Compassion International

Today was probably the most exhausting day of the trip (I'm writing this a week after the actual day). We were supposed to see 1500 Compassion International kids for their annual medical check-up. We arrived at the center where the kids meet every Saturday for kids' club to a full yard of kids waiting. What cute kids!

On first glance, these kids were day and night from the kiddos we'd seen over the past two days. Unlike the others, the Compassion sponsored kids were nourished, looked healthy, and had radiant smiles on their faces. Talking with them later, they could carry on a good conversation with me, look me in the eyes, and just had such a sense of inner joy. I was amazed at the difference. If I had ever doubted the effectiveness of child sponsor programs, all doubts stopped today. I am a firm believer now!

We were told there weren't going to be many prenatals as we were focusing more on the kids today. So I prepared to sit next to an MD and jump in. However, it soon became clear that perhaps someone could specialize in talking to the girls with "girly issues," and since it's such a sensitive topic, especially at that age, as a Tagalog speaker I fell into the role. I loved being able to dig deep into some of their fears in their own language. But no matter the language, teenage girls are teenage girls...no matter the country or culture. It is always neat to empower these girls about their own bodies and the unique needs and strength that women have.

I also helped a couple of the surgeons translate for their patients, such as the all important, "holler if it hurts!" after the lidocaine has been given time to work.

I haven't really mentioned my best coworker of the week. Jenni is a clinical nurse specialist (CNS) in education and used to work at the labor and delivery unit manager for a time. She brought a wealth of information and it was fun to learn from each other as the week went by. One of my favorite times was watching Jenni bring in whole families and talk with everyone about a specific person...such as the need to eat the right food, or practice good dental hygiene, or getting enough sleep. I've read about the family approach in textbooks, but hadn't really seen it in practice. Way to go, Jenni! (And a big thanks for the NRP and Fetal Monitoring textbooks!)

We worked until early evening, pulling out the emergency lights to help the doctors sitting at tables outside. We worked for about 30 minutes this way before the organizers realized that it was a lost cause. It was hard to turn kids who had waited a few hours to see us, but we couldn't keep going on empty.

Later over a light dinner, people started to spontaneously debrief and it became obvious we were worn down and at the third day hump. Were we doing any good? Was seeing 1500 kids in one day even possible? At what point were we perhaps compromising our medical judgment just to get through the day and as many kids as possible? Having been on the mission field for over half my life, I like to think I've gained a bit of perspective. It's not about diagnosing a hidden disease...after all, it's not until symptoms appear that diseases get diagnosed even in near perfect medical offices. Today was about seeing kids. Smiling. Touching. Encouraging. and sharing joy. A stethoscope placed on the chest wasn't just about listening for an irregular heartbeat, it was about showing that kid that they matter and have incredible value. I spoke up and shared this with the group... Most of those kids will never meet their sponsors who send in $30 a month...to them, we were the faces of their sponsors. And that matters deeply.

We then started praying and encouraging one another. The night ended on a positive note as we fell into our beds before our last day of medical outreach.