Earl and Rosemary in Cameroon

WARNING: this blog contains graphic medical images.   

We have spent this week working at Mbingo Baptist Hospital which is about 30 minutes by car from Njinikom.  The hospital was initially a Leprosy Hospital and they still see a few cases of leprosy.  However it is now primarily a general hospital.  They have a general surgery residency program with 10 residents.  I have been working with them this week to teach them some plastic surgery techniques and they have been eager learners.  We have been working with their large number of chronic open wounds that need skin grafting.  There is an almost endless supply of these cases and the wounds are often very large.

We return to Njinikom tonight and have OPD Clinic tomorrow which is Saturday.  We are seeing a number of our post op patients who have left the hospital.  We are looking forward to the Catholic environment that is so comfortable there with the presence of the Sisters and morning prayer and of
course the Mass on Sunday with the students singing.

At Mbingo the patient’s family members stay close by and also do the cooking and laundry for their relative in hospital.  Here they often sleep outside under cover for the rain which seems to fall all night most of the time. This is the routine at most hospitals in rural Cameroon.

This past weekend we had a day trip to Bamenda which is 3 hours drive from Njinikom and there is some really bad road with serious potholes on the way..  Bamenda is the 4th largest city in Cameroon and must be close to a million persons there.  This is the capital city of the Northwest Region of
Cameroon.  It is where the Cathedral church is located and the Bishop’s residence.  We saw the Cathedral which is about 40 years old and the environs.  In addition we did some shopping and Rosemary found a fabric for a tablecloth which is a typical Cameroon design.  It is very beautiful.  We also bought some minor food items that are not available in Njinikom.  We
bought milk that is in cartons and doesn’t require refrigeration until opened.

Well I better end this and head off to our last day of surgery here.

Bamenda Market on Saturday

Beautiful flora of Cameroon

Leg of woman with massive leg wound for 2 years

Same patient in OR after skin grafting