Bridging Countries, Becoming Partners

Please welcome Dr. Maxene Cenatus back to Christ for All Hospital.  He has finished his OB/GYN residency and is now back at the mission serving as an amazing resource to the women of Haiti.  

The midwives are excelling and women from all parts of Haiti are coming to receive quality obstetrical care.  Praise God, we are making a difference!  I joined Dr. Maxene as well as an anesthesiologist from Port Au Prince in performing two difficult gynecologic surgeries. The first removing an extremely large ovarian cyst and the second being a partial hysterectomy for a very large fibroid uterus. In difficult cases, two heads are better than one and it was a great pleasure to partner with Dr. Maxene! The women did very well, recovered quickly, and had excellent care!

Too Small, Too Early

This October trip was as emotional as ever. The Labor of Love Project was launched with a team traveling to Haiti to bring supplies to the midwives and to help with gynecological surgery.  While there, a patient came in and very quickly delivered a baby over 6 weeks premature. Sweet Baby "Marie" was also very growth restricted and was extremely small weighing 1 pound 8 oz. Normal protocol back at home in the States is that the baby would be taken to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, She would have receive IV nutrition, oxygen, and the medical care needed to "catch up" on her weight and be healthy enough to return home to her family.  Haiti is another story.  

After wrapping the baby in plastic, blankets, and a hat to keep her warm we tried to transfer her to two hospitals.  Neither would accept her.  We were forced to bring her back to the mission to provide neonatal hospice care.  After hours of prayer, the Lord called Baby Marie home to her eternal life and her family in Heaven. Although we are making great strides in helping the women and children of Haiti, we are forever limited by access to medical supplies and care that are often taken for granted in the United States.  I praise and thank God that he is the ultimate healer and can help the Haitian people in ways I can only dream.