This week I had a call from one of our Project Canaan team
members who is focusing on ministry on the farm. She leads bible studies, teaches, prays and loves on people
who are hurting and in need.
She called to see if we could have a quick meeting and I
said yes. Minutes later she was on
my patio and, without hardly taking a breath, she quickly explained to me a
situation. The sister of one of
our workers was dying. She had
been diagnosed with Cervical cancer many months ago, and was told that she
needed a hysterectomy. An older
woman counseled her against that because she was only 26-years old and still
had a responsibility to bear more children. So in order to keep her womb the “friend”
took her to MANY Witch Doctors (Traditional healers) to seek treatment. This
would include consuming all types of potions made of live and dead things and
dirty river water. She just got
more and more sick. (No kidding).
Finally she ended up in a hospital and was given blood transfusions
as treatment. She was not treated
with chemo or radiation and was failing quickly. Early in November she was sent to hospice, but after three
weeks the hospice people sent her to the hospital because they didn’t want her
to die at hospice and she was becoming hard to manage. Three weeks after that the sister (who
lives on Project Canaan) was called to say that the hospital had discharged her
because she was bleeding heavily, only had a few more days to live, and the
nurses didn't want her to die in the hospital ward. (I will say that this is
all second-hand information, but it is the information that I have been given).
This particular family has no parents or Grandparents and no
homestead to return to. There was
nowhere for her to go for her final days, and worse (to the family) nowhere for
her to be buried when she died. In
this culture, you must be buried at your family homestead in order to meet up with your
ancestors after death.
After a short conversation we agreed to let her come to
live, and die with dignity at Project Canaan in Nomsa’s House. The team quickly rallied to buy a
mattress, borrow an open back truck to transport her, gather adult diapers etc
and headed to town. When they
arrived they were told that she needed four more blood transfusions before she
could leave and each one took four hours. She could not leave without the blood because she was
bleeding so heavily, so they were to go back the next day. Well, that was
Saturday, and confusion ensued and she was not able to be picked up until
Wednesday AND after the bill for her 3-week stay in hospital was covered. I sent R115 ($11.50 US) with the team
to get the WHOLE bill paid and they carried her to the back of the truck.. She arrived at Project Canaan and six
of us helped carrying her on a blanket in to her small room where she is
staying for the days ahead. When
she passes, we have agreed that she can be buried on Project Canaan.
Meanwhile, in the same hospital there was a baby who had
been badly beaten by both his/her mother and father. Subsequently both were
arrested and Social Welfare was looking to us for assistance after the police
reported that there was no one to care for the child. I was contacted last week about the baby and I asked the age
of the child (we only accept under 12-months). I was told that no one knew, but
that they would go to the homestead to get the health card. Yesterday (10 days from the first call)
I asked for an update on the child and was told that they still don’t know the
age because no one has been able to visit the homestead.
This baby (of unknown age) has been in a hospital for more
than two weeks with no one there caring for him/her. There is no update on the child’s condition or how long
he/she will be in the hospital.
There are no parents or relatives there asking those questions, just a
“white lady” living on a farm down the road. Having stayed at that hospital
before I know that the nurses will do their best to help care for this little
one (but that’s not their job) and the other mothers who are there caring for
their own child might take pity and pat the child on the head from time to time
or even maybe help feed him/her.
Maybe not.
Just down the hall from this baby is a woman who was hacked
by machete (or bush knife) by her husband. He accused her of not caring for their
one-year old baby well because she would go to work and he thought that she
should have stayed home. He does
not work and provides no income for the family. The investigation continues, but it seems that public
opinion is going against her. She
is a police officer and is lying in bed while the family fights over who is
forced to care for the baby now?
Oh, sorry, I mis-titled this blog. I meant “Healthcare in
Swaziland”. We “westerners”
have so much to be thankful for.
Come Lord Jesus, come.
Live from Swaziland … giving thanks for the reason for this
season.
Janine
PS - I did not have any photos that were appropriate for this blog so I am adding a couple from our staff Christmas party on the farm today for your enjoyment. It was a great day.
Look who crashed the staff party. |
I love these women and their traditional dance - written about Project Canaan! |
Two VIP workers on the farm - yes they were THRILLED to get a goat as their prize. |
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