Every day in Ethiopia brings new, exciting, and some times traumatizing things. This day happened to be a relatively quiet Friday. Since we (programming staff) worked 8 hours last Sunday, we decided to take Friday off. A day off typically means I do the dishes, laundry, and basically keep up with everything around the house that I have been neglecting. But this Friday brought a little more excitement. I have been discipling on Mia, one of the missionary kids on the compound. She is an awesome 12-year old with a huge heart and a great love for the Lord and people. Anyways, we had finished looking at Rahab's life (Joshua 2), eating candy corn, and decided to go help her mom fix dinner. At this point, I was thinking that my evening would consist of a nice dinner at the Smith's house and if things get crazy we might even play Settlers of Catan. Oh man - we did all of that and then some! :) Instead of helping with dinner we went down to the clinic to watch/help her mom with a delivery. It was about 5pm and the clinic was shutting down for the weekend, but a few people were still milling about. One lady from the community walked out of exam room and went to fetch her chicken from a nearby tree before she made the trek back home. Why she brought her chicken to the clinic I don't know, but the chicken was there...and then the chicken escaped!!! What started with one of the nurses
and the lady trying to catch the chicken turned into a 12-person chicken hunt. This chicken was ridiculously fast. And coincidentally, I was the one to scare it into taking flight. Once it was air borne, the laboratory tech came out of no-where, he flew through the air and snagged the squawking chicken! All of this took place about 3 feet from my head...so yes, I was screaming, which gave everyone watching & helping a good laugh. Once the chicken was securely placed back in the woman's bag, we went to check on the patient who was in labor. We walk into the 'in-patient room' - it is about an 8'x12' room with a bunk bed, two wooden chairs, a small cabinet and an exam table with stirrups in it. Lying on the lower bunk was a lady who looks like she is in her late 20's. This was her second baby and at the time there were no labor issues/complication, she just wanted to give birth in the clinic instead of her hut. I look around for all of the equipment I would expect to see in a 'hospital-like' delivery room. But the only equipment I found was a couple towels, a handheld heart beat locater, a couple of
buckets, and a 'delivery set' (clamps, scissors, snot sucker ball thing and a head lamp) - there are no IV's, no pain meds, no crushed ice, etc. Allyson (Mia's mom) is a FNP specializing in Labor and Delivery, she and an young Ethiopian male nurse, were going facilitate the delivery. The patient was about 5or 6 cm when I first got there. Her contractions were relatively frequent
and every time a contraction came, her fingers would latch onto the bed frame and small moans would slip from her mouth. At this point I started to become super uncomfortable. This lady was in labor and I was just standing there looking at her. I didn't know what to do with my hands, much less my eyes. So I decided my best bet was to smile and say hello. The woman spoke Oromyfia, so my attempts at conversation were pitiful. As I surveyed the room, I realized that I was the only one in the room who hadn’t witnessed a delivery before. I felt so awkward and out of place. Allyson guessed that she wouldn’t deliver for at least another hour, so we headed back to the house to finish making dinner before welcoming the baby into the world!
When we get back the patient was at about 8 cm, and I was still awkwardly standing in the room trying to figure out what to do with my eyes and hands. I started trying to figure out how I had gotten myself in this predicament. I realize that a 12-year old had talked me into putting a skirt on and 'seeing' if the baby had been delivered yet, next thing I knew I was a part of the delivery team, even though my role was just moral support! The nurse noticed my awkwardness, so he told me to sit in one of the chairs in the room. The only problem was that these chairs were literally at the foot of the bunk bed and thus the foot of the patient! Oh yeah, mild panic ran through my body. I had never seen a birth before and well, I usually prefer to stay on the ignorance is bliss side of things when it comes to actually birthing a small child!
Before I knew it, skilled hands caught the baby and eased the cord off her neck. Next thing I new, a scream was coming from the tiny baby. I’m still trying to figure out if I think it is beautiful or just strange that a human being is living inside a person and in a moment they are ushered into the world to breathe on their own, no longer physically connected to their mother. It is totally a miracle, but still think it is weird! :) Anyways, I got to help clean the baby up and put a new outfit on her.
We handed the baby to her relative and made it back to the house as the rest of the crew was finishing up dinner. Praise the Lord it was an easy labor and smooth delivery, but I don't think I want to see the 'messy/complicated’ ones – I’m traumatized enough!
and the lady trying to catch the chicken turned into a 12-person chicken hunt. This chicken was ridiculously fast. And coincidentally, I was the one to scare it into taking flight. Once it was air borne, the laboratory tech came out of no-where, he flew through the air and snagged the squawking chicken! All of this took place about 3 feet from my head...so yes, I was screaming, which gave everyone watching & helping a good laugh. Once the chicken was securely placed back in the woman's bag, we went to check on the patient who was in labor. We walk into the 'in-patient room' - it is about an 8'x12' room with a bunk bed, two wooden chairs, a small cabinet and an exam table with stirrups in it. Lying on the lower bunk was a lady who looks like she is in her late 20's. This was her second baby and at the time there were no labor issues/complication, she just wanted to give birth in the clinic instead of her hut. I look around for all of the equipment I would expect to see in a 'hospital-like' delivery room. But the only equipment I found was a couple towels, a handheld heart beat locater, a couple of
buckets, and a 'delivery set' (clamps, scissors, snot sucker ball thing and a head lamp) - there are no IV's, no pain meds, no crushed ice, etc. Allyson (Mia's mom) is a FNP specializing in Labor and Delivery, she and an young Ethiopian male nurse, were going facilitate the delivery. The patient was about 5or 6 cm when I first got there. Her contractions were relatively frequent
and every time a contraction came, her fingers would latch onto the bed frame and small moans would slip from her mouth. At this point I started to become super uncomfortable. This lady was in labor and I was just standing there looking at her. I didn't know what to do with my hands, much less my eyes. So I decided my best bet was to smile and say hello. The woman spoke Oromyfia, so my attempts at conversation were pitiful. As I surveyed the room, I realized that I was the only one in the room who hadn’t witnessed a delivery before. I felt so awkward and out of place. Allyson guessed that she wouldn’t deliver for at least another hour, so we headed back to the house to finish making dinner before welcoming the baby into the world!
When we get back the patient was at about 8 cm, and I was still awkwardly standing in the room trying to figure out what to do with my eyes and hands. I started trying to figure out how I had gotten myself in this predicament. I realize that a 12-year old had talked me into putting a skirt on and 'seeing' if the baby had been delivered yet, next thing I knew I was a part of the delivery team, even though my role was just moral support! The nurse noticed my awkwardness, so he told me to sit in one of the chairs in the room. The only problem was that these chairs were literally at the foot of the bunk bed and thus the foot of the patient! Oh yeah, mild panic ran through my body. I had never seen a birth before and well, I usually prefer to stay on the ignorance is bliss side of things when it comes to actually birthing a small child!
Before I knew it, skilled hands caught the baby and eased the cord off her neck. Next thing I new, a scream was coming from the tiny baby. I’m still trying to figure out if I think it is beautiful or just strange that a human being is living inside a person and in a moment they are ushered into the world to breathe on their own, no longer physically connected to their mother. It is totally a miracle, but still think it is weird! :) Anyways, I got to help clean the baby up and put a new outfit on her.
We handed the baby to her relative and made it back to the house as the rest of the crew was finishing up dinner. Praise the Lord it was an easy labor and smooth delivery, but I don't think I want to see the 'messy/complicated’ ones – I’m traumatized enough!
