Uganda 2017

Greetings form the Codas. As I sit by the woodburning stove in our kitchen watching the snow fall outside , hearing the rumble of the snowplows clearing the road it seems odd that in less than 2 weeks we will be sitting outside on our porch at St. Francis Hospital Mutolere in western Uganda, avocados hanging on the nearby tree, garden rows freshly planted awaiting the rainy season and tea plants on the mountain sides ready to bring forth the bright green of new growth.

As my wife Martha and I continue to organize and prepare for our 6th volunteer trip overseas with Mission Doctors Association this transition time always seems to carry a tense uncertainty. We leave a world where routines are for the most part predictable, trying to pack some of that predictability into our limited baggage allowance. But I think God has again shown His mercy on us by allowing only 2 bags per person, 50 pounds each and a little extra for an additional charge. The rest we must trust in his providence. I remember that, in the past, we sometimes packed things that we didn't even need,  and that what should have been packed never even cross my mind.  

I think this path we plan to travel leads somewhere through a desire to help (our planning) , a call to Faith (my anxiety resulting from uncertainty) and a need to trust (accepting baggage limit). I pray for the strength and courage that Martha and I, as well as the people of St. Francis Hospital, will need to allow God to do His work on us and through us in the months to come.

Peace to you all,

Lou Coda

More pictures

drying clothing at the hospital

drying bed sheets at the hospital

little girl on a boda-boda (motorcycle)

a 3 pound premie in the incubator in the nursery with the oxygen tank

one of our bathroom at the house

lady selling roasted corn on the side of the road in Kisoro

The four volcanos in our area.  The fourth one is across the border in the Congo, and the first one (and sometimes the second) is where the gorillas live.

 

Kisoro Supermarket

Clare standing in front of the pediatric ward

Lou using the MDA ultrasound machine to look for ascites in a man with cirrhosis

The altar in the hospital chapel, at Easter

Clare trying to get an email to send

 

Lou crushing and mixing various minerals, the components of a powder used to replace deficiencies in malnourished children

 

 

Clare examining a 7-year-old, with Lou supervising.  The young lady in blue is a nursing student.

Clare examining an infant, with Lou supervising

And gorillas

Greetings from the Codas as we return to St. Francis Hospital Mutolere in southwestern Uganda.

Accompanying us this time is our oldest daughter Clare, who is just finishing medical school at Drexel University and will be starting an Internal Medicine/Pediatrics combined residency at the University of Maryland.  She is taking this opportunity to work with her dad and the other medical staff and to learn how to deliver care in a resource-limited environment. 

This is our third stint at St. Francis Hospital and we are eagerly looking forward to renewing our friendships there. 

Dry Season

Everyone helps haul water during the dry season.

Hair Clips

A new way to use those hair clips!

New Sweaters

Orphans receiving new school sweaters through the Mutolere Orphans Program.

Looks like they need them, doesn't it??!