=)

Greetings! :) It's going to be a short update this week, because-well, quite frankly there's not too much to update you on! It was a pretty typically study-work week! Today I went with Serena to the hospital to visit one of her patients whose baby was sick... It makes me sad every time I walk into that hospital- seeing the condition! This coming Friday we have another exam coming up...The second year students are getting ready for their final exam here on Thursday!
Only four more weeks yet! Wow! :)
Like I said- it's a short update! :P

Have a blessed week ahead!!

Till next time...

SH

Baby Number 25 :)

Good day! :) Me again here with another little update...
Where do I begin? I guess it's been a pretty normal week- Assignment, shifts, eat, sleep, talk, skype, e-mail etc etc! :D Well, maybe a few things different happened. Tuesday we wrote another exam! Glad that's behind my back- we'll lets hope it is anyways! :) No results yet...
Friday I took my continuity patient to a christian orphanage that takes care of adopting babies... It was rough, but she so well, and the people at the orphanage where so great! It was such a hard thing to do, and my heart felt so heavy! I can't imagine...
Today was a good day! I went to my church this morning, and I hadn't been there for a little while with having to work some Sundays at the clinic as well as visiting some other churches. It was good to see everyone! :) I came back at noon pretty tired... It's been very hot the few days, so the heat has promptly waken me up nice and early every morning no matter what time I got to bed... So I sneaked into the aircon room with one of girls from night shift who was still sleeping (we're only aloud to turn on the aircon for night shifters), and had a nice long nap. I had a baby check though that I missed because nobody knew where I was...:S ooops!
When I got up at 2pm I got a phone call at 2:30 informing me that one of my continuities was in active labor at the clinic! I had just done one of her prenatals on Thursday, and when I discovered that this would be her 9th baby (not including a miscarriage), I had to put my name on her chart!! :D :D
So I jumped into scrubs and flew over to the clinic and delivered her baby an hour later! It was a beautiful birth- my 25th delivery!! :) The 3rd oldest girl in the family was there- so special to watch how excited she was with her new little sister! I managed to get most of the stuff done after birth in a few hours and endorsed her to the girls on shift now... And now I'm sitting here writing this... :) In a few hours I'll be going back for night shift! - lucky I had a nap! :)
Alrighty- I believe I'll sign off for now...
Hope you all have a fabulous week ahead- keeping on the sunny side of life! :)
-Sarah

Baby Boom! =)

A good day to you all! I'm so thankful it's Sunday- a chance to unwind some! :) Last night I finished and printed off my biggest assignment yet. It's amazing when push comes to shove what can be accomplished! :P I know I couldn't have done with without prayer! We were suppose to do the exam on it Monday afternoon, but we just got an e-mail informing us that it's postponed till Tuesday afternoon! Thank You Lord!! I was wondering how I was going going to do it, having to work night shift tonight and not having studied at all yet! He's so good to me- never failing to meet my every need!
Birth room shifts have also be crazy!! I've delivered a baby at every shift for the last 6 or more shifts in a row. My last shift was absolutely nuts! I walked in at 5:50am to discover four woman in labor, and five more in postpartum (there are usually 4 midwives on each shift including the supervisor). The two other girls took on two patients that were fully dilated and ready to give birth. I had the other two patients that were not as far along, but pretty active, and then another patient came in that I had to check in! I was also charting for Janelle's (another midwife) birth's! It was a good challenge to remember which patient was which! :P Then one of my patients had a fast labor and delivered her baby at 7:45. Right after that, one of the midwifes had to transport two patients (one of them which had just walked in and the other who was my one of my former patients). During that time another labor came in fully! So I caught another baby at 9:09! The rest of the shift was spent with two charts running back and forth between my two patients completing all the charting and after birth procedures! Oh, and I also did my first IV! :):)And was even able to get it in the first time! :D Praise the Lord!
Well there ya have a little bit of what goes on in the birth room- without too many details though! :P :) But it's not always that crazy on shift! :)
It's been rainy here the past few days, making it a little more cool- so nice for sleeping!:)
Anyway, I think I'm going to sign of now!
Keep on keeping on!!
-SH

