Author: Bert&Debbie

On the left is Dr. Tom Spears, who plans to be here next January with his wife and two children (ages 2 &4 years.) He serves with BMS UK and is a completely trained family medicine specialist.

He has served in Benin and Nepal. The Spears plan to serve with us long term at G 2.

This was a bit of a test trip for the Spears and to check into schools for the children. From the G2 leadership team’s perspective, the Spears “passed muster” and we enjoyed the time of interaction. We are already looking forward to the Spears family becoming members of our G2 family!

On the right is Chris Spears is Tom’s dad and is a retired engineer. I tried to recruit him to have a crash course in surgery so he could come and share night and weekend call, but he didn’t seem to think he would deal with blood too well.

I feel it is an excuse, and he just prefers to amble around the beautiful eastern England country and beaches! He knew better than to use the age card. I’m his senior by 8 years!

As you can tell we all enjoyed the Spears’s short visit with us.
Bert

Please note in your address books that Bert now has a new email address.

Do not reply to newsletter emails as Bert does not see them.

Send all future emails to: debbieoubre@gmail.com

History is being made as Dr. Paul, his wife, Lynn, and three children, arrived this weekend for a four-month stay.

Paul is originally from Ghana and has completed his Family Medicine residency at Ventura County Medical Center in California.

He is the first Fellow we have had. We will try to provide him with a rich experience here at G2.

Paul’s supervisor is Dr. James Appel, also a graduate of the FM residency at Ventura County. The latter FM residency is known as one of the best in the US.

Dr. Appel has a vast experience in serving in Chad for 17 years.

Thank you, Lord, for sending this great family!
Bert

Recently the eye surgery team (shown in the photos below) examined
and treated 500 patients for free with all sorts of eye problems.

Forty-eight  patients were selected for cataract removal. They paid a small fee for surgery.

One little girl had congenital cataracts removed from both eyes and has vision for the first time!

This new outpatient waiting area seats two hundred.

We saw 300 patients yesterday and 150 were eye patients!

The eye campaign ends Friday and the international team will leave. However, we have had excellent rapport and fellowship. Our best male scrub nurse, Theo, has attracted attention by his unusual aptitude and positive attitude. He is a new believer — saved here ?.

The ophthalmologists want to arrange formal training for Theo in Togo for two years. After this, he will return here to serve in our eye clinic and will be able to do cataract surgery.

There is a possibility of CBM (Christoffel Blinden Mission) building a new eye care center here and staffing it.

God is good!

Bert

This giant ovarian cyst in a thin 70-year-old woman has really changed her profile.

She came in looking 20 months pregnant and now has a scaphoid abdomen.

We could not weigh it on a 20kg scale.

In addition to this case, we did a laparotomy and found, sadly, widespread cancer on a 48-year-old pastor’s wife.

A baby with hydrocoele and circumcision.

A 20-year-old female with a ventral hernia.

A cholecystectomy for a 39-year-old female who had six gallbladder stones.

Bilateral orchiectomy for 80-year-old male with advanced cancer of the prostate.

Keep praying!
Bert

 

 

Dear friends,

The long line of women in this photo are moms waiting to get their babies vaccinated.

Most of the babies were born here at Hôpital de Guinebor. Debbie is inside maternity helping do the vaccinations.

We’re glad so many moms are faithful to comply with our requests to vaccinate their children as Chad has one of the highest infant mortality rates in the world.

Today the temperature outside is only about 90F but in the hot season it will get as hot as 120F, and we have a three month + rainy season that makes waiting outside, as these moms and babies are doing, difficult or not even possible.

Thus, to make this vaccination program more efficient we will need to build a simple waiting area that will cost $20,000.

To help with this project, send your gift to:

CEF PO Box 2652
Lexington, SC 29071
USA
Attn: Evans Jones

Please designate clearly that your gift is for “Vaccination building” Hopital de Guinebor, Chad.

Blessings,
Bert and Debbie

This is our all-African Trained Surgery Team at Guinebor Hospital.

Kalbassou Doubassou is the surgeon as well as the newly appointed Hospital Director. He was one of our first students in Cameroon in 1993.

We have served with Kalbassou in Cameroon, Nigeria and now Chad.

His skills and gifts are not limited to surgical as he has much experience in hospital administration.

He may be our best evangelist as well as is gifted in languages. He functions well in Fulani, English, French, Arabic, Massa, and others. He can preach in five languages.

He helped us train the rest of the team here in Chad. In addition, Kalbassou is a church planter and pastor.

If you look closely, you will see the white face of Dr. Jim McGuillivray of Canada as he observes and approves of our team’s performance.

We are feeling very blessed that the Lord Jesus has chosen to use us in this exciting Kingdom-building ministry in one of the “uttermost parts of the world.”

Bert and Debbie

Dr. James McGilliavry had a 60-year surgical career in Canada and retired “too early” at age 86!

He contacted me and told me he felt he still has a little tread on his tires and is still feels he can help needy people.

I said, “ Okay, Jim, let’s give it a try!”

How many people his age can or would travel alone from Canada to Chad?

He arrived in good form and has been living with Debbie and me. We have never had an easier guest!

His surgical experience is vast and he knows his profession well!

We have had many interesting conversations and I respect him as he is just a decent, ethical, competent brother surgeon as well as older brother in Christ. Hey, I don’t have many older ones! Older by eleven years!

Jim has certainly been an inspiration to me. He will serve with us three more weeks and we will really miss him when he leaves!

God is good and continues blessing us and this place.
Bert