When you have nothing left to give- you always have prayer and hope...

I saved this post because it deserved its own attention.  Greg Roberts, who is the missionary that coordinates things here, asked me on Saturday if I would go with him and see a Haitian friend in Christ who was in a horrific traffic wreck at the first of the week.  This gentleman was the assistant principal for a Haitian Christian school and was a beloved man.  He apparently suffered a cervical cord injury and was paralyzed in some hospital whereabouts unclear.  My first reaction was one of complete inadequacy to contribute much in this scenario but Greg seemed sure that this injured man and his friend needed our attention.  So, on our way to mobile clinic on Saturday, we bounced around for what seemed like a long time on muddy dirt roads between cinder block walls with Hopital and an arrow spray painted on the walls every block or so.  We arrived to a small "private" hospital.

We got out of the car and I will confess up front that I was seriously in question of what we were about to find and what in the WORLD I would be able to offer as help.  *Insert Lord's chuckle here*  We are greeted by Greg's friend Cedric who was also in the accident but with only minor injuries.  We then proceeded into the hospital which was remarkably clean and nice on the inside. 

The doctor was incredibly gracious and greeted us warmly.  He then patiently sat down to review Ona's injuries and treatment plan with me.  He had no reason to go through the details with a strange American doctor, but was so kind.  The heart wrenching part was seeing the xray and CT showing a compression vertebral fracture at C5.  My heart sank.  Remarkably, we learned that a Port au Prince neurosurgeon was coming out to consult on him daily.  Unfortunately, Ona was not a surgical candidate and had developed fever in the last 24 hrs.  The prognosis was bleak and I had to convey that to Ona's friends and family.  I was blessed to share that I did feel his care was very good and they are truly offering the best medical care at this point available for such a horrific injury.  There I was, standing in Ona's dimly lit hospital room with this sweet man who was clearly dying.  There was only one medicine left to administer, so I offered a prayer for him and his family.  We prayed as I held his fevered arm, and then we quietly left the room.

The doctor who met with us is the director for this private hospital and he showed us the rest of the facility which was over 10 private rooms very nice and clean including a pediatric room and surgical suite as well.  It was very impressive I'll admit and Greg was glad to make note of another facility to refer to for inpatient care.  This doctor was trained in abroad (?Prague I think) and is here working through Doctors without Borders though that group doesn't financial support this facility just him.  Anne took pictures with her camera of the doctor and hospital which we'll post later.

We left to the mobile clinic and my heart continued to weight heavy for Ona and his family.  I learned 24 hrs later that Ona did pass away Sunday to his Father's kingdom.  A victory for him and tragedy for his family and friends.