Tenwek Day #4: The Rest of My Day at Tenwek

On our way back to the hospital Eric and I sat on the edge of the fountain in the middle of the outdoor area where everyone has to pass through to get to the hospital, the medical staff as well as the patients.  I've always wanted to sit out there for an afternoon and snap photos of all the native Kenyans as they pass by (I love to "people watch" wherever I go), but not everyone appreciates getting their photo taken, some of the children are wary and/or scared of us foreign medical staff (less so as the years go by) and if you haven't already noticed, I'd much rather get a candid photo rather than one that is posed.

This post is several days late since we've had such a busy week.  Because of that I'm able to look back on the rest of my day there (easy to do when you have hundreds of photos to remind you of each and every day) and I can say without a doubt sitting at the fountain with Eric was the highlight of my day.  Eric is probably one of the most entertaining people I've ever known, and definitely has the quickest come-backs of anyone I've ever known.  He cracks us up on a daily basis and has become a good friend over the last 4 years that I've been coming to Tenwek.  He and Dr. Jim left today and we're all going to miss them when we do our pediatric patients next week.

So back to the fountain.  As I'm enjoying all the people scurrying around and taking whatever photos I can get, Eric is talking non-stop telling stories about anything and everything.  As I'm sitting there laughing and playing with my camera, I notice that the protective lens on my camera is smashed and there's glass all over the lens.

I guess dropping it on the table this morning when I was getting ready to leave wasn't such a good idea.  I was a little freaked-out when I initially saw all the glass (my Wolf Camera store is about 5,000 miles away at this point), but apparently I can still take pictures, so that's exactly what I continued to do...

I love the peacefulness of this shot.  Mom's mind was a million miles away as she caressed her son's head, but the little boy was very much in the moment wondering why that old guy at the fountain was pointing that big camera at him.

Waiting patiently at the canteen for his morning Mendazi...

These little guys were sitting outside the chapel eyeing me as I walked by.  They didn't seem like they would mind an interaction with the "camera guy" so I approached them to see what kind of luck I would have.  They were a tough crowd initially until I showed them their digital images on my camera.  The little guy in the lower left flashed a smile when he saw his picture that melted my heart.  I wonder what their conversation was after I left?

There were so many more pictures taken out by the fountain that I don't have the time to post... but I needed to get back into the OR to help out Eric on his case, although I'm really wanting to stay outside and play...

On the way to the OR, I HAD to stop by the ICU to see how all our patients are doing .  Kristen D.  and Kristen B. (AKA "Kristen Squared") part of our Vanderbilt nursing team were more than happy to pose for a quick picture.  Good times at Tenwek   ;)

Out the ICU door and around to the right I headed to the OR to see where the case was at, I ran into a pre-op huddle outside the cardiac OR about the case we're about to start.  From left to right; Dr. Russ (Chief of Staff and Chief Surgeon at Tenwek Hospital) Dr. Luke (anesthesiologist from Indiana), Dr. Jim (cardiac surgeon from Rhode Island) and Eric (perfusionist, story teller, entertainer etc from Rhode Island).

Inside the OR, Eric's got the pump all set up.  Good job Eric (I've still got some time to play... maybe the chai's here ??? )

As I turn around, Dr. Luke and Dr. David (cardiology fellow from Minneapolis) are trying to get a football game on the transesophageal ECHO machine  :)   C'mon guys, where's the patient ???

Oh, here she is...  Yes, Dr. Luke, we all like your pink gloves...  ;)

Dr. Russ in the middle of the surgical procedure with the resident and medical staff looking on.

We get lunch today!  Here's the lunch crowd in the guest house kitchen.  From left to right; Michael (husband of Dr. Mary) Mike (World Medical Mission biomed), John (Vanderbilt biomed), Dr. Madhu (Critical Care Physician), Ann (Dr. Malik's wife), the top of Nathan's head (Dr. Malik's son) ;) and Dr. Mary (Critical Care and Cardiology physician).  Lunch compliments of Livingston and the kitchen staff mmmmmmmmmm good all the time!

On the way back to the OR after lunch, I have to take a picture of Kristen and Rebekah... awwwwwww great team photo!

After lunch I returned to the OR to set up for little Kip's surgery that I blogged about previously.  This photo was taken while the Tenwek medical staff and Dr. Malik were preparing to put little Kip to sleep minutes before he arrested on the table.

Sometime around midnight or shortly after, we transported little Kip to the ICU.  It was a very long and challenging day full of many ups and downs.  Even though Kip was so sick prior to his surgery his case went very very well and he is currently out of the ICU (with his bright red soccer ball).  The staff got very attached to Kip and his case from start to finish was nothing short of a miracle, which we have come to expect here at Tenwek Hosptal. 

We ended the day singing happy birthday to Dr. Luke.  We had a repeat happy birthday performance the following evening for Dr. Malilk who also celebrated his birthday.  Unfortunately,I wasn't able to get Dr. Malik's celebration on tape...

Happy birthday to our Indiana Docs!