Saturday march 10

aturday March 10

A bit painful to wake up at 7:30 this morning, but so it goes. We went to the hospital and made rounds; to my surprise our amputation patient from yesterday is mentally brighter and seems to be improving.  Then to the OR where we found Moses and Konneh dressed in scrubs and ready to work. Percilla was there with a full staff, contrary to some expectations, so that we actually ran 2 rooms at the same time. John and I did a combination inguinal and ventral hernia in one room, and Moses and Diego did an inguinal hernia in the other room.
I think the meeting yesterday evening must have had some effect. As we were leaving, I thanked Percilla and asked her to extend our thanks to the whole staff, and she said that she was  pleased that things will be different next week. By that I think she was referring to starting on time and not wasting time; we shall see.
After a short nap in the afternoon, we went to the home of Lydia's boyfriend for a party. He lives in a spacious new apartment off Tubbman Boulevard; the complex is still under construction. It is a good example of the rebirth and rebuilding going on here. After a few drinks there, we went to another party at the home of Gino, who I think is the Deputy Chief of Mission at the US Embassy here. He told me that Linda Greenhouse (?) had just left here as US Ambassador to return to Washington and become Chief of the Foreign Service. Other people at the party included Adamah's brother Kumba, who is head of National Security in Liberia, and several people from the embassy including the defense attaché and a CiA rep. All in all, a very interesting group of people ! We enjoyed plenty of food, drink, and laughter before coming home. Happily when we got here we found the generator fixed, so we have air conditioning once again !
I have had some excellent conversations with Diego and John about this experience, which they are both enjoying totally. It has clearly surpassed their expectations, not only in terms of the surgery, but also because of the other aspects, such as the people we met this evening. They have both told me that this is a life-changing experience for them; I am proud to have played a part in the process.