Mbetta

Mbetta Community Greeting

This last week I accompanied Sister Xaveria to Mbetta.  3 of the Tertiary Sisters of St Francis staff a Health Clinic in this remote village..  It was a 8 hour drive from Njinikom and the last 2 hours was on a very primitive road through the mountains.  Without a good 4-wheel drive vehicle and an experienced driver we would have never made it there.  As the rainy season gets worse the road will become impassable and will require a 6-12 hour walk to get in or out.  There is no Doctor yet the nurses care for about 40 hospitalized patients and see another 30 outpatients daily.  Because of the forested area and the weather being warmer they have more malaria patients than we see in Njinikom.  There were a number of pregnant patients in the hospital who lived many hours away and they came 2 weeks before their due date to ensure they would deliver in the hospital and not along the way.
  

Consulting with Gregory

The people of Mbetta graciously welcomed us on our arrival.  Sister was there to oversee work on repairing the convent and make arrangements for building a new Health Center.  I did rounds on all the hospitalized patients and then saw 50 outpatients the next day with Gregory who sees the majority of the patients and has earned the local title of “Doctor”.  Our stay was short but I was glad to provide moral support for the Health Care Team and their efforts to provide care for their people.