There certainly are differences between having surgery in the US and having surgery in Kenya (and I’ve experienced both)!  I’m not saying my experience here in Kenya was a bad one, just different.

I don’t remember much about my pre-surgery since I was in a lot of pain, but there are a few things that stick out in my mind.

  • sitting in a wheelchair and being pushed up a couple ramps to reach the top floors of the hospital and those ramps being very bumpy (with my insides screaming, this was not comfortable)
  •  the doctor told me to drink several cups of water to “bloat” up my bladder for easier sonogram reading….even in my pain I asked if the water was ok to drink!
  • Chuck relayed this one to me…..as I’m laying on the table after the sonogram, the sonogram operator (who had been called away from her New Years Day party) said she had not signed up for this type of service, hers was 9-5 and wanted to get back to her party and she said this in front of Chuck!  Now, she did say that but she also did a good job reading the sonogram and giving Chuck information.
  • the surgeon wanted to take an x-ray, not sure why, but when they wheeled me into the x-ray room they wanted me to climb a two step step-stool and stand there.  At that point I could barely walk, let alone stand on top of a step-stool!  Well, I showed them…once I got to the top I said “I’m gonna throw up” (all that water I had drank and no place for it to go since my colon was shut off).  The x-ray tech went to get a basket but he wasn’t fast enough and I turned to the side and threw up…he came with the basket and said “oh, ok”.  That’s right when I say I’m gonna throw up, I throw up, basket or no!  Needless to say he got me off the step-stool.
  • to get into my surgical garb I had to step over a 2 foot wall/partition to reach the dressing area.  Again, I could barely stand or sit so stepping over this wall I needed some help, thankfully Chuck was with me every step of the way…unfortunately they wouldn’t let him come into the theater (what they call the operating rooms here)

A few more differences:

  • the first thing I remember after surgery was waking up to a mosquito net over me…I was thankful for that!
  • as I’m laying there a few hours after waking up from surgery a cleaning lady comes in to talk to Chuck (I believe I was the only woman patient at the time).  He tells her what we do and she then asks Chuck to take her kid and give her a job!  Hello, death just passed me by can you not ask us to take care of your issues right now!?  Yeah I know, not very unselfish but that’s what I was thinking, sorry.
  • I think I woke up from surgery around 1am and for my first meal the next day (lunch I believe) they served me rice, spicy beef and cabbage.  I wasn’t in the mood to eat anyway but seems my first meal after colon cancer surgery in the States was broth, if even that, and a stool softener!  At least Chuck had a few good meals 🙂
  • when it was time to check out we talked with the head nurse and she told us within the week to pay our bill.  No problem and I was settled in the truck to leave.  An administrator came out to the truck and asked Chuck to pay the bill before leaving.  Chuck told him what the head nurse said and the administrator went back inside the hospital, only to come back out and say the director of the hospital wants us to pay now.  Our friend and doctor (Max) had organized the surgeon, testing, etc. and contacted the director to vouch that we would pay our bill.  Well, Chuck had enough and we left only to have Max call us and ask Chuck to call the director to talk with him…we were being hounded for payment.  Now I understand where they are coming from because normally if they let someone leave the hospital without paying, they won’t ever get paid and can not continue helping people.  Chuck convinced the director we would stop on the way home and get him paid and he was ok with that.  We left and remember I now had stitches from my pubic bone up to one inch past my belly button and the roads were horrible.  Pot holes the size of a VW Bug and we were behind a truck hauling garbage and the smell was making me sick, but the thought of throwing up with those stitches put my insides into hysteria.  Once we got out of Nairobi we headed to our bank in Ruai where Chuck stopped, went into the bank and organized the payment of the hospital bill, which the director was very appreciative of.  All while I was trying to get comfortable in the truck.  But I’m glad the director is happy and hopefully we have established another good relationship with a medical facility.
  • oh, when we left the hospital they gave Chuck a few IV bottles that I’d need to have.  They left the port in my hand so he could attach them, but they gave him no instructions on how to start them.  So at home he figured it out but had to be the IV pole as we had no where to attach the IV bottle (literally a glass bottle!).
  • once the IV’s were complete, Chuck removed the port…thankfully he can tackle those medical procedures with ease!

So it was certainly different, but overall the staff was professional and I was treated well.  I am so thankful God brought Max into our lives to organize my surgery, especially on New Years Day, and everyone for your prayers and support.  So much could have gone wrong but I believe God has more for me to do!

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