About a month ago we had some chaos at the clinic in the middle of the night. William (unbeknown to me as I was sleeping like a baby) got up to check it out. He came home and woke me up with these words "There is a big crisis at the clinic". So I hopped out of bed to start pulling on my boots. Then he said "Don't bother, she's already dead".
It turned out that a woman who lives on the other side of the river had given birth at home. She had a retained placenta and began hemorrhaging. After a few hours of trying to stop the bleeding her family and neighbors put her on a plastic tarp and carried her to the clinic. She died shortly after arriving at our dispensary. The baby however lived.
A few days later I met the baby for the first time. Her name is Michelle. Her grandmother has been taking care of her since she was born. As a clinic and Home Based Care staff we have tried to provide as much support as possible. But Michelle is still really struggling. She is not developing well and definitely not thriving. So this week the decision was made that she will come and stay with us on the clinic grounds. She will be living in the new Home Based Care office along with Victoria who was the caregiver for our last clinic charge, Flovia. Please pray that she begins gaining both weight and energy. I'll keep you posted!
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