Malawi Report – July/August 2005.

The team, Elaine Lawrence, Lynsey Marks, Declan Quinn and Jonathan Patterson, graduated from their medical studies on 4 July, and left for Malawi on 8 July.  Prior to leaving, the team had to try to find room in their cases for several gifts of medical supplies, educational materials and clothing donated by members of the congregation and friends. Included in those donations were ones from UNESCO.  Don McBurney, Youth Ambassador for UNESCO, was able to arrange through British Airways, for an extra 20kg per person.  We proffer our sincere thanks to British Airways for their support.

 Not all of the UNESCO goods were able to be taken out and the rest were sent out by container to Malawi. That particular container was going to the South of the country and our supplies went to a school in Blantyre and the hospital in Mulanje.

On the morning the team were due to leave, a telephone call to Embangweni brought the wonderful news that transport was going to be available to bring them to Embangweni (until then it looked as if they would have to use public buses).  The team – and baggage – arrived safely in Embangweni and from there, after an overnight stay, Elaine and Lynsey moved on to Livingstonia.

In Embangweni, Declan and Jonathan spent the mornings mainly doing  rounds in the Childrens and Male wards and, in the afternoons, they worked in Outpatients where many of the people had been waiting all day to see a doctor.  During the two weeks new friendships were made and old ones strengthened.  Declan had raised funds on his own and gave £1600 towards the Marion Medical Shallow Wells project, enough for 9 wells. In addition he gave £2900 and Jonathan £1100 towards the building of an HIV/Aids block at the hospital.  This is a huge project, that many people are working hard to complete, which will greatly benefit the continuing battle against HIV/Aids.  During the two weeks, they visited Kalangulu Primary School, a rural school ten kilometres outside Embangweni.  They donated sports equipment, a football kit, an education pack and £100 (raised by Carryduff Children’s Church) to purchase benches and educational supplies.  It is hoped that a relationship will be built between Carryduff and Kalangulu whereby we can help the school to develop despite its difficult conditions.

Up in Livingstonia, Elaine and Lynsey spent most of their time looking after the patients in Female ward.  By being on-call a few nights, they were able give the staff some needed time off.  They helped take the ‘Saturday Club’, which Dr Maureen Stevenson set up for the children of Livingstonia.  The two girls also spent time with locals being invited to many homes throughout the two weeks - very typical of the Malawian culture, trying to show their appreciation to Elaine and Lynsey for returning to Livingstonia and helping in the hospital again.  

From the funds we had raised, £3965 was sent out to Livingstonia (£3065 to buy fertilizer to try to alleviate the threat of famine; £850 towards the orphans project that we have supported in the past and £50 for the Church Choir – from the sale of videos of the Livingstonia choirs).  Elaine and Lynsey handed over a further cheque of £1550 to the Hospital (which is being used to buy drugs, protein foods for HIV positive patients and pay the hospital fees of people who are unable to meet those costs)

Declan and Jonathan travelled up to Livingstonia for the final weekend of their time in Malawi – experiencing the “challenge” of the Girode hairpin bend road.  Jonathan was on the lookout for further projects which we could support in Livingstonia (see below).  Travelling back down to Lilongwe to fly home, the team called briefly in Ekwendeni and met Dorah Chavura.  Dorah was able to ask Jonathan to deliver many letters she had written as a follow up to her time here in Northern Ireland last June.

After safe arrival at  Lilongwe Airport, the team discovered their Air Malawi flight had been delayed a couple of hours.  The flight was further delayed which resulted in them missing their connecting British Airways flight in Johannesburg by 45 minutes.  No seats were available on the later evening flight as a strike by South African Airways meant all spare seats had been taken. Prospects for getting a seat on the next evening’s two flights were low as they were now fully booked and to compound matters, only Jonathan’s baggage arrived off the Air Malawi flight.

The team needed to get back to Northern Ireland to attend hospital training days prior to starting their new jobs – would they make it?  The  efforts to get them a flight home was the subject of much prayer. John Reeves (British Airways in Belfast) submitted a special request through to Jo’burg while the team made their own efforts to get preference as standby passengers.  After a night in a local hotel, which Air Malawi arranged, the team was off to the airport, hoping and praying something would work out.  During the long wait the others learned that their luggage had been kept in the airport basement over night, and so were able to reclaim their baggage.  Ten minutes before the first London flight was about to depart for Heathrow, they finally were issued boarding cards!  Arriving in London, British Midland allowed them to go standby – without extra cost – to return to Belfast.  The team got on that flight and so returned safely to Northern Ireland – albeit a day late.  The difficulties over the flight home had not dampened or detracted from their experiences in Malawi and all four were most appreciative of the opportunity they had been given to return to the hospitals where they had been for their medical elective training. 

With the “medical team project” concluded, what next?  Several members of our congregation want to continue our links with Malawi.  Jonathan has challenged us to support the construction of a Guardians’ shelter for the hospital in Livingstonia (at present the families of those in hospital who come to cook for them have to sleep outside).  Serious consideration is being given to sending out a work party next summer to construct such a shelter. 

August 2005