CALLED to Papua New Guinea

Taking call at Kudjip Hospital has been interesting, to say the least. Each physician on Station covers call about once a week, and since I’m new, a more experienced doc has always been assigned/available for consult whenever needed. (Not bad!) Call begins after Clinic closes in the afternoon, with any leftover or late-comer clinic patients then redirected to the ED. When I’m covering, I start call by making rounds on all 4 wards, checking in with the nurses to answer questions, and set up care plans for any seriously ill patients. Before heading home, I’ll cruise by the ER to see whatever patients the staff have questions about. Many of the patients who come through the ER are seen and managed by the well-experienced nursing staff, but there are always a handful with some form of trauma or critical condition which the Doctor is called to help with. Other times, the case may not be so severe, but the nurses simply need help deciding whether the patient qualifies for admission, or can b...

Many people consider it “over the top” when Christmas preparations begin in October...but not here in Kudjip!  Throughout the month of October: the MK’s and I have been practicing for the Christmas play, I joined the other ladies on the station in an afternoon of Christmas ornament crafting, and Teddy and I have been brainstorming ways we can make it feel/look like the Christmas season in our home, come December.    Along with being the 4 th -6 th grade teacher at the MK School, I am also the Music Teacher for the 1 st -6 th graders.   We have music class every Tuesday afternoon, from 2:15-3:00pm.   My partner at the MK School, Ms. Judy Ralph, informed me this summer that we needed to put on a Christmas Program with the kids, and asked if I could be in charge of finding/coming up with a program.   In the midst of packing, moving, and tying up loose ends in Richmond, I did not have time to creatively come up with a clever Christmas play.   So, I rea...

I have met with the heart of Kudjip Hospital, and I am humbled. My spirit is filled with reverence for God's workmanship among the servant leaders of our missionary community. The first of its kind, this retreat brought together all the department supervisors as well as physicians of the “Nazarene Health Ministries” (NHM) - after well over 50 years of effective Christ-centered service to the Highland people. We retreated to a mountain, high above the people we serve, amid clouds and tall trees, closer to the Heavenly Father we sought for counsel and renewal. Over 40 strong, our hearts were light with anticipation and filled with the joy of beloved company. Though a newcomer to this tightly woven fellowship, I was pulled into many a warm embrace, like a favorite younger brother or prodigal son, and my heart was likewise filled. I witnessed in this gathering the Spirit of God fiercely manifested among His finest warriors - worship and testimonies freely declared in tearful joy, a ri...

My weekdays on Station are slowly forming into a routine. Rising to the sounds of birdsong and neighborhood banter, I don my usual scrub shirt and trouser pants combo, and set to making coffee and breakfast (alternating between oatmeal with raisins, cereal, and the occasional egg with toast). After Rachel and I spend some time in devotions and prayer, we go our separate ways - she to the MK schoolhouse, and I to the Hospital Wards. Our usual start time on the wards is 8am, but everyone comes a little earlier on Monday mornings for Staff Chapel (hymns sung in Pidgin, with Pastor John then giving a brief invocation and prayer), as well as on Fridays for the Doctors' conference/prayer meeting. I will be presenting for the first time on November 14th (my topic is yet to be determined). For the past month working at Kudjip Hospital, I have spent each week on a different Ward. There are four: A - Pediatric, B - Medicine, C - Surgery, and D - OB/GYN. I have done these in the order A, ...

Many friends have written asking questions about what the food is like and what we eat.  Food…though often overlooked…is a huge part of our cultural understanding as human beings.  This is something I had not thought of until we moved to PNG.  The experience of leisurely strolling through the aisles of Trader Joe’s and being able to find any ingredient I might need is VERY different from what I currently engage in.  Living on station means that I go to “town”…Mt. Hagen...once a month and stock up on 4 weeks’ worth of groceries.  Yes…this is as challenging as it sounds.  In order to make sure we have everything we need and don’t run out of anything, I plan all of our dinners for the entire month, and purchase what is required based on my meal plan/recipes.  Luckily, to supplement my monthly excursion to town, there is a street market, “rot bung,” near the station that has local produce.  When I find myself frustrated with the lack of so many ingre...

Dear Family and Friends, There are too many stories to tell in detail, so this Post contains a number of pictures, each with a brief caption, with the hope that your imagination might piece together a patchwork diorama of our life in missions. ENJOY!  :-) How we start the day -  devotionals!   (Chosen at random separately,  we happen to both be reading through Hebrews.) Our view as we walk to work... Monday Morning Chapel Cutest kid on the Peds Ward ...chewing on a pen... Safe?...hmmm A boy in clinic...  ...his sneakers now sandals ... My first C-section... ...and the handsom  result!   A beetle hanging out on my screen... ... TWICE the size of my thumb! Our first care package! Thanks Mike and Andrea!!! TRIP TO TOWN ...and we set the Kudjip record! Both licenses AND bank card in ONE day! I'm tellin ya folks - prayer WORKS! :-) UPDATE on the Path! ...