The "bukid" Mountains

Outreach 2 for Blog

-Click On Picture-

A Mountain Top Experience

Hello hello! I'm back in the city after one beautiful week in the mountains! I came home on Friday afternoon- with many great memories! There was so much to learn and experience! It's like stepping into a completely different world- so much to soak in! Because I had already done one trip in November, most of it was familiar to me, but we went to a few different villages, meeting new people and doing more prenatal and general check ups. I defiantly felt quite incompetent with my medical skills, but seeing as they really even need simple health care teaching, I felt like I was at least able to help in some small ways. It was encouraging too, comparing how I felt last time with doing prenatal in November to this time- a little less clueless! :)
I also really enjoyed getting to know Marygine (the midwife from the area that we traveled with), her husband, and our motor drivers better! Such great people- we had such a great time together! And Naomi, one of the married students, came too- so it was nice getting to know her better as well!
We had a great experience eating Filipino foods (rice rice rice ;)), taking bucket baths at the village well (in our clothes of course:D), singing karaoke with the village people, sleeping on mats in their little huts (well we cheated and brought small blow-up mats! :P), learning the language a bit more, whizzing through the mountain paths on our packed up motorbikes, and just simply getting to know the villagers! :)
Each village we would do prenatal and then any general check-ups over anyone who had a complaint. The first spot we stopped was a house of a 12 year old girl who had club foot. On another trip, one of the students here had met her and taken a picture. Someone in the States saw it and volunteered to sponsor her to get an operation. Apparently,the morning of the day that we went there, they had prayed all together (they are Christians)that the promise would come for their daughter to be healed- that afternoon we showed up to tell them the great news! It was quite an experience! In another village, I was doing general check ups, and they brought me a little 6 year old boy. When he turned his head I saw a big swollen and infected cut across his neck! Nobody had taken care of it- his mother had died, and his step-mother didn't seem be caring much... Plus they don't really know what to do with a problem like that! He was so cute- he held my hand and was willing to sit on my lap! When I had to start cleaning the wound, he starting screaming, and it took three of us to hold him down- poor boy!! :( After I though I was all done, and even told him so, I realized I hadn't given him a tetanus shot! More tears... :( I wanted to take him back home with me so bad...
Yes, it was quite the experience again in the beautiful "bukid" (mountains)! I'm so thankful for the opportunity to go!
Now the week ahead looks piled up with assignment that was put aside for a week and a few exams I missed last week. It's so comforting to be able to cling tightly to the promise that "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength!"
Our little motto here: "Somehow it all gets done..." =)
7 more weeks...(not that I"m counting or anything ;))
Till next time...
SMH

Wow- it's really May!!

It's confirmed- time flies! :) Or are we just too stubborn to believe that life is short... Knowing where I'm going after this is over, that doesn't make me sad! But there's still so much work left to do in the harvest!!
Last night I was on night shift- and it proved to be quite the shift! I had to transport my first patient :(, and when I came back I had another patient. When I was checking on her, I heard yelling and ran out to find a baby out in a taxi :S :). Soon after that my patient gave birth to a little boy- baby number twenty for me! :) Pretty exciting!!
So I just figured out that I will once again be going on a mission/medical outreach up in the mountains! :):) It's with the same midwife, but we'll probably be going to different villages this time! It was unexpected, as another girl was suppose to go, but since she isn't able to due to one of her patients being in labor, she asked me if I wanted to go instead. I will be going with Naomi, one of the married second year students! We'll leave bright and early in the morning, as we have to catch a bus that will take us a few hours away, where we'll take a Jeepney ride to another city. We have to meet with the Mayor at 8:30am! It's a custom we do, just a courtesy visit to let him know we are in his area! :) We will then take motors to Marygene's house (the midwife), and may spend the night there before heading up a few hours into the mountains. We'll be coming back on Friday... to a piled up work load of school! But it's so worth it!!!! :) :)
Please pray for us...that it wouldn't just be a medical trip, but that we will really be able to share the love of Jesus with them!!
So here I come- fresh mountain air, beautiful villagers, rice fields, and water buffaloes! :)
And goodbye to my computer till Friday! :P

Till next time- God bless!

-Sarah

Psalm 90:12 So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.