Guyana, Day 4 – Please help!

The following is an email written by Sr. Mary Kelly about the devastating fire she witnessed at Mercy Hospital in Guyana. Please go here to help!

“Right after prayers and during breakfast we got a call from Sister Noel that St. Joseph Mercy Hospital was on fire.  At the end of the day, we were standing in the street looking at the still-smoldering ruins of the original wooden hospital building converted to hospital use by the Sisters in 1945.  The two miracles generally agreed upon were that all patients were safely evacuated and that the fire was contained to the oldest wooden structure.  The fire fighters were still on site at 7 PM responding to flare-ups.

The day was pretty chaotic, everyone doing what they could to help.  With no disaster or medical training, I did things like write a press release and prepare a fact sheet for a press conference with the CEO.  I also just sat and answered the convent phone. The convent where I am is about 10 minutes from the hospital.  I went over to the Red Cross to help there at about 10 am.  There was a terrific outpouring of support to the hospital and the Sisters.   Even the President of Guyana stopped to offer sympathy.  The Bishop was returning by plane and saw the smoke from the air and came right over when his plane landed.

When things slowed a bit, we held strategy meetings to see what to do and how to channel the support to help get the hospital back in operation.  The outpatient services will open at 9 AM Tuesday in a nearby Red Cross building.  The campus is off limits until the fire department and the insurance company clear it. I hope the Mercy Health systems in the US can send supplies and equipment.

We had a meeting of the Mercy Community in Guyana at 5 PM and Sisters shared a lot.  I was amazed at the number of sisters that personally helped evacuate patients.  One sister was staying on the hospital grounds and saw the early stage of the fire—right across the compound from her room.  She described a young employee with the presence of mind to throw oxygen tanks from the second floor off the side of the building into a pond in order to minimize explosions.  It is still amazing and unbelievable.

Tomorrow we will be in meetings all day hoping to plan a pathway into the future for the hospital.  I am so glad I was here for this.  I think it helped to have an extra RSM to do whatever and to be company.  Wednesday morning I leave to come home.

Mary Kelly, RSM

Read Full Post »

From the Auburn Sisters

Following is a very inspiring report from the Guatemala Mission Team who worked with the sick from October 15-25.  The team includes nurses and physicians from our hospitals.

Follow the Journey | Your Guatemala Mission Team Leaves Today All, Today (written prior to Oct. 15) the 2009 Guatemala Mission Team leaves for Esquipulas. Our team of 24 care givers and staff represent 13 CHW hospitals and 3 business offices will be in Esquipulas from October 15-25.

We will be delivering primary care and health education to the populations of impoverished villages surrounding Esquipulas, a remote area about four hours southeast of Guatemala City, in support of two of CHW’s sponsoring congregations – the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word and the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas. Our volunteer doctors, nurses, and specialists are able to provide primary care treatment to about 100 people per clinic day, including home visits to attend to those who are too ill or injured to travel to the clinic sites. Nurse educators are also present to offer health and wellness education to community leaders and families.

We will be writing about our experiences and posting photographs throughout via our blog: http://missionsblog.chwHEALTH.org. Please do check in with the site often and send us messages by commenting on any of the posts. We read your messages to the full team every morning and it really makes a big impact on everyone to hear from our colleagues and loved ones back at home.

Thank you for all of your support. Our executive matching challenge has already raised more than $5,000 for the mission. Your generosity is humbling and will go a long way in helping to enrich the lives those we are serving. If you would still like to participate in the executive matching challenge (which can raise as much as $10,000 for the mission) you can still donate online or send a check (payable to the CHW Foundation for International Health) to Pamela Hearn at 251 S. Lake Ave, 7th Floor, Pasadena, CA 91101.

Best regards

Read Full Post »