone call. Scribble numbers. Apologize. Return paperwork. Flip through Time. Study finds correlation between global warming and ADHD. Good grief. A door opens. Someone calls my name. Nice to see you again.
Again, she says.
Because I get to go to the doctor every year.
So to level the head count, I signed you up to come help us. Yes, you have an appointment on August 28th to meet me at the gate.
Here’s how to get there:
Pray. For those of us here, and our patients. For our doctors and nurses, they will spend the day making heavy decisions. For our translators, who will be delivering news that’s not always easy. For the people Mercy Ships cannot help.& for all of those we will.
Prayer is how we take care of each other when we are far apart. So thank you for continuing to take such good care of us over here.
We can feel it, I promise.
Thank you, Catherine, for that perspective. May we never lose it. Love to all - Krissy
(photos from screening in Guinea)
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