October 26, 2001

Dear Friends,

Greetings from Malawi in southern Africa. Today I am completing a three-week "mission trip." Even mission co-workers get to take mission trips. My mission was to provide gynecologic care and advice to three Presbyterian mission hospitals in Malawi. My usual area of service is Mulanje Mission Hospital in the very southern part of the country. Malawi has a tremendous shortage of all types of health care workers, including gynecologists. With an estimated population of 12 million people, there are ten trained gynecologists in the country. Eight out of the ten of us are in the southern region, which is also where the only medical school is located.

On an exciting Saturday morning, I was driven to the Blantyre airport where I caught a commercial flight in a 14-seater airplane to Mzuzu, the major city in the north of Malawi. This also happened to be the day that His Excellency Bakili Maluzi, the President of Malawi, was flying to the United Kingdom. Although the crowds and the 100 member military band at the airport were not for me, it was still a festive occasion! Our small Cessna took off just before his Lear jet.

The hospital ambulance from Ekwendeni Hospital met me at the small airport in Mzuzu. This was my fourth trip to Ekwendeni, and I was happy to see many old friends among the staff. Ekwendeni has a dedicated staff very committed to community health, preventive care, AIDS education and prevention, as well as having a functioning mission hospital. Two memorable things related to the AIDS epidemic come to mind from Ekwendeni. A dedicated Christian layman offered a prayer in the Sunday morning worship for help from God to deal with so many people dying from AIDS. This was unusual in Malawi, where AIDS, the word, is seldom mentioned. The other thing that happened was I was approached by a polite young man at the hospital gate to buy some handmade greeting cards made by the Ekwendeni AIDS Youth Club, which I did. "Avoiding sex totally is the best way to avoid getting the virus. Message to the Youth!" was the package insert with the cards.

The second week of my mission trip was spent at Embangweni Hospital. Embangweni is located in an isolated area about 15 kilometers from the Zambian border. It serves as a major referral hospital for that area, including many patients from Zambia. Dr. Neil Kennedy, an Irish pediatrician, is the medical director of the hospital. Neil, his wife Sara, four year old Ben, and one year old Grace are carrying on the missionary tradition that was started at this historic location in 1902, as Loudon Station, started by Scottish missionaries. The rest of the staff at the hospital is Malawian. It was a pleasure to work with many qualified and dedicated trained Malawian professionals. While at Embangweni, I operated on four women with vesico-vaginal fistulas. This debilitating condition results from prolonged and unattended childbirth. If the operation is successful, the woman is cured from being constantly wet from urinary incontinence. Both Ekwendeni and Embangweni start off their working days with prayer and Bible meditations led by the local staff in the local language, Chitumbuka.

During my third week on the road, I went to Nkhoma Hospital, in the Central Region of Malawi. Nkhoma is about 15 kilometers from Lilongwe, the capital city, and is located in an exceptionally beautiful area, near Nkhoma Mountain. Built on the side of the mountain is a 200-bed mission hospital and nursing school, which was founded by Reformed Christians from South Africa 120 years ago. The flowering trees of jacaranda, flamboyant, and frangipani were in full bloom at Nkhoma. In addition the roses and other flowers added by the missionaries made the place refreshing. Dr. Ranier Ter Haar from South Africa was the dedicated medical director. Dr. Ter Haar had so many jobs I wondered how he could get through the day. In addition to everything else, he has a special heart for women with vesico-vaginal fistulas, and is a very good fistula surgeon.

The Lilongwe Central Hospital is the major government referral hospital for the Central Region. This hospital, as are so many government hospitals, is overwhelmed with work. Because of Dr. Ter Haar’s special interest and expertise in vesico-vaginal fistulas, and thanks to financial assistance from Presbyterians in Ohio, Nkhoma Hospital is ministering to these women. An ambulance from Nkhoma went to the Lilongwe Central Hospital and collected 16 women with fistulas and brought them back to Nkhoma a few days before I arrived. We worked hard together with the staff and were able to operate on ten of them during the time I was there. The others will be operated on the next week.

This mission trip was a very good experience for me. As many Americans know, going on a mission trip often results in being ministered to as well as trying to minister to others. My faith was encouraged by the dedicated people I got to know and work with at these hospitals. I realized that all of us share many of the same problems: shortage of staff, low salaries for the workers, people dying of AIDS every day, too much work and not enough hours in the day to do the work. It was an opportunity for me to be mutually encouraged in the faith by fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

Sue Makin

The 2001 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 41