CALLED to Papua New Guinea

One of the hardest things for me here is seeing sick patients get sicker or die despite our best efforts because we do not have first world scans, labs, or specialists. Every day I care for sick people who have wildly impressive findings on exam for which I can not give a definitive diagnosis. Is the paralysis from a brain tumor, tuberculoma, abscess, or stroke? Is the dilated heart from a congenital heart defect, past/current infection, or lung disease? Is the joint problem infectious, autoimmune, or simply overuse injury? Without all the fancy tools of first world medicine, I am left with the quality and competency of my physical exam skills, my interpretation of ultrasound and xray, and a few basics labs. More importantly, I have decades of medical missionary experience in my colleagues, who I riddle with 1,000 questions a day to ensure I give the best possible care to each patient. But even then, many patients are left without a clear diagnosis and treatment plan. Common things be...

Two weeks ago, we should have been departing home to Richmond, but God had other plans in mind.  Now that our time here at Kudjip has doubled, we are able to accomplish and experience much more than we had planned.  Thanks to dear friends taking grocery lists into Mount Hagen, our fridge and pantry are stocked for another month, and we are ready to keep on with the work God puts before us.  For Ted, this means helping the short-staffed medical team by continuing to see patients in clinic, taking turns in the COVID tent, and being on call every few days.  For me, this means helping the missionary families by continuing to host a Pre-K Playgroup three days a week so the parents can work on school and other ministry tasks.  We are delighted to stay here as long as God allows, and are thoroughly enjoying the extra time with our Kudjip Family! Here are some snippets of life over the last two weeks - all the things we have experienced because we didn't leave. ...

Dear Readers, I am pleased to report my “little” building project is finally complete. About 4 weeks ago, I began construction on a new footbridge to replace the one that crosses the drainage ditch in front of our house. The original bridge was rotting and had sunk far enough into the ground that runoff from heavy rains would often submerge it (not the most enjoyable obstacle to cross on call nights). As I had enjoyed many a small building project in the year we served here before, I again gained access to the Station Workshop with all its wonderful tools and leftover material. I had originally planned on a smaller footbridge design, maybe 4x6 feet, but the salvaged beams I found were long enough to envision more grandiose proportions. A nurse anesthetist friend of mine here named Brian Bosip (AKA “Flex” - F3PNG) recently went home for Easter and posted some Facebook  pictures showing the men of his village milling lumber. Seeing these fine PNG beams produced from massive ju...

We arrived in Papua New Guinea exactly 6 weeks ago today, and we moved quickly to make the most of every day. For as short a time as we would be spending here, we wanted every moment to count. We expected to depart this weekend, on April 19th ...then COVID happened... Countries closed their borders. Airlines grounded their international flights. Fear gripped the world. Over the last month we have watched the ebb and flow of emergency preparedness here in PNG, with variable levels of lockdown both nationwide and in our Jiwaka Province. As the rest of the world has wrestled to constrain the poison, we have steadily made preparations and prayed our efforts might remain unnecessary. This week a few more COVID cases have emerged in various areas around the country - which is more likely a representation of testing availability rather than actual case numbers. We still do not suspect the pandemic has reached our Western Highlands, but as we have extremely limited testing, we won’t really kn...

I hope that you all have had a wonderful weekend celebrating the Resurrection of Christ! I am sure this Easter looked and felt different than what you are used to ... same here!  But in spite of all the unknown right now, we have reason to CELEBRATE and be at PEACE, because Jesus conquered death and is ALIVE!       Our Easter weekend started on Friday afternoon, with a visit to the "Haus Bung" (meeting house) to walk through the Stations of the Cross.  Stephanie, a missionary here at Kudjip, did an AMAZING job setting up the stations in an interactive way, with beautifully written descriptions. Pennie's commentary after having the crucifixion explained to her: P: Did Jesus's feet bleed?    Me: Yes P: Did it hurt?    Me: Yes Me: Why do you think He let himself be hurt? P: Because He LOVES us! The simple truth of salvation explained by Pennie ... God Loves YOU so much, that He allowed His only Son to die for you - Do you believe in th...