These notes are about the CMF Developing Health Course 2014.
The focus of today is More Women’s Health. I made notes on the whole course in 2012 – you can read about this day here.
Each day I’m just going to write about things that impacted me, and things I need to read later…
Cross Cultural Care
Mary Hopper delivered a talk that usually marks part of a 30 hour course over 6 weeks. In 55 minutes.
Your race is a constant.
Your culture constantly changes.
She recommended reading a book called “Desert Flower”, by Waris Dirie.
She mentioned that simple things like Dermatology books rarely have pigmented skin, making medicine itself culturally inaccessible, but then Marli emailed me an African Skin Guide, which is not added to my ridiculous pile of things I need to read…
Labour and Obstetrics
A maternity dashboard sounds like an excellent way of keeping track of statistics and aiming to improve them across a whole hospital.
We had lots of very useful workshops, which included resolving a shoulder dystocia, and delivering a breach. I also had some great one-on-one tuition from Julie-Rachel, a midwife working in Zambia, who invited all of us to stay out there – she has ridden on an elephant! I definitely want to ride on an elephant, so now I just need to persuade Katherine that the experience is worth 20 hours or so of travelling…
Final evening
It being the last evening before the end of the course, there was a goodbye service in the chapel, where Ian spoke about Ephesians 1 again, and talked about the big transformation present in so many biblical lessons: imagining a U shape, starting high, dropping low, coming high. Jesus is Lord, coming down to mankind, dying an ignoble death, then rising up again.
He ended with John 13:
Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.
He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”
Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.”
“No,” said Peter, “you shall never wash my feet.”
Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.”
“Then, Lord,” Simon Peter replied, “not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!”
Jesus answered, “Those who have had a bath need only to wash their feet; their whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you.” For he knew who was going to betray him, and that was why he said not every one was clean.
When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.”
John 13:3-17
Last time I was on the course, I felt a calling to wash everyone’s feet. This time we did it again, myself, Marli and Jayde. As always, it was an intimate, humbling experience – an honour for all of us.
CURRY!
Several of us had wanted to go out for an evening meal, but Vicky was sad about people leaving on the very last night: we compromised with an Indian takeaway. In the largest order I’ve ever made, we ordered £120 of curries, rice, poppadums and naan breads. We pulled together 3 tables, and sat round them, laughing, sharing, and trying not to think about saying goodbye.
After the food was finished, we spent some good old fashioned time singing Irish songs, National Anthems of every country round the table (we didn’t do all 11 verses of the Norwegian one), reading out poetry and spoken word, and telling jokes.
Worship in the dark
By around 10, a small group of us – Me, Jayde, Marli, Jakob, Ingvlid, Richard (until his wife summoned him away) – headed to the chapel, where we started playing worship songs. We turned off the lights, with just a small torch lighting up the music on the piano, and stayed together for hours.
It was a peaceful end to the course, and an honour to share with friends who were strangers to me 2 weeks ago. Around 1am, we prayed for each other, and headed for bed.
I stupidly also chose this time to pack, but because I’m a disorganised man, it only took me about 5 minutes to shove everything randomly into bags
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