Wednesday's clinic came with many surprises

I'm writing this as we are getting ready to leave in about 15 minutes for our big nice dinner for the week.  We will be going to Safari Park, an all you can eat steakhouse with many exotic meats and a live stage show of all the tribal cultures.  More on that tomorrow...

Our day at the clinic saw 184 people come through the gate for treatment.  But the numbers don't begin to tell the story.  We had an elderly man get our strongest prescription and he could then read the eyechart very well.  We were also blessed by a visit from our friend Sylvester, the Project Coordinator with the Central Diocese.  Pastor Kevin and I had a long talk with him about the future of our work in and around Nairobi.  Gloria, our friend the nurse, came along with him and did an outstanding job, assisting us in the triage area.

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The boy with keratoconus and his concerned father

A high point for me was when one boy came to the clinic and was diagnosed with keratoconus, a disease that would lead to blindness without treatment.  His father had brought him and was looking for help for an operation that could cost as must as 250,000 Kenyan Shillings (about $3000).  Our doctors knew of a hospital that could do the procedure for about a tenth of that, which is still out of the reach of the family.  We decided to pay for half of the cost and let the community, his family and other sources supply the rest.  These are the kind of decisions we have to make sometimes.  Do we spend the money on about 3 cataract surgeries for older people or do we give a young boy a chance at seeing and being able to lead a productive life?  This one was not that hard, Pastor Kevin and I agreed that the boy needed our help.  No sooner had we taken care of this, than another young boy came in with the same condition, only his eyes were also in a bad way from allergies, possibly infected or worse.  We also are going to give him the help he needs, but his eyes need to clear up before anything more can be done.  Our doctors gave him some eye drops, and if they work, then he also has the possibility of getting the procedure.  We won't know if either boy will get treated, it is up to the hospital to do more screening and then their doctor's decisions will determine the outcome.  Please keep these young men in your prayers.

All in all, a good day, with many blessings around every corner.  More to come tomorrow!