Newsletter: June 2007
Visit of Felicity Derry-Thomas and Ann Tregarthen of ‘Operation Sunshine’ SW England.
“While planning a visit to Zambia to see the projects we support there through ‘Operation Sunshine’ we thought it a good idea to see St. Andrew’s Clinic /Hospital in Malawi, and what a good idea it was - full of interest, facts, figures, work, wonderful people, sadness, laughter and joy.
This is an excellent hospital run and supported by exceptional people both in Malawi and England and elsewhere We saw the whole hospital: maternity unit soon to be enlarged and upgraded; the women’s ward with their small children with them— they have no where else to leave them; the HIV/Aids unit; the out patients and children’s ward—often two or even three children to a bed.
We worked in the pharmacy counting pills by hand, and cutting materials and rolling cotton wool balls for the dressings. Oh for a pill counter and some good scissors! We helped with the baby feeding programme for the wee malnourished babies needing help to stay alive, and their thin young mothers so quiet and dignified. We were told of the outreach project , keeping an eye on the little ones who have returned to their villages. We heard about the teaching of family planning - the women are keen but the men are not so!
One of the highlights was hearing the orphans singing for us; it was superb. I think the African has a different throat mechanism from the Westerner; the power and harmonisation of even a small child is incredible.
I spent time with Snowdean Njiwa the hospital administrator and learnt so much about Malawi, its politics, its peoples and customs, its problems and its joys, and of course about St Andrew’s and how this great project has evolved and is still evolving.
God’s hand is surely in all the planning and work with these lovely people—thank you Medic Malawi.” Felicity
School visits
In July two schools will be sending groups to Mtunthama. Wrekin College, Shropshire will complete the final stages of the new wing of the Orphan House, which they have fully funded, and St. Peter’s School, Exeter will be working in the schools. Both groups will also help in the Hospital and the Under-5 feeding programme. No doubt there will be plenty of sport and social contact, and the church services will be very special indeed, as both schools are already rehearsing their hymns/songs, and All Saints’ choirs will seek to be even more impressive than usual!
Dental Surgery
A complete Dental Surgery provided by Dentaid is about to be shipped out from UK, and plans are under way to send a container in September.
Hospital Equipment Shopping List
We would like to be able to include as much of the following as possible in the container going out at the beginning of September.
If you can help by donating anything from this list, please get in touch. Thank you.
- 8-10mls test tubes
- Adhesive plaster
- Anaesthesia machine and monitors (Pulsoximeter)
- Autoclave (110 litres)
- Biohard bins
- Caesarian section full set x 4
- Centrifuge (12 rotor)
- Chemistry Analyser (Liver function)
- Cimetidine
- Cotton wool
- Crepe bandages
- Crutches
- D & C
- Dental needles
- Dental syringes
- Diagnostic sets
- Digital scales (0-250g capacity)
- Dispensing bottles
- Drug trolleys
- Dry gauze
- Eusol
- Evacuation full set x 2
- Examination gloves
- Face masks
- Gallipots (various sizes)
- Gauze bandages
- Goggles
- Haematology analyser
- Hernia repair kit
- Kidneydishes (assorted sizes)
- Laparotomy
- Medical/Nursing books
- Nebulae machine
- Needles
- Office fans
- Office file trays
- Olympus microscope
- Operating Table
- Oxygen concentrators
- Paraffin gauze
- Patient screens
- Photocopier
- POP cutter
- Safety cabinet (fume hood)
- Savlon
- Sharps containers
- Sphygmomanometers
- Sterilisation drums
- Sterilisation pouches
- Stopping bottles
- Suction machine for newly born babies
- Surge protectors
- Surgical gloves
- Sutures
- Syringes
- Tablet cutters
- Theatre canvas
- Theatre Lamp (portable)
- Thermometers
- Toothbrushes
- Weighing scales (Kg)