Post from Logan Lehnert
The California team members packed all the boxes filled with medical equipment into a van. And our team photographer Fletcher Fleurdujon took us to the airport! We flew nine hours to Portugal, where we had an 11-hour layover. We checked out Lisbon for the day and had a great meal of charcuterie and cheese. I remembered to wait to take my malaria medication on an empty stomach.
The second leg of the trip, Lisbon to Angola, was another eight hours in the air. I took the opportunity to break into a new book in an attempt to force my circadian rhythm to match the time in Angola.
Our first challenge occurred when we arrived in Angola. We spent about an hour at immigration while we waited for security officers to go through our boxes of supplies — most of them, anyway.
One of our medical supply boxes disappeared on the journey. We hope the airline can locate and deliver it to us because it has critical supplies. The missing box has all the donated bone material, which we use for reconstruction. The box also had a surgical screw set and saw blades, without which our power tools are useless.
We start screening tomorrow. I am very excited to start working and help fix some deformities.
Once we arrived at the hospital, we dropped off our boxes of equipment for sterilization so we can start surgery tomorrow. Thankfully, the airline located our missing supply box. Madison Pribyl, RN, our latest arrival, brought it to the hospital. We’re back on track!
Travel Time: June 27th – 29th
The California team members packed all the boxes filled with medical equipment into a van. And our team photographer Fletcher Fleurdujon took us to the airport! We flew nine hours to Portugal, where we had an 11-hour layover. We checked out Lisbon for the day and had a great meal of charcuterie and cheese. I remembered to wait to take my malaria medication on an empty stomach.
Our first challenge occurred when we arrived in Angola. We spent about an hour at immigration while we waited for security officers to go through our boxes of supplies — most of them, anyway.
One of our medical supply boxes disappeared on the journey. We hope the airline can locate and deliver it to us because it has critical supplies. The missing box has all the donated bone material, which we use for reconstruction. The box also had a surgical screw set and saw blades, without which our power tools are useless.
We start screening tomorrow. I am very excited to start working and help fix some deformities.
Day 1 at the Hospital: June 30th
I woke up at 3:40 am. Jet lag is pulling my leg. The bus is leaving about 20 minutes late due to miscommunication between the hotel and our team, which meant our supplies weren’t on the bus when we planned to leave. I am extremely excited to begin patient intake and meet the people we will be helping over the next few weeks.Once we arrived at the hospital, we dropped off our boxes of equipment for sterilization so we can start surgery tomorrow. Thankfully, the airline located our missing supply box. Madison Pribyl, RN, our latest arrival, brought it to the hospital. We’re back on track!
We are so proud of our Son Bruce, Daughter in law Jenni, Grandsons Logan and Lex and the entire team for everything they do. Love you and be safe, Mom and Dad
ReplyDeleteThey're a pretty amazing crew!
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