New Beginnings

As I packed my bags for Africa only a few days ago I finally had a chance to think about what was going to happen over the next couple of weeks, and butterflies welled up in my stomach. I don’t have a medical background at all, I have been working for Open Heart International (OHI) for over 14 months now and this is my first OHI trip. I love my day-to-day job, but I am really looking forward to seeing how it all rolls out, the missing puzzle piece so to speak.

The set up team have arrived at King Faisal Hospital. However, we are still waiting for the freight to be cleared by customs. We are hoping that it will be ready for us this morning so we can start unpacking in preparation for our first day of surgery tomorrow.

Dr Andrew and Beth have been working extremely hard with the local team for a week now preparing a list of suitable cases. The work they do is nothing short of amazing.

The medical lingo is going to be a bit overwhelming, but as I sit here watching Tricia receive her screening from Andrew, Beth is giving me a quick run down on VSD and ASD’s. I still don’t fully understand it, but I know one thing, the heart is incredible to say the least!

Even though I am going into unknown territory, (in more than one way) I am excited to see these amazing medical professionals work together to change the lives of these Rwandan children.