KRB Update #2165 Keith R. Brinkman Sierra Leone April 9, 2011 Greetings from Sierra Leone, known as Salone in the local language of Krio. 
Thank you for your prayers and concern related to our surgical screening. After much consultation, we conducted another large screening on Saturday the 26th of March at the National Pharmacy building in town. Approximately 3,000 people came seeking our assistance and about 300 were admitted into the compound for the visits to the stations to determine if the person was a good surgical candidate. I served as a ‘patient escort’ – getting the potential patients and their caregivers to the next stop in the process. Between one side of the building to the next, I would take a group and I would walk backwards as I learned when conducting tours of the ship – I would joke with one or two in the front of my group to have them watch in case I run into someone or if I was about to fall. Towards the end of the day, I was following five children needing orthopaedic assistance including girls from the same orphanage. After consideration by the surgeons, three of the five were scheduled for surgery and I look forward to welcoming them to the Africa Mercy later this month. Anaesthesia Conference & Midwifery Conference: I assisted on behalf of the ship to facilitate these two conferences held at a nearby government hospital. For the Anaesthesia Conference, there were both 59 anaesthetists and 20 trainees who came for the 3 days of training conducted by speakers from the UK. Another group also from the UK conducted the 
‘Improving Maternal Care’ conference in another part of the hospital with 28 trained midwives. I have done this for several years and it is a privilege to be a small part in seeing this possible. Believing that through capacity building/training, we will see improvements in the health care services available for the people of this country.
Thank you for your prayers and concern related to our surgical screening. After much consultation, we conducted another large screening on Saturday the 26th of March at the National Pharmacy building in town. Approximately 3,000 people came seeking our assistance and about 300 were admitted into the compound for the visits to the stations to determine if the person was a good surgical candidate. I served as a ‘patient escort’ – getting the potential patients and their caregivers to the next stop in the process. Between one side of the building to the next, I would take a group and I would walk backwards as I learned when conducting tours of the ship – I would joke with one or two in the front of my group to have them watch in case I run into someone or if I was about to fall. Towards the end of the day, I was following five children needing orthopaedic assistance including girls from the same orphanage. After consideration by the surgeons, three of the five were scheduled for surgery and I look forward to welcoming them to the Africa Mercy later this month. Anaesthesia Conference & Midwifery Conference: I assisted on behalf of the ship to facilitate these two conferences held at a nearby government hospital. For the Anaesthesia Conference, there were both 59 anaesthetists and 20 trainees who came for the 3 days of training conducted by speakers from the UK. Another group also from the UK conducted the 
‘Improving Maternal Care’ conference in another part of the hospital with 28 trained midwives. I have done this for several years and it is a privilege to be a small part in seeing this possible. Believing that through capacity building/training, we will see improvements in the health care services available for the people of this country. Patient Visitation: I love being able to daily visit the patients in the hospital wards, just down the hall from my office and one deck below my cabin or up on Deck 7 port side where we can get some fresh air and feel the warmth of the sun. We have translators available to assist, though we have had some patients from the nearby nation of Guinea and they speak French and local languages – so I have tried my limited French – if only I could put the dictionary under my bed and wake up speaking the French language. We have many children on board for orthopaedics and for maxillofacial surgeries. Though sometimes the desired results are not possible and the father or mother have to leave without any change in their child – difficult for them and their expectations – as was the case for little Christian who has club feet. Though, most of the time the patient and caregiver, like Mr. Jah and his son, leave rejoicing and very thankful for the time in the hospital and for their healing on board the Mercy Ship. More Facts for Sierra Leone: * Infant mortality rate 78 deaths per 1,000 live births * 2 physicians per 100,000 people * Languages: English (official, regular use limited to literate minority), Mende, Temne, Krio (English-based Creole, a lingua franca and a first language for 10% of the population but understood by 95%)
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